Having any mental health issue can feel like an isolating experience. As someone living with bipolar II disorder, I can attest that my condition sometimes makes me feel alone and causes me to withdraw a bit from the people in my life. Despite my best efforts, though, I can’t always handle episodes or symptoms alone — and I’m very lucky that I don’t have to.
There are a number of ways that my family and friends have intervened or even just showed up to support and encourage me when I’ve struggled with my bipolar disorder. While my mental health has been pretty stable and I’ve felt very well psychologically for the past few years, that wasn’t always the case. In those instances, my loved ones really came through in making me feel like I had a community around me.
One of the most prevalent ways I think people can help a loved one with bipolar disorder is to lighten the load, sometimes literally. Dealing with a depressive or hypomanic episode can really impact your executive functioning and decision-making abilities, so having my friends come over and help me clean my apartment, catch up on laundry, or even just body-doubling to make sure I stay on track with my tasks at work made way more of a difference than I can even express.
Being a listening ear helps, too. Even though it can be tough to spend time around someone who is really in the “pit” of their depression and feeling hopeless or super negative, making them feel less alone and isolated is crucial to lessening the chances of their episode worsening or becoming dangerous. Just having my people around me to both listen to me vent and remind me that I have things to look forward to and be thankful for (in a gentle way) makes a massive difference.
That said, something that a lot of folks who love someone with bipolar disorder often don’t consider is their own mental health. Supporting a mentally ill loved one fosters the connection, but you can’t pour from an empty cup. If you aren’t taking care of yourself and being mindful of your own mental health and stability, the lack thereof in your loved one could potentially start to affect you more than you might expect.
Above all, follow your instincts. While the best first step to helping someone with bipolar disorder is always talking to them and asking them what they might need and how you can best support them, they may not always be able to express or decide what they need at that moment. If you know them well, you can take care of small tasks you know they have on their plate, or reach out to other loved ones you know are even better equipped to guide you in supporting that person. Being proactive and compassionate will go a long way.
Photo Credit: Carol Yepes/Getty Images
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