[Cdnstargazer]

But I can't. My fear is they:

A) will not accept it
B) will try to become too involved in my life
C) deny me rest of my education fund for when I'm older

*sigh*

Perhaps it's for the best. We have toxic relations at best. :/ even though they encourage me and tell me they love
me.

Anyone else not tell their parents for similar reasons?

[Camelot67]

I was scared to death to tell my parents. I was afraid they would think I was making it up. They ended up being over protective. They treat me like I can't take care of myself and when I have a set back they treat me like a loser. My sister and my dad don't think my mom should help me anymore when I'm in crisis because I should be able to do it on my own. Family sucks when it comes to mental health. I've learned to build support systems without them. I know they love me but they don't understand the bipolar. You have to tell them eventually just be prepared to deal with the ramifications. They love you and want what they believe is the best for you. It's a challenge but you will have to prove that you are capable of taking care of yourself. After being diagnosed I went on to get s masters degree which was totally against what my dad wanted. I eventually moved across the country to live and grow and become the person I was meant to be. Good luck!

[LucyG]

I bet your parents already know something is up so knowing what it is will help them understand what is going on with you better. You might even find out that it runs in the family as I did when I told my mother that I had bipolar. But when I told her that a neurologist didn't know why I had these funny spells where I would be totally spaced out and feel very strange so he diagnosed with ADD as I read several book at the same time, my mother burst out laughing as did my ex-husband. They both knew how hard driven task oriented I'd always been so they knew that diagnosis was nothing but foolishness.

Parents know their children, and knowing what's going on might help your relationship in the long run. Give them a chance. You might need them later in life so don't blow them off.

[Coconutzo]

I haven't told mine, and I doubt I ever will. There is nothing on the line for me to lose like an education fund, but the emotional price of telling them and getting anything near what i think their response would be is too great.
Do you live with them?
My folks are 400 miles away so it's easy not to talk about it.

[Anxiousvalkyrie]

I told mine, and it was both a blessing and a curse. My mom is a psychologist so I thought she would take it well but she treats me like a child and questions everything my doctors do, especially the meds they're trying out. I think (and my twin sister agrees) that she's having s really hard time accepting that her daughter is bipolar (and borderline personality). I don't like talking to her about my illness because it just turns negative, and to be honest I expected more from her since she's in the mental health field.

My twin sister, whom I've always had a very rocky relationship with shocked me. She has been 100% supportive. Always there for me and will go out of her way to cheer me up if she thinks I need it. She's been my biggest cheerleader through all of this.

Now my dad....well....he and I have always had a really tough relationship. Up until he found out about my suicide attempt last spring he hadn't talked to me in 2 years because he was angry I chose to move to Sweden and marry a man I love instead of staying in the US and marrying someone he approved of. I've spoken to him once on Skype and he seemed very supportive but I haven't heard from him since.

I guess my experience with family has been all over the place. Good luck to you. Hugs.

[RomanJames2014]

My family doesn't talk about it or acknowledge it because they don't believe it. I feel that my mom doesn't believe it because I dont tell her every detail of what I do when I go out for a night of fun and then dont come home for two days. Bipolar is often a term used to depict a irritable or crazy person and it gives the sickness a bad rap. When I start speaking in medical terms it helps them kind of understand. I feel the more medical terms I use the more they think its a "real" disease.

The choice is yours though. Not to stress you out but I will add that coming out as Gay to my family was easier and more accepting than coming out as Bipolar.

im sorry you cannot trust your parents with this information. ((hugs)))

When my parents finally realized that I was seriously and irreversibly mentally ill, and therefore unable to live up to their expectations, they mourned as if I had died. Good times.

[Unrigged64072835]

Both of my parents are dead now, so it's a moot point--but even when I was depressed I didn't tell them anything . My dad would probably tell me to suck it up, and my mom would feel guilty and drink more. It was best not to speak to them.

I haven't told my parents or my grandparents either.

My parents are not accepting of MI, and one of my grandmothers has dementia, so idk if she'd really understand (not that I would have told her if she was mentally healthy, but I'm just saying it's not an option). My other grandmother wouldn't understand either. "Huh? What's that?" is what she would say.

Also, my dad can be an idiodic asshole sometimes. He doesn't know how to keep his mouth shut. So even if he *were* accepting, he'd tell the whole world.

[luvyrself]

Originally Posted by LucyG

I bet your parents already know something is up so knowing what it is will help them understand what is going on with you better. You might even find out that it runs in the family as I did when I told my mother that I had bipolar. But when I told her that a neurologist didn't know why I had these funny spells where I would be totally spaced out and feel very strange so he diagnosed with ADD as I read several book at the same time, my mother burst out laughing as did my ex-husband. They both knew how hard driven task oriented I'd always been so they knew that diagnosis was nothing but foolishness.

Parents know their children, and knowing what's going on might help your relationship in the long run. Give them a chance. You might need them later in life so don't blow them off.

----i have those spaced out spells too. Also family history. Only my dad who was an alcoholic was always there for me knowing what its like to be different.
Lots of impatient treatment from those who didnt WANT to get it