The Real Story
Every man has his secret sorrows which the world knows not; and often times we call a man cold when he is only sad.
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
Most happy people have their secret sorrows… mine is a whole separate person I hide from the world. I don’t want this persona seen or known… only the happy me, because I hide from it. It’s tiring to do this and comes with a price, usually it compromises my physical health because the effort of it all tires me.
I don’t do it intentionally. It’s a long time way of coping. Coping with bipolar disorder. I prefer to live as if I don’t have it. It helps me in many ways not to dwell on negativity or bad feelings. Then again, as I ignore this illness…I neglect the time and energy it takes to care for myself … and I get sick. Physically. It’s not a good solution. I believe it’s time to admit to myself and others: friends and family that I have a disability and see how living with this truth in the foreground instead of the background changes my world.
I’m trying an experiment. I’m going to write in the month of November about the adventure of living with this disorder. I’m going to try to keep it in the foreground and be as honest and genuine as possible.
I’ll try to write nearly every day about the present, past and future. I hope you’ll stick with me on this adventurous experiment into my life and psyche. I could definitely use your comments and support…The first subject I plan to tackle is sleep… what is it exactly and how do you get it with this diagnosis?
Thanks for tuning in. I’m joining other bloggers and writers in the November writing challenge: WNFIN Write Nonfiction in November.
Libby Baker Sweiger 