61. The agony of undiagnosed mental illness

Sheila Hamilton was married to David, the kind of man she always wanted to have kids with, brilliant and funny with a zest for life. And then one day she saw something in him that she hadn’t seen before - a darkness that suggested a deep internal struggle, which later progressed to extreme behavior change. It was confusing. Was this still the man she married? What she didn’t know was that David was suffering from undiagnosed bipolar disorder. What should we do when we suspect the one we love is suffering from mental illness? 

Warning: this episode discusses suicide

In this episode, we talk about:

• Sign posts as David descended into mental illness.
• What it means to be a caretaker and love someone who is mentally ill.
• The struggle to separate the person from the illness.
• The power and importance of hope to carry someone who is a place of suffering and darkness.
• How common these conditions are.
• How better off we would be as a society if we could talk about them.

Stay connected to Sheila:

Website: www.sheilahamilton.com

Book: All The Things We Never Knew

Podcast: Beyond Well Media

Facebook: Sheila Hamilton Portland

Instagram: @sheilahamilton

Twitter: @SheilaHamilton

Charity Donation: Lines For Life

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