how do you refer to your illness?

someone asked me this... do you say, i have bipolar, i've got bipolar, i am diagnosed as bipolar... how do you say it?

i always say i have- as i never liked i got (makes me think i'm holding the illness in my hands)

you?

...hey SS

most of the terms I use need to be censored here.

It still utterly amazes me on some elliptic level how the majority of people react...

with some retarded aghast!

when I say I have bipolar.

I experiment sometimes and say "I am bipolar"... or "I got bipolar"

the thing is ...?

most no-body understands it and I am not surprised.

it is nearly completely invisible ...

but the thing is?...
I just don't tell
unless they have been around for a bit
and their "dumbass aghast" can be ok
and nobody else matters

I use any and all. "I'm bipolar" "I have bipolar" "I got diagnosed with bipolar" will all come out of my mouth interchangebly as it doesn't make a difference to me.

If I say it all I say "I have an anxiety disorder" or "I have OCD".

Honestly, people don't ask me that question. Doctors might look at my medication and ask "What do you take _____ for?" My answer is usually "Bipolar disorder." (No "I have" or "I am"). Otherwise, no one else ever asks which is fine with me, and why would they? I don't have a scarlet "BP" on my chest so it's not like they would know anyway.

"I'm a crazy chick. You've been warned"

I usually just say "I'm bipolar". People understand that the best.

that's a new one, but if it works why not

It all depends upon our attitude in public to expose the symptoms of illness at the time of manifestation. Generally in our place there is no scope at all for this illness no matter little or more to get any chance to remain in a reputed job like west. It is better to come out at a stage to cope up with the situation to understand till such a time everybody in the world realizes we are the category little affected than the public..have a great month ahead..

It depends on the context, I guess. In more formal situations, such as going to a new doctor or having my med list reviewed, it's "I have bipolar disorder". But if I'm talking to somebody casually (and the subject happens to come up), I'll say "I'm bipolar". It doesn't matter, I learned awhile back that the illness was part of me (though not ALL of me) and not just a red-headed bastard child who followed me into the house. LOL

hmm.

wonder what all that's about..?

I have great stigma and fear from even telling people at all. I find that there is no good way to tell people. I fear the label that will be thrust upon me more then I can face. I can't even talk to my family much about my condition. I fear that because this is an invisible disease that others just think I making it up. All this results in a feeling of why bother they would not understand anyway. Some of my family have stated I just need to move on with it! I get the feeling that they think I am not trying to get better when in fact I am fighting to overcome. Good luck to all in facing the demons that plague us being able to talk about being Bipolar to others.

Yep. I say I'm bugshit crazy and they better stand back.

For me, it doesn't matter all that much because I find people only hear the words "me" and "bipolar".

What they think of the stigma about isn't going to change al to easily. Maybe if it was a large crowd or I pointed out how I said it.

~Lilly

Yeah, mostly I don't say anything.

When I do, like if someone sees me taking all my pills, I just say "haha, yeah I'm a legit crazy person!" and usually they take it as joke and it ends there.

Edit: I almost never use the word 'bipolar' because of associations it has. Sometimes I think I should to try and change the stereotype, but don't.

Sent from my GT-P3113 using Tapatalk 4

Like bpnurse says, its the context. In my support group I ALWAYS said "Hi, I"m A, I'm diagnosed with bipolar, GAD and ADHD to make it fun." I don't really tell anyone else other than dr's when I go through the med check stuff. I'm a lot of stuff but bipolar to me isn't an adjective. I'm silly, smart, emotional, short, and a whole lot of other things but I'm not bipolar. I"m not anxiety. I"m not adhd. I"m just diagnosed with those things.

Informally I will tell someone "I'm bipolar" such as a close friend, but if it's to a professional such as a doctor or a prof I trust I will say "I am diagnosed with schizoaffective disorder bipolar type". I'm not open to my true diagnoses since it has a lot if bad stigma attached to it. Saying that I'm bipolar is easier for people to understand and still view me the same for the most part.

I say I have manic depression. I don't like the word bipolar, I think it's offensive. For those who have read Kay R Jamison's An Unquiet Mind, I agree with everything she says about why she prefers 'manic depression' over 'bipolar' (I think p. 181).

offensive?

nah i've not read that book, but i'm interested in knowing why you found it offensive. i've personally never seen anything wrong with the term bipolar.

I prefer bipolar as I rarely become manic, so manic-depressive just doesn't describe me at all, and people tend to only hear the "manic" side of that term. But again, I pretty much never have this conversation with anyone except the professionals that work with me, so it really isn't a huge deal anyway for me.

I say "I have bipolar disorder" or "I suffer from.." I try to avoid telling folks unless they are or are going to be closely involved in my life.

When I was first diagnosed, I only told my boss because I knew I'd have a lot of appts initially. She was also a friend, so it didn't bother me. I was petrified that other people would find out. Then I had to go on medical leave and came back to the same job, and of course everyone wondered what was wrong, what had happened, where I'd gone. Not telling became a bigger deal than telling, so the next time someone alluded to me being gone, I said, "I'm bipolar. I had an episode." Now I just say that I'm bipolar or that I have bipolar disorder depending on the setting. I don't like saying "I've got" because it sounds to me like something I caught.

I usually say, "I am a certified nut ball" or something like that. This only happens with friends if they see that I am going through something. For work and non-friends I will usually excuse myself and tell them I am going theough something when I act a fool, I really try to control myself in public. My occupation alloows for me to be able to hide it.

With family and friends I say, "I'm bipolar" which pretty much means give me some space when I am mixed, or this is what is going on with me when I am manic or empty (I have heard this is the depressive part, except I do not consider myself as a person that ever gets depressed, just meh and empty.)

I refer to my illness as "Rufus."

For the last 3 years I've been trying an experiment where I don't hide my bipolar at all. Often it is one of the first few things I talk about. I had read that the harder one fights to hide crazy, the crazier one looks. So I've embraced my bipolarity and not always with good effect. Sometimes though, I am surprised by a very positive reaction.

I try to say I have bipolar, but it slips out all different ways. It doesn't really matter to me and it should.