Recognising help was needed

“I was diagnosed with bipolar disorder and put on medication for that. I was kept in hospital, so it also meant that I got a rest for two whole weeks, which was wonderful.

“But the best thing to come out of being hospitalised was that it forced me to admit that I couldn’t cope alone, and then I got some recognition that I needed help and support at home.

“These days, both Gerry and myself are regularly visited by CPNs (community psychiatric nurses) and Peter also has a social worker who comes to see him.

“We’re not treated so much as separate, isolated individuals but more holistically, as a family. We can contact any of these care workers at any hour of the day or night by phone, and they’ve been amazingly supportive.

“My only small criticism is that the care could be more proactive. At the moment, it’s reactive. Peter will rarely admit that anything’s wrong and so it would be good if his care workers could take the initiative to dig a little deeper with him, rather than accepting what he says on face value.

“But otherwise, life is a lot better now. I just wished I’d admitted that I needed help earlier.”

Back to the carers home page to see what help is available.