Every relationship goes through some ups and downs but when one partner is having bipolar disorder the life could be an experience with full of challenges. Being unpredictable every day is difficult, daunting and exhausting. The relationship suffers as a result over the time due to ups and down in life. Bipolar disorder people have extreme highs and lows in their moods. These are referred to as depressed and manic episodes, respectively. However, many individuals with bipolar disease are able to maintain healthy relationships with the right care.

If your spouse has bipolar disorder, you already know that it can be a challenging journey sometimes. Your days together may occasionally be thrilling and other times unpleasant due to the erratic mood swings. However, you and your partner with bipolar disorder can resist the terrible statistics that predict the breakup of a lot of these marriages.

Bipolar: meaning

Intense mood swings are a defining feature of bipolar disorder, a mental health condition. Mania or hypomania is an emotional state in which a person is either energetic and happy or aggressive or delusional which happens occasionally.  This condition usually runs in family but the causes are not known. The symptoms can be managed when we treat them. Two primary types are:

Bipolar 1

Manic episodes with one of the following traits are indicative of bipolar 1 a more severe form of disorder. The symptoms are:

• Delusions, paranoia, or hallucinations
• Hospitalization is necessary for security
• Aggressive behaviors with consequences

Bipolar 2

Hypomanic episodes, which occur in people with bipolar 2 but are less severe than those in those with bipolar 1, still contain out-of-character conduct. Hypomanic episodes may include:

• Increased energy and drive.
• Rapid speech.
• Decreased need for sleep.

Challenges with a person who have bipolar disorder

1. Intimacy: During manic or hypomanic periods, bipolar disorder sufferers frequently crave sexual activity. Your partner could initiate sexual contact more frequently than usual, masturbate, or watch pornography. As a result of their manic states, people with bipolar disorder may also engage in dangerous behaviors like they can go for unprotected sex or might have extramarital affairs also.

Your partner may completely avoid sexual activity while they are in depressed state. When your spouse lately expressed a strong desire for frequent sexual activity during a manic or hypomanic episode, this could be confusing or feel like rejection. Numerous bipolar illness drugs also reduce sex drive.

2. Work performance & Relationship: Bipolar disorder may have an impact on your partner's capacity for effective work performance. Finding and keeping a job can be difficult when a person has severe mood swings, manic symptoms like poor judgment and impulsivity, or depressed symptoms like low energy and indifference.

3. Parenting: Parenting is considered to be the most challenging part in some people life. Any situation or trigger either good or bad may prove the episode of mania or depression among bipolar people. Children, who depend on their parents for stability, may find the erratic behavior linked to bipolar disease frightening and confusing. For your home to be a safe and secure place for your children, you must assist your partner in obtaining and maintaining treatment to control symptoms.

4. Emotional Dysregulation: Due to erratic mood swings emotional distress is noticed in the form of guilt, grief, and worry, resulting into disruption in regular routines in life, have to deal with unusual or dangerous reckless behaviour.

Coping Techniques or Tips to manage relationship

Here are some tips to handle with people spouse who have bipolar disorder:

1. Breathe Exercise: When things are difficult, breathe deeply and take a moment to reflect. Remember it is the disease which is making the person behaves in that manner. The self-care tips are essential for good health of both

2. Build support: While taking care of a sick person can help you stay focused on his needs; you also need to find your own sources of support. It can be beneficial to join a support group for family members of bipolar patients. It might also be a good idea to work with your own therapist. Online counseling can also help.

3. Treatment & Therapies: Working over anger over a bipolar partner's actions requires couples’ therapy. Bipolar disorder patients frequently harm and offend their partners. The partner having Bipolar disorder do take online counselling with best clinical psychologists who shall provide Cognitive Behaviour Therapy or  Solution Focused brief Therapy as per the requirement.

 Relationship problems frequently need to be handled when someone is initially diagnosed. Couples therapy can be beneficial for:

• Recognize that the damaging behavior is caused by a disease.
• Accepting apologies for the actions that resulted from mood swings of partner.
• Set limits with your partner regarding continuing your treatment.

4. Getting involved with the treatment: Inquire if you may be a part of your partner's treatment, which may include consultation with the best online psychiatrist occasionally. Participating in your partner's treatment has a number of advantages, including:

• Improving our knowledge of the condition.
• Giving the psychiatrist further information.
• Recognizing early indicators of future episodes.
• Notifying the psychiatrist of any changes in mood.
• Ensuring that spouse take the medication as per advice

5. Communicating the feelings: Both couples may experience emotional highs or lows. Therefore, open communication is essential. Without criticizing or stigmatizing the individual with bipolar disorder, a partner should describe how the person's actions make them feel. Open communication can be a potent tool for minimizing the detrimental effects that particular behaviors might have.