Dotsie--Some aspects of Julie's book, Loving Someone with Bipolar Disorder, are helpful, but the focus seems to be on the "sickness" to the exclusion of the impact of healthy relationships in staying well. It may be better suited for spouses or partners of people who are severely out or control or non-compliant with treatment. But I find it rather condescending, and I don't recommend it to families much.

Bipolar people get marginalized when every problem in a relationship is attributed to their disorder. Mood disordered folks are often quite intuitive. They may accurately sense things that others miss, but be unclear as to how to respond appropriately or constructively. Nobody--ill or not--needs to disregard their feelings or abandon themselves, and people with challenges like ADHD and bipolar disorder often already have a history of feeling like "the problem." Healing comes in learning to honor our perceptions, acknowledge our limitations, stay open to possiblity, and treat ourselves and others well. But I think that's true of most folks anyway.

Resources I like: Kay Redfield Jamison's work on bipolar disorder is phenomenal. Dr. Jamison is a psychologist who is herself bipolar. Her autobiography An Unquiet Mind chronicles years of struggling with the disease, her experience with treatment, and an appeal for public enlightenment and expanding research and treatment options. She's also co-written a definitive text (very technical, but used by clinicians, as well as an intriguing study about the relationship between bipolor disorder and creativity, and several other things.

Two other books: The Bipolar Disorder Survival Guide by David Miklowitz, Ph.D., and Bipolar Disorder: A Guide for Patients and Families by Francis Mark Mondimore. Both are thorough,clinically sound, and deeply respectful of patients and their families.

Dianne, thanks for your comments on my site. I always welcome feedback, and am glad you found it helpful.