I'm a realist and I have bipolar disorder. I find this is a troublesome combination. I think this is because people often see realism as negativity, especially when you have bipolar. Realism isn't negativity, however. It's okay to be realistic with bipolar.

Mistakes can make a person suicidal. I know this because, in the past, that person was me. Making mistakes has made me feel suicidal. Is this an overreaction? Yes, of course it is, but that doesn't mean it isn't a real reaction. (Note: This post contains a trigger warning.)

Do you think you can deal with bipolar disorder alone? Do you think you can keep your bipolar a secret and just do what it requires by yourself? If so, you're not alone. Many people try, sometimes for years, to handle bipolar disorder alone. They do Google searches and online research about bipolar and its treatments and somehow that makes people think they can do it on their own. But I have news for you: you can't deal with bipolar disorder alone.

The holidays are full of good things, but even these good things can cause bad bipolar moods. I know this might not make sense to some people -- after all, when something good happens, shouldn't that improve a person's mood? Well, this isn't exactly true if you have a serious mental illness like bipolar disorder. Yes, you might find good things improve your mood or you might find good things actually cause bad bipolar mood symptoms. Read on to learn more.

It's normal to ask, "Why me?" when you have bipolar disorder. And while some people may see this as just feeling sorry for yourself, it's much more than that and it is very normal. It's certainly a question I have asked. So let's delve into the question of "why me" with bipolar disorder.

My bipolar brain works best at a certain time of day. This is actually common for people with bipolar disorder. People with bipolar commonly find their mood and ability to think waxes and wanes at the same times throughout the day. Your average person may experience this as well, but for a person with bipolar, of course, everything is amplified. So here's when my bipolar brain works best for different purposes.

When you lose hope because of bipolar depression life will feel impossible. I know this impossible feeling all too well. I know what losing hope feels like all too well. But I also know what surviving it feels like. Here's my message for when bipolar depression makes you lose hope.

Bipolar doesn't make you unworthy of love. I have a lot of trouble with that statement. I don't have trouble because I don't believe it -- I do -- I have trouble because I don't feel lit. I'm not sure whether I feel like life has taught me that I'm unworthy of love because of bipolar or my brain just made up that nastiness because of the depression, all I know is that it feels true. It feels like I'm unworthy of love because of bipolar.

Quality of life in bipolar disorder varies depending on the type of mood episode being experienced. As a reminder, moods in bipolar disorder can be depressed (a severely low mood), manic (a highly elevated, energetic mood), hypomanic (a less-heightened version of mania), mixed (with manic/hypomania and depressed symptoms occurring at the same time) or euthymic (when no diagnosable mood episode is present; you might think of it as "normal"). Bipolar disorder is considered a cyclical disorder and euthymia is what happens between mood episodes; and quality of life in euthymia in bipolar disorder is important -- after all, it's our "normal" mood. It's what we're striving for. It's our version of remission. So what is the quality of life in bipolar disorder like in euthymic periods?

In bipolar disorder, stress is a problem. This is not to suggest that stress can't be a problem for anyone, but stress can actually worsen the symptoms of bipolar disorder and decrease stability so it's something we with bipolar really have to be concerned about. Read about how stress feels in bipolar disorder and what you can do about it.