Living with someone that has bipolar

[diet7up]

From the beginning,

Lived with my husband for 8 years and have always know something wasn't right, he had a terrible up bringing, awful mood swings and rages and would lock himself away for days at a time not able to face the world,

We live abroad and have done for nearly 8 years so no family around us,
We have 2 beautiful children, last year the same day as our 2nd child was born he got diagnosed with bipolar and things have gone from bad to worse!

He?s on Meds but they don?t seem to help, the current meds the meds he?s currently on make him very angry and quiet nasty, last night it turned on me with screaming, shouting, breaking stuff and slamming doors, i have to say i was scared for myself and our children. He said some pretty nasty stuff !

Every time he goes to the doctor he gets different meds, he also likes a drink that i have asked him not to but he will still go out and drink! It doesn?t help

Now I?m so confused, as i said i live abroad, i have friends but no one i could go stay with if needed and no family here.

I guess im just looking for some advice, my first thought this morning was to take my children to the airport and get the first flight out of here but to be honest i hate the thought of him being alone. Does it get easier, does he just need to find meds that work for him or is this just the start, and will he get worse.

Feeling very lonely, confused and worried.

If the medication isn't helping then I'd definitely suggest a return to the GP and (if not tried already) a referral to a specialist if the GP seems to be running out of ideas.

I think you do need to prioritise your family's safety until things improve.

He needs to see a psychiatrist, and get the right meds. He needs to be totally honest about how they are working, and what effect they have on him, too.

If he isn't willing to try to manage this and keep you all safe, you'll have to leave. I say that as someone with bipolar. It is bloody difficult, but you have to be on top of it and find the meds that work for you or it gets worse and worse. Something like 85 percentof ppeople with bipolar don't medicate themselves properly.

Is he on lithium at the moment?

you need to report what happened to his GP and find out what support is available to you /who to call 24/7 would it be police, etc?

if you feeling scared/unsafe plan an exit strategy day or night - someone could get hurt.

eg a packed bag, money, details of nearby hotel etc.

if he is at all aware of his actions then the act hat you take action may help him see what is going on...
if he is unaware then even more important you keep you and Dc safe.

can you agree with friend or neighbour a signal eg text message phrase that means "call police i need help" ?

speak to your neighbours - let them know what you would like them to do if they hear "screaming, shouting, breaking stuff and slamming doors"

do you want them to ignore or to do something?