Do Bipolar people usually feel sorry for the wrong they've done to others?

Question

Are they less popular than any other healthy people?

Answer 1

Listen to Trivia Buff and no #1 Mom--they know what they're talking about. I can say that because I'm bipolar. No one should pretend to understand us or try to explain us to others because they've read a few books or went on a web site whose information can be written by anyone, whether they're an expert on the subject or not. The one person was correct, however, in saying that we make up only about 7.5% of the population. There is nothing wrong with the term mood swings as opposed to mood cycyling. One is just more clinical; the other is more descriptive.

I take offense at your statement. What do you mean by "the wrong" we've done to others? You make it sound as though we are constantly hurting others around us. I don't think we hurt anyone any more than the so-called normal person. Just look at the questions in the Relationships categories. We may do it in a more dramatic fashion--that's part of our creative nature! (just injecting a little levity into my tirade) and it may take us a little longer to apologize, but that doesn't mean we are selfish, obnoxious, offensive people. Remember, bipolar disorder is a chemical imbalance. You try keeping all of your brain's pathways on the straight and narrow. We know when we hurt others. We're not stupid--in fact, bipolars are generally known to be intelligent people. Don't you think that at the same time we're hurting others we're hurting ourselves. Sometimes it's even more so if the bipolar is engaging in promiscuous sex, overspending, compulsive behavior, whatever. Oh, and don't forget the hurt we cause. Let me tell you something, I didn't hurt my family anymore than I did myself when I slashed my wrist (the first attempt) and then put my arm through a glass door so it would look like an accident than a suicide attempt.

How many families of bipolars do you know that have made an honest attempt to understand their problem by going with them for family therapy or by themselves to talk to the psychiatrist for a better understanding, or just to read what's out there? Even in this day and age there is shame and guilt and fear associated with this disorder. And people who don't have it and who don't understand it are all too willing to put it back on us.

As for being less popular? Well, they've been known to be the life of the party. They can be funny and witty and great storytellers. On the other side, they can be difficult to work with because they are demanding of themselves as well as expecting others to do their share of the work. You make us sound like pariahs. Is there a trend to start a bipolar colony like the lepar colonies that used to exist until people realized that disease could be treated? We could all be put somewhere together and not hurt the "healthy" people.

I realize you may not have meant this question to sound offensive, and to other bipolars it may not. But, you hit a nerve--one I've dealt with all my life. I refuse to say "I'm sorry" for every little thing I do even though I have no clue what it was, just because someone's feelings were hurt. They're usually the ones that will dismiss my honest emotions by saying, "Oh, well, that's just Goldie". I'm tired of feeling we're less than normal. We have a disorder, not a contagious disease.

Answer 2

Its like everything else in this world, think I'm bipolar in the UK. Surely its not the rest of the world that should adapt, but ourselves. This is survival of the fittest, by that, if we can survive and get on, we would be the strongest. Survival medically is a forgotten term ad everything is treatable and we are letting the human species become weaker. True, family members might be gone now, or lived less long. But our genes would be stronger. Such is life. Drug use doesn't help mental disorders, everyone does drugs these days..

Answer 3

I am bipolar and for your first question: We have mixed feelings. Sometimes we feel sorry for the wrong we have done and other times we praise it. Myself, The only times I feel sorry for the wrong I have done is when I get angry and aggressive with someone who (most of the time) tries to help me out! The ones who have always looked down on me; I never feel sorry for the wrong I have done, because I know they never feel sorry about their wrong either! For your second question: Bipolar people are not less popular as a matter of fact about 75% of America is BIPOLAR. So there is no way we can be less popular. Those who are diagnosed with it are actually more noticed than those who aren't diagnosed and will not see a doctor to find out if they are. If you think about it one of the problems we have ( bipolar people) is anger. More people will run scared than approach aggressively.

Answer 4

As a Bipolar (rapid-cycling) I wonder do you feel sorry for the wrong that you have done to others? Are you less popular that other bipolar people?

Maybe you just don't know better. Who do you think is bipolar? If you are sitting in a room of full of people, you can figure that at least half of them are suffering from a disease like bipolar disorder. While I will admit that I have the disease, I do not make excuses for it. No, I am not less popular than others, I was the person that my peers came to for information and to hang out with (and I am by no means a party-goer, I am a nester).

As far as the wrong we have done to others, are you placing us in the same category as psychopaths and sociopaths? That is very different. They will never feel remorse. I can only speak for myself in saying, I feel every day, and I regret every day. I have my highs and my lows. Every single day I struggle to make it through even with very good medication. Below I have tried to give you a reasonable facsimilie of what it is like to be me, but it is only a poor imitation, because there are two worlds going on at the same time, the ups and the downs. I feel everybit as much as you, maybe more.

The only way for you to understand my life is to explain it like this: Imagine that you hate rollercoasters. Now, imagine that you are strapped into the front seat of one where your feet are dangling and your hands are strapped at your side and your eyes are taped open. You will never be allowed to sleep more than two hours at a time. As soon as the roller coaster starts it is put into double and sometimes triple fast forward. During this same time you are being bombarded with rapid-fire trivia questions and you have to get them all right or the ride will go faster or sometimes backwards. That is how my life goes, every day.

We feel. Our emotions pile up and over until we explode. We are angry at ourselves, everyone, and no one. To protect ourselves and others we build a fortress and don't let others in. It makes us lonely, sad, and angry. It is hard because we understand that no one is really going to understand what is happening inside our head. And so the cycle continues. Get it?

Answer 5

Yes Bipolar people have a conscience, some more than others; I believe. Control in the moment isn't always there but the consequences show up no matter. I think it depends on the social circles we swim in, but usually my guess is no. Bipolar is becoming more treatable and acceptable in our day.

Answer 6

I would say somewhere they do feel bad for what the have done but they are not stable over controilling their own emotions they have so many ups and downs that they beat theirselves up about it there is a chemical imbalance in their brains which cause these reactions taking prescription meds for it even seeems to not help them only add on to the problems

Answer 7

I believe while you aren't experiencing an episode it is possible to feel bad but if you are diagnosed with Bipolar there are ways to reduce episodes, procedures to take and foods not to eat to reduce the symptoms of Bipolar

Answer 8

to correct a statement made by an above answerer - people with bipolar disorder (bipolar I and bipolar II combined) make up about roughly 6.4% of the population. not 75%. bipolar disorder is one of the most over-diagnosed misunderstood mental disorders today. i myself was misdiagnosed with bipolar disorder in my early teens and suffered for several years as i was put through more than a dozen trials with different medications to find out what worked, and cycled through several various types of non-effective therapy, with several non-effective therapists. nothing worked because i simply didn't have it (what i do have is a dual diagnoses of major depressive disorder and borderline personality disorder. if you don't know what bpd is please look it up. many many people with bpd have been misdiagnosed as bipolar).

to answer the asker's question: people with bipolar disorder (people who really truly have it) are usually disabled or severely affected in their relationships with others. it is not an issue of popularity. their episodes (called mood cycling - not mood swings) last from several weeks to several months to possibly even a year, and contist of being in a terribly depressed state, or a increasingly manic state, or less often a mixed/manic-depressive state, which usually progresses into a full blown episode of psychosis. when they are experiencing any one of these very serious episodes it is very difficult for them to realize their affect on others because they are so overwhelmed with all of the things going on within them.

bipolar people are often very caring and compassionate people. and when they are undergoing therapy through medication and counseling they are definately able to have good close relationships with people who really care about them and understand what they are going through. and they probably do feel bad for times when they have hurt others. intentionally or unintentionally. whether or not they are popular is irrelevent (allthough bipolar disorder seems to be popular among those who wish to seek attention and make excuses for their bad behavior by claiming that they have a mental disorder).

Answer 9

I think they feel more than a regular person. They feel worse about what they've done or said. The guilt makes them feel embarrassed about their actions and words. They begin to feel angry at themselves for what they've done and angry at the situation that brought all this on to begin with. Unfortunately, they tend to lash out at those closest to them. The anger is too strong to contain.

Answer 10

a very fast answer and true if they felt bad they would do something about it there meds that work and if they take it faithfully the wouldnt mess around im in the med field true