'My Brother In Law is Bipolar'

Loopy from The Big D -

I have a brother in law that is bipolar. He can be perfectly calm and cool one minute and then something small can trigger him to get upset and then he flies off the handle. He beats on my sister and her two little boys sometimes see it. He has tried many different meds, but they make his heart race so he feels like he is constantly having a heart attack and his chest hurts. I just hope he never hurts the boys like he has hurt my sister. She just won't leave him.

Comment #1 stacey from victoria, canada -

:( That really sucks! My mom is manic depressive (bipolar). Lithium worked wonders for her. Has your brother in law ever tried lithium? That's so scary, but i know violence can happen with bipolar people because when they get so angry or frustrated, they don't think straight. He probably feels horrible about it afterwards but... tough to control :(

Comment #2 Jules from Nebraska -

My brother in law is Bipolar too. He is in his late 40's and my in laws are the ones who basically help him out. He's kind of a wanderer...he's gone from job to job all over the country. My in laws bail him out all the time. We thought he was doing really well until just last week. He called my in laws (who were on their way to Florida to visit him) and told them that he could kicked out of his apartment because he got into an argument with another tenant and subsequently they both got kicked out. I'm so tired of him stressing my in laws out so much. Like I said, we thought he was doing really well for the last six months and now this. I think they need to change his medication. I forget what he's on right now but I know it's not Lithium. Maybe he needs to try that.

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