By Moses Kim
Now that I am stable in terms of my bipolar condition, I am feeling incredible both physically and mentally through hard work with mental health professionals, support groups, and a regular gym routine. After it was suggested by my therapist, I have started to slowly navigate today’s dating culture.
One issue I seem to have is bringing up that fact that I have a bipolar disorder diagnosis, which I like to refer as a condition of my mind, not an illness. I am the type of person that likes to be authentic and real, rather than lying about things like occupation, appearance, and marital status. So this issue of not disclosing my mental health condition feels like I am kind of misrepresenting myself.
I have had two different experiences so far. First, I made a connection after disclosing to someone who was also living with a mental health condition, but there was no attraction. With another person, there was an immediate attraction, but once I disclosed the fact that I was bipolar, all communication halted.
How do YOU break the news or do I even disclose? And what kind of experiences have you gone through?