Back Where I Belong

and don't over extend yourself John, we so love your posts here and i'd also hate to think you're wearing your body down and making it susceptible to the wiles of bp symptoms.....

I am sure that those that were fortunate enough to hear you speak really got the jest of what being bp really is....oh the opportunity to thwart all the stigmas and the judmental opinions of this disorder has to be liberating to you and at the same time tiring beyond words.....just take care of yourself and keep that shield high for all of us, perhaps the stimatas and the "get over its" and the numerous ways they tell us to get over this illness (as if....it is a serious and LIFETIME illness and the just don't seem to get that it is literally a daily ordeal that we have to deal with and that is so hard to get  across sometimes, especially with those who don't have the illness for it is hard to imaigne when healthy that you literally go day to day on how you feel and deal with life as it comes as best you can while medicated to help you cope...they haven't a clue...but i am SURE they do now that you had the opporunity to opent their eyes...i hope it penetrated even the toughest of critics)  John thank you for doing all this for our "community" of bps that so needa voice, you risk your own health to help the rest of us and i thank you for that but i also want you to know i'd rather have you HEALTHY and not so run down, don't knowhow you do it, really don't.....travel really gets me BIG TIME and the OCD affects me even staying in a hotel room...argh....i have so many issues that you address i have subscribed to your posts , hope that is alright....

keep up the beacon dear friend....we are all searching for it so often......thank you for your presentation and for reaching out to the masses for understanding of this disorder it is through people like you we will get the point across that YES we suffer, YES we can NOT work as the rest of you do, but YES we ARE WORTH IT and we are the dreamers of the dreams, the creators of the newest inventions, the BEAUTIFUL MINDS and empathy and compassion couldn't be more rampid in our arena.....

thank you again my friend, thank you

ctrygirl

Dear John,

I want to thank you for sharing your experiences with us.  It is always heartening to hear from someone, such as yourself, and to know that we are connecting with a wide variety of people.

I was discouraged to hear about your encounter with the clinicians.  May I ask - what was the content of your presentation that caused them to be so hostile?  I have had the opportunity to speak to clinicians and other mental health providers, and I have often been well-received by them.  I can't imagine what you said in thirty seconds that would make the clinicians so upset.  I believe it would be good for us to know this so that we could alter our presentations to be more amenable to mental health professionals, without selling out our beliefs.

When you gave your speech to the NAMI folks, what did you say that caused them to be so pleased with your presentation?  I have presented material to many family members, and I have received both positive and negative feedback from them.  For example - if  you don't agree with them that mental illness is a disorder of the brain, they can become wary of you.  The debate still goes on between family members and their mentally ill relatives, about whether or not mental illness could have been caused by abusive or neglectful parenting.  To suggest that a person could have become mentally ill because of their upbringing, is to ensure a hostile reaction from family members.

As far as clinicians (and other mental health providers) are concerned, there are many ways to connect with them and not sell out your beliefs.  The trick is to immediately draw them in, at the very beginning of the speech.  Acknowledging their work and what they do is one way to break the ice with them.

As always, it was a pleasure to read your post.  It is obvious that you are working diligently to get the message out there that we (bi-polar minded people) are productive and empathetic  human beings.

Respectfully,

CKOM

John...It's always great to get back in the grove with our activities on OUR terms.  Others should not dictate how we live our lives, how we spend our time.  I'm sure you know this as well as anyone.

NAMI is a wonderfully giving organization.  I went to one of their conferences a couple years ago and was awed by the guest speakers, a lady and her son (schizophrenia). Their presentation was extremely well received and they won over the audience.  They wrote a few articles together that were inspiring.  I'll always remember them.  There also was a group of bipolar performing arts students from a local university that did a fine job.  And a bipolar guy that gave a great guitar performance. 

You've picked your presentations wisely -  It's good to know our boundaries and limitations.  We bipolars are a special breed - it takes hard work to find the pace that is right for us.  And your pace has been unbelievable the past couple of years.  Small wonder you needed a sabbatical.  A well deserved one.

On public speaking:  I have ventured there on a VERY limited scale - three or 4 times at best.  And I ALWAYS read from very well scrutinized and rehearsed notes and the sweat dripped from me profusely.  My fear of public speaking and many other social situations is very powerful and very real.  Funny thing is though, I found these experiences very rewarding - especially when they were over!

May the powers that be stay in your life - we certainly appreciate EVERYTHING you contribute to this site and elsewhere.  Glad you are on a good track.

Judy