[MuddyBoots]

Like you were born with powers meant to save the world, perhaps even the galaxy or universe or whatever, but instead these bird****ers convinced you that you are ill. Then they gave you meds that made you stupid to "get better" but they're not meds, you're not better, and you were never disordered or however tf you wanna word that.

I've thought this before, but it's cropped up again and I was just wondering if other people realized t his too.

[Alive99]

Originally Posted by Sapien

Like you were born with powers meant to save the world, perhaps even the galaxy or universe or whatever, but instead these bird****ers convinced you that you are ill. Then they gave you meds that made you stupid to "get better" but they're not meds, you're not better, and you were never disordered or however tf you wanna word that.

I've thought this before, but it's cropped up again and I was just wondering if other people realized t his too.

No. But I like this topic. Because, I have thought before about how your own brain has healing powers and you can't just rely on medication.

Anyway... beyond just healing powers of the brain, I thought I had special powers when I had mania or mixed episodes. Outside episodes, I have a way more moderate opinion with me sometimes feeling inspired like I gotta have some calling. I did not feel this before the bipolar started, so the two are somehow related (along with being related to those healing powers as well, this is a complex topic...). But part of how I got better with my episodes/the whole bipolar thing was me accepting that this inspiration needs to be realistic, not grandiose, like...I need to see actual results that whatever I do works, not just a feeling.


Even during episodes, I never thought that others just tried to convince me that I'm ill. I personally accepted the idea there was an issue when I saw rationally that yes, there is something going on and I saw how that bothers me and how it gets in my own way of living a full life. No one else needs to force ideas like that on me, since by definition a psychological issue interferes with your quality of life (or if it affects others but that doesn't happen without it affecting you too). Of course, it could be a problem recognising that it affects your life, in some cases. It can take time, too.



There's also that saying, fine line between madness and genius. I've googled this now and this is interesting.

"There is a fine line between genius and madness because they share the same genes, scientists have found. Psychologists have discovered that creative people have a gene in common which is also linked to psychosis and depression"

Fine line between genius and madness, scientists find

They mention bipolar disorder too in there.



PS: You mention meds making you stupid. Lol, Lamotrigine/Lamictal killed my working memory half of the time. So I can kinda see what you mean there. I never even dared to touch antipsychotics. But to be serious though, I don't think medication makes you stupid, I just find it funny how it's true that the medication I had killed my working memory like that. I still can't tell if I'd have been able to continue working on my issues if I had kept taking the medication. I think probably yes, though. Medication stabilising you can help with making the healing process more effective, or at least the management of the mental health issue.

[*Beth*]

No, but I have (do) believe that if I lived in a different type of society, one that placed more value upon depth of character rather than upon materialism, I may not be seen as "mentally sick" - or not so much, anyway.

[Soupe du jour]

I used to feel that way, to a degree, but I got over it.

For one thing, you don't have to take meds. You take them of your own accord, so no need to blame others. That is unless there is a court order that you have to take them, which I am doubting. However, it is most often the case that the romanticized notion that bipolar disorder makes one marvelous is just that A romantic notion. Sure, there can be times when one soars because of hypomania or mania, but like with other things, embracing it is making a deal with the devil. Eventually you pay a price for that addiction. Often, the disorder eventually nearly kills you, or kills you, figuratively or even literally. This can include ruining relationships, financial ruin (or job loss), total social embarrassment, extreme pain, etc. Truth is, hypomanic/manic "powers" eventually only live in the sick heads of those with the disorder. To others, we can indeed start to look insane. Of course if you're lucky enough to be a real super star, it can be a bittersweet situation. But that's far less common than a bipolar brain may think. We're not really all Robert Schuman, Virginia Woolf, or Vincent van Gogh. And remember they ended their lives in tragedy.

Sometimes people must hit a bottom to finally realize the severity of their illness. Of course it's best not to have to hit a major bottom. In any case, some simply take the risk and hope for the best. Again, that's a choice to be made.

Like any addiction (and glorification of mania is a sort of addiction), one must take responsibility for one's own actions.

[Ursula Shackleton]

Well no. It's a bit hard to save the world when I'm depressed and can't even get out of bed. With the mania, I've felt all sorts of things, including something similar to what you're describing. Aside from those two things, I do think that I see things far differently than most of the other people I know. That is an incredibly useful thing sometimes, but I wouldn't exactly consider it a superpower. I do think that the grandiosity that, for me, comes with hypomania and mania has given me more confidence in my abilities as a writer and a human being, which has been positive after I come down from that "high." As far as the medication aspect goes, I agree that, other than court-ordered stuff, taking medication is a choice. I personally chose it because I wasn't functioning; I couldn't work and was having a hard time writing. As far as convincing me I'm ill, no one has convinced me that I'm ill all the time. Sometimes I'm ill, and sometimes I'm not.

[Moose72]

Originally Posted by Sapien

Like you were born with powers meant to save the world, perhaps even the galaxy or universe or whatever, but instead these bird****ers convinced you that you are ill. Then they gave you meds that made you stupid to "get better" but they're not meds, you're not better, and you were never disordered or however tf you wanna word that.

I've thought this before, but it's cropped up again and I was just wondering if other people realized t his too.

Yes, I think similar things, especially when manic.