Amanda! Bipolar is survivable! (I'm 82...)

Welcome to a very large and exceptionally interesting "club" my dear. And let me say right up front that psychiatrists and psychologists who tell you that you need regular therapy sessions to assist your recovery are full of shit right up to their ears! If you find an honest one, like I did, he will tell you: "Conversation can't cure your problem. It's genetic, and there's no cure. The only words that can help you are the words 'Take your medication!' and while it helps to talk about that, this isn't something we can make better by an hour a week or an hour a month in counseling." By taking your meds, you can live a disgustingly normal life, just like all those other schmucks out there who look at you weirdly if you don't take your meds. As my shrink would say, "Take your meds! Your meds are what saves you when nothing else can."

And yes, I know it's very tempting to say "Screw the meds! I like being 20 feet off the ground and rising when I'm in a 'high'!" - We all do, Darling! We all do! But nothing's forever, especially those delicious 'highs', and then there's also the problem of earning a living and eating regularly and having friends, without scaring the shit out of them because you're off your meds and acting weird.

So please! Take your meds, and try to relax. You're in very good company. Some of the best brains in Hollywood and on Wall Street are just like us - they're bipolar too, and if you can't tell, then it's because they're taking their meds. Get the picture, Darling? And it really is survivable - I'm going to be 82 a week from today, so I can say "I'm living proof".  Some day, you can too.