Because I didn’t know the signs and symptoms of bipolar spectrum disorder and psychosis, I am sharing my experiences and some information with you so that you won’t be in the dark like I was. Moreover, I am doing this so that if you notice a change in your loved one, you will not ignore it, and, if necessary, seek help. Please consider adding mental health warning signs to your first aid kit.

Here’s my story:

I never would have guessed in a million years what the New Year had in store for my daughter and me. Christmas vacation was great. Prior to Christmas break, I knew that Lai was under tremendous stress at school. We talked everyday. Within the last few weeks of the semester, she had acquired a perfectionist attitude about school assignments. “I have to prove myself,” she constantly said. I recall saying, “ You need to sleep.” But did she listen? Of course not. Sleep was on hold until after final exams. She needed to redo everything her class group did. There was no telling her anything. Besides school and work, she was obsessed with going to the gym. I even noticed some signs of paranoia.

When we talked on the phone, the conversation always turned to her fixation with certain aspects of religion. It made me uncomfortable and I told her so, or I would find some other reason to get off the phone. Yet, each day she could not resist the urge. Then, there was the declaration of her divine gift. For whatever reason, I wasn’t privy to that revelation. She only mentioned that to her dad. We didn’t know what to think about anything that she was saying or doing. We missed the signs, not because we weren’t paying attention, but because we didn’t know what was happening. If we had discussed her behavior with each other, maybe we could have seen the red flags.

Until relatively recently, I didn’t know that extreme stress could trigger bipolar disorder. If I had known, maybe I would have stepped in to slow things down. It wasn’t that my daughter wouldn’t sleep; she couldn’t sleep. The compulsion to be great was too strong. I couldn’t grasp that by talking to her on the phone. My daughter clearly stressed herself out in the months prior to her psychotic episode.

I didn’t know that genetics could play a role in the development of mental illness. I was completely ignorant of the predisposition for mental health issues. Yes, I heard explanations about a cousin’s chemical imbalance. When I was a child, I heard conversations concerning distant relatives who have disorders that cause them to be a bit “off.” My mother had symptoms that were frightening sometimes, but she was never diagnosed with any mental health disorder. I have been told that relatives have struggled with various issues including alcoholism. Could it be that those problems and behaviors were connected to mental health issues? I will never know the answer to that.

However, I can share one thing I have learned from my experience: You need to be aware of mania. According to Dr. Steve Bressert, a person experiencing mania may have elevated self-esteem; experience grandiosity; feel charged; speak rapidly; engage in risky behavior; sleep little to none; become easily distracted; be sensitive to sounds, touch and other senses; and/or have an increase in goal-directed activity (2018). Hypomania has the same symptoms of mania. The difference is that it is less extreme, and it can go unnoticed.

In my daughter’s case, symptoms worsened a couple of weeks prior to her psychotic episode. I noticed she was suspicious of a particular person who rode the same train that she did. During the episode, I noticed hallucinations. If you are wondering what symptoms you should be on the look out for, you can find early warning signs before psychosis and signs of experiencing a psychotic episode here.

Psychotic episodes can be triggered by a traumatic event, genetic predisposition, drug abuse, brain injury, and certain mental illnesses (National Alliance on Mental Illness, 2018). If you recognize symptoms that are unusual for your loved one or you recognize a pattern of unusual behavior that is characteristic of the symptoms of psychosis, please don’t hesitate to contact a mental health professional for an evaluation. There is no biological test to determine psychosis. Psychosis is a symptom of mental illnesses. Early detection is key! We as family, friends, and a society must have the courage to speak up and help those in need.

Signed,
Bipolar II