1. I was in high school when my family noticed I was different, more extreme then others. I was a kid, I thought that was “normal.” They sent me to a psychiatrist, because that was the “normal” thing to do. Well, I guess I was glad the psychiatrist figured something out, but it was not what I wanted to hear.

3. She told me I was “bipolar,” that my extreme moods were a disorder, but I was a teenager, we have moods.

4. What did she mean by “bipolar?” Was it something to be embarrassed by? How long would these moods last? Do I take pills for this? Can someone answer my questions?

5. This is where Google comes in handy. Dear Google, Bipolar Disorder?

6. Bipolar disorder is the presence of one or more episodes of abnormally elevated energy levels, cognition, and mood with or without one or more depressive episodes.

7. In other words, I am really happy and then really sad. It sounds right, I guess.

9. Medication? Lithium, Anticonvulsants, Calcium Channel Blockers. They help with the mood swings.

10. A few weeks later…

11. The pills help, but the mood swings are still here. They are the only thing that is consistent.

12. Another few weeks…

13. My psychiatrist has helped me see my aliment for what it is…

14. I am Bipolar. I have uncontrollable moods. I will be happy for a week and those are my “good days.” Then, I will be sad, upset, and angry, those are my “bad days.”

15. Whenever I get asked why I cannotpromise to do things more than a weekout, I do not know what to say. The truth? The truth is I do not know ifI will be having a good or bad day.

17. My good days are amazing. I go out and do things that I always wanted to do. I feel the sun on my skin, and the wind through my hair. I feel alive.

19. My bad days are terrible. I stay in bed wandering why I have to be the one going through this. Why did I get the short end of the stick? Why do I feel so unbelievably depressed?

20. This is a project for a high school AP Psychology course. This is a fictionalized account having a psychological ailment. For questions about this blog project or its content please email the teacher Chris Jocham; jocham@fultonschools.org