In response to Lathan's question, yes, you should shine light on it. Now, if your career is in question you keep it confidential, HIPPA regs pretty much guarantee your privacy. If anyone discloses the illness without your consent, you've just been handed a very lucrative lawsuit! If you are in a job where mental health can literally get you fired or removed from duty (if you have to carry a gun or otherwise be armed for instance) I suggest you quietly get an evaluation at your own expense (don't turn it in to insurance) and see what the extent of your illness is. By paying for it yourself you can be sure no one will ever know. Once you have the results, then you can make a better decision.
As to your comment about living with for 31 years, all I can say is I lived with it for 17 years and it came close to ruining my life. I am amazed at the aspects of my life that I just couldn't see, and the amount of pain it was causing me. People were afraid to give me bad news for fear that I might explode or disintegrate. My wife was afraid of me. I have just now regained the trust of my two little boys, they were scared of daddy too (I never abused them in any way, but kids can feel the type of rage and pain I was experiencing, and it set them on edge).
Get yourself evaluated. If you are BP, you're only one cycle away from suicide or blowing your life's savings in a single day. The nature of this disease is that you can be doing fine for a long time, and then in a single day it can kill you.
Anyway, before you decide that you are living with the disease, get a second opinion from a professional.
privacy is so long forgetted word these days that I so glad to hear anything positive on this front, that how it should by anywhare , the compromise on abundance of these right makes us a public figures and not as a private citize.
About Myself:
Hypothyroidism http://www.ourthyroids.com hypothyroid symptoms, problems, treatments, diet, thyromine low thyroid underactive treatment.
Posted by: thyroid | September 25, 2006 at 05:29 PM