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Hello, my name at BPW is JackFlak. Of course this is an alias, but
this is the way I prefer to operate at present.
I was born in May of 1968. According to the best of my and my family's
accounts, I have been symptomatic of Bipolar (BP) Disorder the greater
part of my life, since early childhood. This is what we've deduced, in
retrospect, after my official diagnosis of Bipolar Disorder Type II in
late 2002 at age 34, when my sister intervened and took me to the ER at
Chicago's Northwest Memorial Hospital. This diagnosis came only after
having been hypo-manic for 1.5 years or so until I crashed, and entered
mixed states in July, losing a very good job by August. Although I was
taken to the ER this initial time I have not, as of yet, been hospitalized
for BP (fingers crossed). In 2005 my diagnosis included ADHD (non
hyperactive as it is officially known) and Personality Disorder NOS (NOS
designates 'Not Otherwise Specified'). What NOS means in regards to
personality disorders, is that one doesn't meet the criterion for any one
particular personality disorder diagnosis, but rather one exhibits traits
of a number of different personality disorders.
Early in my diagnosis, the medicines I was taking for BP (I won't list
them here as I don't consider what meds I am, or was on as being relevant
to the reader as all meds' effects vary from person to person) were not
working out well for me, as I was still quite symptomatic for over a two
year period. I went off meds completely for a few months before a new
psychiatrist got me started on what I now consider to be the right
combination of meds in 2005. I have a regular psychiatrist and therapist,
go to a partial hospitalization program (PHP) at my local mental health
facility and have been getting increasingly better ever since. I am quite
stable, and even got a part-time job after almost 6 years of
unemployment. I drive vans for the local mental health center, of which I
am also a client. It is quite interesting to wear both hats, and I enjoy
being an example of success for my peers in the partial hospital program I
still attend there.
I have been coming to Bipolar World (BPW) for a number of years now (since
the summer of 2005), and began as an op for the Support Chat room back in
August of 2006. I find BPW Support Chat to be an invaluable support tool
for me, as a person with Bipolar Disorder. I find it very rewarding to
provide supportive feedback to fellow chatters as I also learn volumes in
the process. I believe it is paramount for Bipolar World to be a safe
environment for members to be able to open up and share their stories, and
to reach out for helpful, supportive dialogue. It is for this reason,
primarily, that I chose to apply for the position of Support Chat op.
Thanks Allie and David for allowing me this opportunity and
responsibility.
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