The Negative Mind

Welcome to The Negative mind. I decided to put together this website to share my experiences as someone who lives with bipolar disorder.

Bipolar disorder, known by many as manic depression, is a psychological condition not dissimilar to classic depression but with one major difference; rather than just depression, the mind cycles between depression and the opposite, a state of euphoria and mania.

Bipolar disorder is thought to affect upwards of 1 in 150 people in Western countries, and can be a hugely debilitating condition. Despite a rising awareness, the biggest problem facing sufferers is still a lack of understanding either by themselves or by those around them. Too many people with bipolar disorder endure it in silence, either because they don’t know how to make sense of it, or because they are frightened or embarrassed by it. Many who know someone with the condition simply don’t know how to deal with it.

That is why I have decided to put this site together. There are plenty of excellent sources of information about what the bipolar disorder is and what the symptoms are, together with medical reasoning and even some aggressive self-help options which is great, but not always of comfort to those suffering, or to those with loved ones or family members with the condition and are struggling to understand what they are going through.

The sole aim of this website is to let people see what the world looks like through my eyes, to get an idea of the ways in which this condition impacts my life. Hopefully it will help some sufferers feel like they are not alone, and others who know someone with bipolar disorder to gain an insight where perhaps they lack the words to express their experience. If just one person finds something helpful here then I will consider that aim met.

So I intend to write down everything I know about the condition from my own perspective. Don’t expect a medical dissertation on neural firing sequences or a self-help guide – I am not qualified for either. I have written a layman’s breakdown to the disorder, but the main focus will be on how it affects my life so you can get as near to a first person perspective as possible. My promise to you, the reader, is that I will be totally honest. I will not twist my words or dodge issues, no matter how painful. I will not self pity. I will not lie or fabricate. I will attempt to do it with humour. I will share everything as simply and as openly as I can.