Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. Flexible and made to last.

Meet the Other Phone.
Flexible and made to last.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

to think it suddenly seems 'the in-thing' to suffer with bi-polar?

439 replies

Champersonice · 14/04/2011 10:21

This is really getting to me. Perhaps these 'celebs' really are suffering with bi-polar but I remember the days when it was the biggest taboo. My mother suffers with this illness and it is just awful.

There have been so many and whilst I really believe some I really do not believe Kerry Katona and now Catherine Zeta-Jones. Apparantely, CZJ booked herself into a psychiatric hospital for becoming manic-depressive following her husband's cancer, and now, according to her publicist is "feeling great and looking forward to starting work this week on two upcoming films". Perhaps Ms Zeta-Jones should visit a real psychiatric hopsital (not a detox clinic) and see real life patients suffering with this terrible, terrible illness.

AIBU?

OP posts:
buttonmooncup · 14/04/2011 10:56

YABU. It doesn't matter if you believe them or not they have been diagnosed by medical professionals.

OTheHugeManatee · 14/04/2011 10:58

Interesting article based on WHO research, about how different cultures affect the diagnosis and prognosis of mental illness:

www.mentalhealth.com/mag1/wolfgang.html

gorionine · 14/04/2011 10:59

Sorry, I just cannot read past this post without adding my bit,

"When people like Stephen Fry and Bill Oddie (to name but a few) talk about it, it can be taken quite seriously and spoken about in a way as to publicise it for the right reasons." Why?are they more believable because they are men whist celebrity women surely could only make it up because it is the "in" thing to do?

Original poster
Champersonice · 14/04/2011 11:02

Eric, you are rude. Where did I say that one cannot suffer if they are rich/famous/beautiful?

Having a mental disorder is dreadful. I just find it insulting when CZJ's said she had been ill, went to a detox clinic for one week and then come out and was ready for film work, or whatever.

As for Kerry Katona, I think being a class A drug user, you get high and feel shit on the come down. Then her rationale is, "Oh yeah, MUST be bi-polar because I am up and down." Nwim?

OP posts:
MooMooFarm · 14/04/2011 11:05

Hmm not sure - with Kerry Katona it seems pretty genuine, but am a bit sceptical about CZJ being diagnosed then bang - shes fine again Hmm. If only it were that simple!

I do suspect that a 'celeb' would prefer to have a label on their illness like bi-polar, which is seen as something that just happens randomly and is not a 'weakness', unlike depression, which can be seen that way.

KatieMiddleton · 14/04/2011 11:05

Gorionine I thought that too. The men are all serious while the women are attention seeking wannabes and a mental health issue is just another accessories like a handbag.

Do you people making sweeping statements and diagnosing based on diddly-squat know just how ignorant and insulting you sound?

Original poster
Champersonice · 14/04/2011 11:07

Gorionine, please don't take me out of context and turn this into a feminism war. By my statement, I meant people that aren't all about me, me, me and crave attention. If you want me to even out the sexist debate, how about I throw Viven Leigh and Margot Kidder into the ring?

OP posts:
BeakerTheMuppetMuppet · 14/04/2011 11:07

the way i understand it is 'bi-polar' is only a part of many people's mental illness. it is complex, as all of us have differing personalities and traits.

perhaps they are also narcissitic and think they know how to 'cure' themselves?

please do not diagnose MH/MI over a few snap shots and then make assumptions based on your own limited experience. just because you have a family member with MH issues does not make anyone an expert.

and i include myself in that statement.

Yukana · 14/04/2011 11:07

While I do think YABU to dismiss (certain) celebrities as bipolar, especially considering the public doesn't actually know them, it has become a little of a trend amongst some teenagers. By 'some' I don't mean a majority or close to one either, however.

Now my mother has bipolar, a rather severe case of it, and when I was younger I did talk to quite a few young adults who thought just because they sometimes had mood swings they probably had bipolar. Which, there is a whole lot more to bipolar than that. I can't say that it didn't annoy me slightly, but they probably haven't been taught about the illnessr.

FabbyChic · 14/04/2011 11:08

Long term drug use can cause mental illness it is well known that long term cocaine/speed use causes depression.

gorionine · 14/04/2011 11:11

It was not a feminism war nor was I taking things out of context, you happen to have chosen 2 female celebrities to back up you "is bi-polar the in thing" statement whilst choosing to men to illustrate how believable their illness was. It is probably just a concidence but it did get to me.

Original poster
Champersonice · 14/04/2011 11:12

I don't understand why I am getting a bashing and why this thread seems to have opened the gates to people throwing insults at me.

My point to this thread is that it saddens me when I hear of so called celebs announcing their battle with bi-polar. Granted, some have to be true but even then, it is the way they go about it. Maybe that has something to do with the illness itself, also. Who knows?

It saddens me because my mother has a severe case of bi-polar and I wouldn't want anyone to go through what she or our family go through.

OP posts:
sprinklingsparkles · 14/04/2011 11:12

To be honest, Mental health is such a complex issue, its not something that can be casually discussed.

I have had my own experieces of mental health illnesses with my mother, mother in law, sister, DP and myself. All have had very different experiences and all coped very differently. there is no way any illness can be put in a box.

this is why stigma against mental health is hard to get rid of, because people want to catagorised (sp) everyone into sections with 'labels'. you should never speculate about how each person copes and most of it is kept behind closed doors because you shouldnt have to deal with this in the public eye if you dont want to.

goodegg · 14/04/2011 11:12

Coke and other substance abuse can cause Bi-polar. Judge if you want as it's self-inflicted, but it doesn't make the illness any less real.

I know someone who has manic depression and IMO Kerry Katona seems to act as though she has it - don't you agree?

By the way YABobviouslyU for thinking celebs can't suffer with mental illness as they are rich, beautiful and successful. In fact their highly pressured existence makes them much more likely to suffer from mental health problems.

gorionine · 14/04/2011 11:12

two men, not to men!

JenaiMarrHePlaysGuitar · 14/04/2011 11:14

I'm not sure if YABU or not.

I was a bit Hmm though when I heard that CZT had developed bipolar after her husband's illness. My experience of bipolar is fairly limited though.

bubblecoral · 14/04/2011 11:14

YABVU.

Just because you have a family member with bipolar does not make you qualified to jdge other people. It is not an illness that always presents in exactly the same way like chicken pox!

To say that it has become the 'in thing' is very derogatory and insulting. I'm not a fan of CZJ, but why in the world would sah say it if she hasn't suffered? Maybe it's just become less of a taboo now and people are beginning to feel more comfortable admitting to it.

Original poster
Champersonice · 14/04/2011 11:15

Beaker, I am not an expert, that is true. But I do have experience. You may not be a chef but I sure as hell bet you know when you have eaten something not made well.

OP posts:
bittersweetvictory · 14/04/2011 11:16

This was posted in mental health as well,
this is my response
Well sorry but i dont agree, i dont think its just a fad that will fade out, bipolar is bipolar though you are a tramp living on the street or a multi millionaire, it doesnt pick and choose.
Why on earth would someone want to lie about being bipolar, its been known for years that KZJ suffers from bipolar and im sure she would have rather dealt with it privately than having it splashed all over the news and papers.
Yes it used to be a taboo subject but in this day and age it should be recocnised as the illness that it is and have the research and funding it deserves.
As for Kerry Katona, maybe she is a class A drug user BECAUSE of bipolar.
No doctor would diagnose and medicate someone for biploar if they did not have it.
my opinion is that the OP is a clueless idiot.

diabolo · 14/04/2011 11:16

Guess I'm a bit cynical, but I just assumed she'd been photogrpahed coming in / going out of a rehab clinic and that the bi-polar explanation was an excuse for a drink or drug problem she didn't want the world to know about.

I've never liked the woman, having seen her interviewed during her Darling Buds of May days and babbling to Michael Parkinson about "I find being so beautiful is such a terrible curse" Hmm.

If she is genuinely bi-polar then I wish her the best.

gorionine · 14/04/2011 11:17

"It saddens me because my mother has a severe case of bi-polar and I wouldn't want anyone to go through what she or our family go through."

I see your point but surely, talking about mental health can only be a good thing? whilst I would not wish for anyone to be bi-polar, some people are and I think it has a negative effect to try and denie that and make it some sort of taboo think one should not talk about.

steps101 · 14/04/2011 11:17

2rebecca - "Some psychiatrist are more inclined to diagnose bipolar disorder than others." Source?

"The point at which "mood swings" turn into "bipolar disorder" is quite contentious." No, it isn't. For a start, bipolar isn't characterised by "mood swings," it's characterised by extremes in mood. And there are clearly defined clinical criteria for diagnosis.

Animation · 14/04/2011 11:18

Champersonic - good thread. We need to have this kind of discussion, I think it's been a bit taboo to talk about - sorry you're getting the brunt of it.

scottishmummy · 14/04/2011 11:18

nasty,judgemental post.just another snap out of it/pull self together rant.except your ire is at some celebs. money & fame dont gine anyone immunity from mental illness.

who the hell gives you the right to decide whether or not the named individuals are ill or not?getting a diagnosis is a process of observation and assessment,not cursory guess.and armchair psychiatry is really not going to cut it

given what MS CZJ has been through perhaps she should be afforded some freedom form online gossip

buttonmooncup · 14/04/2011 11:18

Can't believe some of the ill informed twaddle on here. Although if I recognise you name OP your views don't come as much of a surprise. Do you honestly think that a doctor would risk being struck off by diagnosing a medical condition for a laugh?
Have you considered OP that it may just be that your mother is more severe than CZJ and that bi-polar effects different people differently. Perhaps she just wants to give a message of hope that you can start to feel better if you get help. I know when I got help for my MH issues I did feel slightly better immediately as it was a relief to get a diagnosis. I think CZJ has been very brave in being open about a very stigmatised illness and I'm sure it will help other sufferers to see that you can be a success despite mh issues.
Whoever said she is doing it to get attention back from her husband, assuming you were being serious, is sick!