[Echoz]

My boyfriend that I have been seeing for quite some time now has recently told me that he is in fact bipolar. I did some research online to find out more about it, since I knew very little to begin with. It can be, and is a very serious illness that needs to be dealt with in some form or another.

Recently my boyfriend has been feeling so depressed that he won't even get out of bed. I've been coaxing him into trying to eat vitamins and any other food at all. He is 23 and I was told that bipolar hits men the hardest in their 20's.

He's been hospitalized before for this, but claims that no medications have helped him and that he is very prone to the side affects. I have heard though that this Lithium is all natural with no side affects. He has claimed that he's taken it before, but I'm not sure I believe him on that. He might just be saying it because he doesn't want to take medicine, or he's so depressed at this point that he does not want to help himself.

I know he fears that someone is going to "lock" him away again, by putting him in a hospital and keep him drugged up. He spent many of his teenage years that way and I would NEVER want to see him in that state ever again.

I want to help him, but I'm not sure how. I keep trying to get him doctor appointments but he refuses to go. I don't want to betray him by saying that if he doesn't cooperate, his mother might make the decision again to have him hospitalized, because I know how much he hates that.

Any information would be so greatly appreciated, because as it is, I am completely lost as to what to do to help him. I want my best friend and the love of my life back, it hurts me to see him this way.

[mighty_mommy]

You need him to admit that he needs help. Does he love you? Does he want to be happy, is he happy that he feels this way? You need him to realize that he is not happy and that he doesn't want to live his life this way. No matter what happens between you and him he needs to know that he is the only person that he has to live with the rest of his life. Even his mother isn't going to be there forever, he needs to take care of himself. It's not your job and you need to take care of yourself. Show him a wonderful sunset and tell him that you would love to spend more of them with you but he needs to be happy to wake up and look forward to the simple things and not get strung up on the things he can't change and change the things he has control of.
Tell me what's up,
Wendy