?

My counselor broached a question with me and I have been pondering it since.

He asked if I get offended if someone says that I am Bipolar instead of saying that I “suffer from Bipolar disorder”?

I’ve been thinking about it since. I don’t get offended. But I can see how someone might. Saying “you’re Bipolar” is like summing up the entire existence of a person and shoving all of their personality traits into one little tidy package with “Bipolar” written across the top. That’s what you are and that is all that you are.

I guess I never thought of it that way.

I am Bipolar. But I also am Sara. Any of you that know me pretty well know that I suffer from this disorder and if you have known me long enough you have seen the Bipolar manifest itself in my life. You have seen the effects. You have felt the effects….but I don’t think it would be the one word you would use to define me.

So I am cool with however you want to word it. But I am more sensitive now that others around me may not feel the same about their own mental illnesses. I just feel like being open about it is important. There is no shame in my game!