Reply #30: Yes, abandoning someone you care about is much more appropriate

[skygazer]

As a lifelong bi-polar, I take exception to your view that my mate does little more than act as a "little mother and police officer monitoring my medicine."

In fact, no one monitors my mental health except for me and my mental health professionals. I am perfectly capable of carrying on a loving, flourishing relationship and in fact that contributes highly to my mental well-being. Bi-polar doesn't mean that I'm a screaming, off-the-wall wreck - were you to meet me and talk with me daily for six months, I'd bet you'd never know it. Most people who know me casually DON'T know it.

It is scare stories like yours that make people think that everyone with a mental illness is someone potentially dangerous. If you've had a bad experience, I'm sorry but realize that it's the exception, not the rule and that those of us suffering with these conditions go through more hell than you can possibly realize.