I Need Help!
Dear Doc,
I have a friend who has been experiencing something weird lately. Sometimes she would be happy and jumpy, but all of a sudden she would feel moody and depressed. I’m not sure what is happening to her and I’m worried? Lately she has had this feeling that she can’t live a fulfilling life with this weird disease and I want to help her, what are some ways in which I can help her?
Cassie
Dear Cassie,
You haven’t given me a lot of information about your friend’s condition. But from what I have read it seems that your friend is experiencing symptoms of bipolar disorder. This disorder is basically a change in moods, behavior, or how you think. This disorder causes people to act rashly and your friend might not even know about it, if not maybe she is rejecting that idea so she does not have to face the fact that she has this disease if not another. But know that even though she is diagnosed with this disorder she can still live a very fulfilling life. There are several steps in which she can take to go on with life and be happy. One thing you can do is to help her whenever she is really moody so that her emotions can be more stabilized. Even though she might have to take medication so that her mood will be stable you can help her live a happy life by doing things she wants to and also by interacting with people who will help her. By making your friend remember and do all the things she loves she will be able to live a very fulfilling life. She won’t have to remember about her disease and everything will be fine. Just because your friend has this disorder it doesn’t mean she can’t do the things she loves. “Bipolar disorder changes the course of your life, but it doesn’t mean you can’t do great things,” Holly Swartz says. Reilly-Harrington also says that even though people may have bipolar disorder, they can still pursue their goals. For example if your friend is still in high school, she can try and take less courses and take a longer time to graduate so that she can still graduate and live on going out for her dream job. Even though your friend will have to find other ways to do something, she can still become a very happy person, if she chooses to be. You as her friend can help her with this so that she won’t be down on herself for not being able to do some of the things she loves.
Doc