BLESSED with BIPOLAR

by Richard Jarzynka,     author of the book BLESSED WITH BIPOLAR

I do offend people by calling bipolar a blessing. Just seeing the title  of my book,”Blessed with Bipolar,” seems to set them off.

I assume that those who are offended feel that way because they think that I am making light of the disorder or that I don’t  understand it very well. I would like to assure them – and you – that I would never deny the agony of bipolar. It is pure hell. And I have known that hell many times.

I have been locked on the psych ward seven times and – even after writing the book – I do still sometimes get depressed, irritable, and angry well beyond the capacity of the average person. In fact, the medication I was taking for Restless Leg Syndrome over the past year brought back bipolar symptoms with an tintensity that I had not known since 2006.

So, why do I call bipolar a blessing? First, because I know that many of our symptoms can be harnessed and used for good.

Anger, with practice, can be turned into an assertiveness that enables us to honestly tell people what we believe and what we want – without beating them over the head. Most people cannot do that. They either become overly aggressive or they go passive and get walked over.

Racing thoughts can become a one-person brainstorming session.

The impulsiveness can be brought under our control and give us the initiative to get things done – without doing something crazily dangersous on the spur of the moment.

Delusions of grandeur can be harnessed, tamed down, and used to set goals and dream big – but realistically.

Depression can make us more attuned to the struggles of others – and more compassionate.

The intensity of bipolar can be focused into a productive energy that helps us to take positive action. (Without that harnessed and controlled intensity, I would not have earned a football scholarship to Georgia Tech.)

And something about the whole experience of bipolar often makes us far more imaginative and creative than the average person. (Do you really want to be average?) Maybe it’s the fact that we know human emotions more deeply and intensely (for the  better and the agony-filled worse) than the non-bipolar person can possibly imagine. There is some value in that – in spite of the pain.

Of course, every one of the above “symptoms” can be extremely dangerous and painful when not treated and brought under our control. The key word for me is harness. For our symptoms to be a blessing we must learn to harness them and use them for good. And, in spite of the agony that they have caused each of us, I believe that to some degree we have all, at times, been able to harness some of our symptoms and use them for good.

The second reason I call bipolar a blessing is the same reason I call all adversity a potential blessing. It makes us stronger. It builds our character. It teaches us how to survive, to overcome obstacles, to persevere. It teaches how to succeed.Those blessings are hidden in all adversity.

And, if you are a Christian like me, then you know that God is at work in ALL THINGS for our absolute best – even bipolar disorder. I do, sometimes, get angry at Him for allowing me to have such pain – such agony! But I have seen with my own eyes that He is using my bipolar disorder to build me into someone far better than I could ever hope to be on my own. He is not wasting my bipolar life. He is blessing me with it!

And whether one believes in God or not, there is no doubt that choosing to view bipolar as a blessing is far more likely to lead to success than choosing to view it as a curse. I’ve done both. Still do. Blessing is better.

Richard Jarzynka   bipolarman.org

In a job interview, it would be easier for me to admit that I am a recovering addict or ex-con (I am neither) than to reveal that I have bipolar disorder (which I do). Such is the stigma. And there have been a number of times when I have felt guilty for calling off sick after waking up in a nasty bipolar mood. But it need not be so. An employer has far more to lose by discriminating against a bipolar employee, than does the employee by being open about his condition.

Under Federal Law, people who have bipolar disorder have a legal right to disclose the disorder and request accommodations without fear of harassment, reduction in pay or benefits, or the loss of their job.

“Under the Americans with Disabililties Act (ADA), you have a disability if you have a physical or mental condition that substantially limits a major life activity such as hearing, seeing, speaking, thinking, walking, breathing, or performing manual tasks.” *  Bipolar Disorder clearly meets this legal definition of a “disability.” No one who has ever witnessed a manic or depressive episode can legitimately doubt that bipolar profoundly limits “major life activities.”

Blessed with Bipolar

If you have bipolar disorder and you are able to do the job “you want or were hired to do, with or without reasonable accommodation,” then you are protected by the ADA. *  You cannot be denied employment or fired from a job simply because you have bipolar disorder.

Further, a person who has bipolar is entitled by the ADA to request “reasonable accommodations” for the hiring process and on the job.* Reasonable accommodations are defined as “any change or adjustment to a job, the work environment, or the way things usually are done that would allow you to apply for a job, perform job functions, or enjoy equal access to benefits available to other individuals in the workplace.” *

Not every request for accommodation will be considered reasonable under the ADA, but you should not hesitate to ask your employer for any changes that may help alleviate difficulties arising from your bipolar condition. Examples of reasonable accommodations for persons with bipolar include, but are not limited to, (1) providing a quieter workspace or reducing noisy distractions, (2) requesting time off for treatment for your disability.*

You may request a reasonable accommodation at any time before or after you start working.* When doing so, it is wise to provide documentation from your doctor stating that you do have bipolar and that the requested accommodation is necessary.

In addition to being protected by the ADA, people who have bipolar disorder are also covered by the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA).

The FMLA applies to most employers with fifty or more employees and entitles eligible employees to take up to twelve weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave in a twelve month period for specified family and medical reasons. **

Under the FMLA, bipolar disorder clearly qualifies as a legitimate reason for taking medical leave. The FMLA states that such leave can be taken when you are unable to work because of a “serious health condition.” ** It goes on to define the term “serious health condition” as – in part – a physical or “mental” condition that involves any period of incapacity for a chronic serious health condition which continues over an extended period of time, requires periodic visits to a health care provider, and may involve occasional episodes of incapacity OR a period of incapacity that is permanent or long term due to a condition for which treatment may not be effective.** That undeniably describes bipolar disorder.

The FMLA also requires your employer to maintain your group health care coverage during your leave and to reinstate you to your “original job, or to an equivalent job with equivalent pay, benefits, and other terms and conditions of employment” upon your return to work.** Again, you should be prepared to provide your employer with sufficient documentation of your disability and treatment to demonstrate that the FMLA does apply to your situation.

Given the protections of the ADA and the FMLA, there is no need to hesitate to disclose your bipolar condition to your employer. Federal Law gives you a legal right to request reasonable changes in your workplace that will enable you to perform your job duties and to request time off when you are actively suffering the symptoms of bipolar.

Does this mean that you have the right to call off sick with a bad mood? Not for most people. But when you have bipolar, it is more than a bad mood. It is a legitimate symptom of a “serious medical condition” that may honestly (temporarily) prevent you from being able to do your job – or even get to work. It is a “chronic, serious health condition” that may involve occasional episodes of incapacity. And it is covered under both the ADA and the FMLA.

You need not feel guilty for suffering the real symptoms of a legitimate and serious medical condition. And you need not fear the loss of your job.

* Americans with Disabilities Act: A guide for people with disabilities seeking employment http:www.ada.gov/workta.html

** Fact Sheet #28: The Family and Medical Leave Act – U.S. Dept. of Labor, Wage&Hour Div.

For more information on the ADA contact the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission at www.eeoc.gov and the Department of Justice at www.usdoj.gov/crt/ada

For information about “Reasonable Accommodations” contact the Job Accommodation Network at http://janweb.icdi.wvu.edu/

For more information on the Family Medical Leave Act visit the Wage and Hour Division website: http://www.wagehour.dol.gov

3 Comments

by Richard Jarzynka – BLESSED with BIPOLAR

Here are some statements that you can use to encourage yourself. Shout them out loud. With some real Emotion. For a Christian, they are ALWAYS true! And passionately believing them WILL change your heart, mind, and emotions.

• I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me!
• I am a saint, filled with the Holy Spirit and today I will walk in the power of the Holy Spirit!
• I know that in ALL THINGS God is at work for my good!
• The sovereign, omnipotent, Creator-King of the universe is my Dad! And He loves me more than I can possibly imagine!
• The Lord is warrior; yes, the Lord is His name! And He is fighting for me – right now!
• Greater is He who is in me than He who is in the world!

And one that has recently become a favorite of mine -

• Conqueror! Conqueror! In Christ I am MORE than a conqueror!

Richard Jarzynka,     bipolarman.org

by Richard Jarzynka, author of BLESSED WITH BIPOLAR

I re-learned a lesson about forgiving others when I was expelled from Law School – one day after the Dean learned that I have bipolar disorder. And I wonder whether it is possible, for those of us who tend to beat-up our minds and souls with guilt, to apply that technique to ourselves.

I was walking on the broadwalk in Hollywood, Florida – right at the beach. It was March 24, 2001, just before noon – about 12 hours after I was expelled. I was still in shock, confused, and not really feeling much. Just drifting trance-like down the beach because I didn’t know what else to do – my mind and body were sort of working on automatic. I think my brain had semi-shutdown to protect itself from the trauma of being expelled. But as I sleep-walked down that beach, flashes of anger started to spark.

And almost immediately, I heard god say in my spirit, “You have to forgive those people.” “What?!” I barked. “Do you know what they did to me?!” (Strange question, asking God if He knows something.) But I knew He was right. forgiveness was the only way to get free. So, I employed a technique I had learned years before.

I told God that I forgive them. I also told Him that I didn’t feel any forgiveness toward them. But I didn’t need to feel it. I needed to do it. I then said, “God, I release them from my anger. Please God, take this anger from me.” (I wasn’t feeling forgiveness, but I was still feeling anger. And would, occasionally, for a long time.) I finished by asking God to bless the people who were involved in my expulsion, to help them to know Christ more, and to help me to love them. for years after that, when the anger would flare, I did not re-forgive them. I had already done that. But I did briefly release them from my anger, ask God to take the anger, and ask god to bless them. (I had to do this briefly because if I dwelled there, I would be tempted to let the anger grow.)

So, I ask you. does it make sense for us to apply this technique to ourselves when we struggle with guilt. When we can’t forgive ourselves even though we have confessed our sin to a God who paid the price of our sin by dying on the Cross?

What do you think of this strategy?

• Confess the sin to God
• Remind yourself that God forgives you completely by His grace through the Cross
• Tell God that you forgive yourself
• Tell God that you don’t feel His forgiveness or your own
• Ask God to help you feel it
• Say to God, “I release myself from my own anger and guilt.”
• Ask God to take the anger and guilt
• Ask God to bless you and to help you love yourself
• If you start to feel the anger and guilt again, remind yourself  – briefly and quickly – that you are already forgiven; and repeat the rest of the steps.

Richard Jarzynka,  BLESSED WITH BIPOLAR

by Richard Jarzynka,          bipolarman.org

Several years ago, in the gasping-last-chance days of his major league baseball career, Pittsburgh Pirate outfielder Derek Bell coined the term “Operation Shutdown.” He believed that he should be anointed in spring training as one of the team’s everyday starting outfielders – regardless of his pre-season performance. When the question arose regarding whether Bell would, indeed, be a starter, he notoriously pronounced that if he had to actually ‘win’ a starting job, he would go into “Operation Shutdown.” By that he apparently meant that he would not give his best effort. Some later wondered how they would have noticed; after being handed the starting job, Bell promptly batted .173 with 5 homeruns and 13 RBI.

Operation Shutdown did not work out well for Derek Bell. His days in Major League Baseball ended abruptly thereafter. However, I have learned that there are times when shutting down the operation is the best thing I can do.

On August 6, 2008, forty-five pages worth of rough drafts of this document disappeared from  my laptop computer. A heretofore unseen desktop appeared on my windows monitor. I thought nothing of it. There were still icons on the screen and I assumed that somehow the computer had merely changed the screen-saver.

I checked my email and a couple of other sites and decided to do something else (probably eat). But as I logged off I noticed that there did not seem to be the usual number of icons on the desktop. I was curious, but certainly not alarmed. I assumed that I could easily retrieve the old desktop and the full set of icons, folders, and documents would return.  But . . . when I restarted the computer, the new and deficient desktop was still on the screen – a beautiful rural summer scene of God’s green hills and crystal sky that made me wince.

I drew a deep breath, rubbed my hand across my cheek and lips, and – with calm now an effort – mumbled and grinned, “Okay, it’s gotta be in there somewhere. It didn’t just disappear.”

I went into the control panel and clicked on “Recent Documents.” “(Empty).” Uh-oh, not good. I clicked on “My Documents” and two folders appeared, “My Pictures” and “My Videos.” Very bad. “My Documents” is where the forty-five pages of this rough manuscript had been stored in a folder titled “BBp.” Yes, Blessed with Bipolar. I wasn’t feeling it. The seeds of manic agitation had been sown.

“What in the (curse) is going on here?! I didn’t do anything to make this (curse ing) thing disappear.”

The situation cried out for Derek Bell. It was time for my own Operation Shutdown, but I just could not pull myself away.

I shut the computer off, waited a few seconds, and restarted it. Sometimes, I can trick it into giving me what I want. This wasn’t one of those times. The screen lit up, the corporate jingle tune played . . . Same deficient desktop . . . with the rolling green screen-saver that just happened to be named, “Blissful.”“Yeah, ya (curse), I’ll give ya a fistful of Blissful!”

Control Panel. Click. Recent Documents. “(Empty).” Click. My Documents. “Pictures.” “Videos.” No BBp. “(Curse! Curse! Son of a curse!)”

I told myself to stay calm. I tried to convince myself that the lost documents had to be in there somewhere. And, finally, I half-heartedly whispered, “God, put those documents back on this computer.”

The bipolar would have exploded out of me right then and there, but, fortunately, I have near immediate access to some of the world’s finest computer experts. Grandma Lucy (my mother) is an Assistant Administrator for the Pittsburgh Supercomputing Center at Carnegie Mellon University. Yes, at the age of 46, I called my mommy with a crisis. But my mommy ain’t like every mommy. She earned her masters degree at retirement age and she assists computer geniuses – and my (curse) computer had just stolen 45 pages of semi-hard, half-decent work that I did not want to try to reproduce. So, I called my mommy.

I anxiously informed Grandma Lucy of my dilemma, my voice less than steady and making a large effort not to erupt. She said she would talk to the experts and call me back. I knew she would, so, I took another deep breath and tried to think of something other than the work that went into those 45 pages of second and third draft.

It was not easy. I could feel the bipolar man inside of me – whom no amount of lamictal and Zoloft can make completely go away – yearning to explode.

Grandma Lucy called within five minutes and gave me the instructions:

Go to Control Panel.Click Display.Click Desktop.I sat down to the computer.10 – 9 – 8 . . .            . . . and started clicking.7 – 6 . . .. . . Click. Final step.5 – 4 . . .. . . Click. Close Window. Close Control Panel . . . Same new (curse) deficient (curse) “Bliss” screen-saver.

3 . . .

“Okay, it didn’t work. (curse). I’m gonna explode, “ I growled. My fists balled up. My teeth clenched. I glared, glassy-eyed and seething, at the computer.

Deep breath. “Try it again,” I slowly exhaled venom.

Control Panel. Display. Desktop. Click. Click. Click. “(Curse . . . curse . . . mother curse.)”

Screen–saver “Bliss.” 3 -2 -1

POP! goes my steaming lid right into bipolar orbit with a blizzard of curses.

I pounded the kitchen table and growled forth a new language. “45 PAGES GONE! NOTHING GOES RIGHT!”

I caught myself, still ranting curses, and somehow chose not to jump up on my broken ankle against every natural manic instinct.

Unfortunately, my father was innocently standing in the line of fire and I yelled at him. I turned into an idiot, misdirecting my anger at the man who is the tangible love of God on earth to me. Just as my Dad was saying, “Rich, I didn’t do anything –,” I roared, “Yeah, what if I went out and dug up your (curse) lawn,” equating his tireless, diligent work on the yard with my 45 lost pages.

I should have known better. I do know better. I should have gone into “Operation Shutdown” as soon as the computer went rogue and I felt bipolar-man rising up. I had felt the explosion building. I needed to get away from that computer, go outside, take a walk on my crutches, blast a Bob Dylan song and sing “Thunder On the Mountain” at the top of my lungs. Anything  - pour a bucket of water over my head – anything to get my mind off of that computer and keep from exploding. And praise God through it all.

But Derek Bell was the farthest thing from my mind.

After yelling at my father, I hobbled and bounced and tripped up the steps, slammed my crutches on the floor, and went to bed at noon. Operation Shutdown – 10 minutes too late.

At times like this I need to realize that nothing is as important – in that moment – as avoiding an explosion and a downward spiral that could last five days. I need to take myself out of whatever it is that I am doing – no matter how important it may seem – and shut down my emotions before they rage. I need to take a deep breath and get away, take another deep breath, walk hard and fast, and pray until I think straight. It might take a long time. Calling my counselor quickly would be a good idea. I must stop the explosion.

My father took the laptop to Grandma Lucy at Carnegie Mellon University and the experts retrieved my documents. Somewhere, deep down I always knew that my 45 pages would be found, but somewhere else – not quite as deep down – I wanted to explode, and did.

I repented and spent the next 24 hours feeling guilty, childish, ungrateful, mean, and imbecilic. I needlessly whipped myself instead of receiving the forgiveness that I knew God had already granted. Pride said that I needed to take a beating first.

“God, I pray, show me when to shut it down. God, I surrender. Take control and shut me down so I do no harm.”

BLESSED WITH BIPOLAR on FACEBOOK

by Richard Jarzynka BLESSED with BIPOLAR Having something to look forward to has sometimes helped me to avoid – or break out of – depression.

When I was 18 years-old and playing football on a scholarship to Georgia Tech, I was struggling with a bipolar episode – 8 or 9 years prior to being diagnosed. I was away from home for the first time and playing football at a level that was bigger, stronger, and faster than I had ever known before. And my mind was starting to unravel.

That was 30 years ago and I still remember saying that making a plan to visit my home in Pittsburgh “gave me something to look forward to.” That helped me to get at least a little bit outside of how overwhelmed I was feeling. Having something to look forward to helped me to escape from the physical beating I was subjecting myself to by practicing football three times a day in the mid-August heat of Atlanta, Georgia and the mental anguish I was feeling from what I did not yet know was bipolar disorder. (I just thought I was homesick – and I beat myself up for that. Now I know that there was much more going on – including some distorted thinking that scared me into thinking that I was going crazy.)

As I recently struggled with the seasonal affective bombardment of February in the frozen north, I tried to get a lift from looking forward to the sunshine of spring, but that wasn’t enough. It seemed too far away to work any good on the depression I was dealing with.

I think it can help to have some fun and exciting things to be looking forward to, but they can’t be too far off.

Right now, I am eager for the start of the baseball season – even though my team, the Pittsburgh Pirates, have not had a winning season in 18 years. I will not give up on them and I can’t wait to be at the most beautiful ballpark in America for Opening Day on April 7. I am also eager to go to some minor league games in Altoona. I also expect to be traveling to Nashville in May. How about you?

What are you looking forward to that will lift your spirits?

Please share this post on Y! Buzz

You can find Richard’s book, “Blessed with Bipolar” at this link on Amazon.com

by Richard Jarzynka author of BLESSED with BIPOLAR

• Do you ever demand too much of yourself? I think it is necessary to set – and even write – specific goals and pursue them if we want to have success. But lately I have been wondering if it can sometimes be good to lower our expectations. How much do I have to achieve to be able to feel good about myself? When my happiness depends upon my achievements, I am in big trouble. So what is the source of my joy? Jesus Christ and what He did on the Cross for this sinful wretch.

• I failed to beat seasonal affective disorder this year. I know that almost every year I have a hard time with the winter months. The lack of sunlight, cold, and snow can really get to me.   I had a plan for beating it this year – full-spectrum light therapy, exercise, getting outside in whatever sunlight there was. But February beat the daylights out of me. I felt like I was living in a cave for over a month. I won’t let that happen next year. I can’t. I will buy a couple more full-spectrum lamps. If necessary, I will increase my anti-depressant. And I will save enough money to head south for a week or two. That is a specific goal which I have clearly stated and put in writing. And it’s one expectation that I will not lower!

• Stigma has no hold over me. It has kept me from being hired for a job and did get me expelled from law school. But what somebody else might think of my bipolar, cannot make me feel bad about myself!
• Y! Buzz. Spread the Word!!! Share this Bipolar Blog with the BUZZ UP button below

(more…)

by Richard Jarzynka -    author of BLESSED WITH BIPOLAR

Believe it or not, there are times when I miss being locked up on the Psych Ward. There”s no pressure. Nobody expects me to do much of anything. And all my needs are met. I eat three meals a day and snacks. I have a bed to sleep in. And if I don’t want to, I don’t even have to bathe, shave, or brush my teeth.

In the world I can get discouraged because I see people who I assume are “doing better” than me. Locked up in the psych ward, I can usually find somebody who at least appears to be more screwed up than me. And, in a neurotically prideful way, it can feel depressingly good to convince yourself that I am the healthiest person in the nuthouse.

You can also get away with just about anything on a psych ward. It’s not like they can fire you – and they’ve already locked you up! Of course, if you ever want to get out, you do have to behave yourself. If you get too wired-up and radical for too long, you can end up in a state hospital for endless months. And, no matter how little may be expected of me there, being the healthiest patient in the state hospital is something that I never want to have the chance to miss.

Richard Jarzynka  BIPOLARMAN.ORG

by Richard Jarzynka,

author of BLESSED WITH BIPOLAR

We are surrounded by people who have bipolar disorder!

I was in a shopping mall today for about two hours. During that time there may have 5,ooo people or more who came in and out of that mall. If only 3% of the population has bipolar disorder, that means there were 150 others like me in the same building. I wonder how many of the other four-thousand-eight-hundred and fifty would have stuck around if they realized that we were there.

Think about this. If you go to a movie with 400 people, there are likely to be 12 in that little theater who have bipolar. If you go to a major league baseball game with 30,000 people, there are somewhere around 900 in that park who have bipolar. If you go to a Division I college football game, there may be 3,000 manic-depressives in the joint. If the general population realized that, they may never leave their homes. Of course, they are likely to be less safe in their homes than they are with a few dozen of us in a crowded building.

I have seen studies that say that people who have bipolar disorder do not commit acts of violence any more frequently than does the general population. And when somebody with bipolar does get violent, it usually involves drugs or alcohol – just like the general population.

I think people’s fear of bipolar might stem from the fact that we actually show some emotion while much of the rest of the world holds it in until an ulcer shows up. Where did the world get the idea that we are not supposed to be emotional. Now, I’m advocating that you go out in public and throw a fit or spill your most intense mood all over your co-workers. But I am saying that human beings were made with emotions and it is okay to express them – with consideration, of course, for those around us.

In fact, I think that having strong emotions means that we are experiencing life more intensely – for better and worse. That can be very difficult, at times, and scary for others when they have to deal with our intensity. But at least we’re not going through our days and years without being touched by life. I don’t want to get rid of my emotions and I don’t want to repress them until an artery bursts. I want to harness my emotions, get them under my control so I can feel them without exploding and without scaring people – without scaring them too much, that is.

I want to feel my emotions and use them for good. I want to know that I am fully alive – without letting my emotions go out of control and without feeling like I don’t want to be alive. I want the intensity of bipolar – just not so much of it. I want it to be harnessed to do good.

I want the energy of hypomania without the full-blown madness. But I still haven’t figured out how to make that happen. And I think I am surrounded by people who are in the same boat. I’ll probably see about thirty of them tomorrow morning without knowing who they are – in 9:30 service at church!

by Richard Jarzynka,     author of   BLESSED WITH BIPOLAR
Christian men’s groups set  me off. They bug me. All men’s groups bug me – christian or not. And I don’t think that it has anything to do with having bipolar.

There always seems to be an underlying b.s. competition that goes unstated in a men’s group. Who is going to pray the longest, loudest, and fastest? Who is going to quote the most and best scripture? Who can be the most self-deprecating without looking too proud about it? Who is the most humble? B.S.!

And we’re so damn afraid to offend each other. (Yep, probably offended somebody right there with that damn “damn.” Deal with it.)   Sooner or later, it makes me nuts and I have to get out. And then, of course, I’m not “involved.” I’m neglecting “relationship.” Not so.

In most men’s groups leadership is a problem. Nobody really knows how to do it. You either end up with two people competing for the fore-front without recognizing that it’s what they are doing – because it allegedly would not be “very christian” to compete like that. Or you have everybody feeling that they will look  too much like they actually want to be the leader, so, nobody leads and eveybody pretends that it doesn’t matter that the group has no direction.

Even when there is an appointed leader, the guy is, most times, so afraid of stepping on toes that he spends much of his time asking the others what they want to do.

so what do I do in a men’s group? I sit back, get the lay of the land, and then I end up putting people ill-at-ease by saying something like,  “I don’t think it’s a sin to admire a woman’s physical beauty.” And the group members shift in their seats, blink their eyes, and clear their throats, nervous that I might be advocating lust. Which I do not. I don’t advocate it, that is. But I do confess to it. I have committed the sin. Many times. And I’m not proud of it.

And that’s another problem with Christian mens groups. Confession. Why can’t we just look each 0ther in the face and stop pretending that the worst sin we ever commit is cutting some jerk off in traffic. Why can’t we confess the big stuff? Why can’t we admit that we sometimes get angry with God? Cursing angry. Who are we trying to kid? And why do we fool ourselves into believing t that anybody else might think that we have reached perfection right here on earth? And we can’t bring them down by letting them know that we’re not as perfect as we’re all pretending to be?

Small groups may be great for some people. Me? I’d rather sit down with one person and have a no-holds-barred, challenging, encouraging, confronting (sometimes ‘offensive’), loving, God-fearing conversation – preferably with a woman! Maybe that’s why about 75% of the people on my Blessed with Bipoloar FACEBOOK page are not men.

Richard Jarzynka BLESSED WITH BIPOLAR