Rooms

I felt uncomfortable leaving my room yesterday, it was difficult to leave my writing behind, but my belly dance class beckoned.  It was really fun and we made good progress on the choreography for our upcoming performance.  Then I went to a meeting, to “the rooms,” as we call them, which made me feel at home—so many familiar and friendly faces, and messages I needed to hear.  Yesterday I went to another home, the room, as we in the bipolar chat room refer to it.  When I first discovered the room, I was there morning and night.  At last I’d found a community of people who understood what I was going through, and with whom I could relate.  It’s amazing how much we share in common, that isn’t referred to in literature on bipolar disorder.  It’s always a relief to discover you’re not the only one with a certain problem.  For example, you’d be amazed at how many of us have issues with taking a shower.  We support each other to take a break from the keyboard, jump in the shower, and report back once showered.  We support each other through difficult times, congratulate each other when we’re doing well, share information and experience with meds, and talk about all sorts of things—one favourite topic is food and recipes.  Some people think I shouldn’t spend so much time in the room, that hanging out with people who share the same illness is unhealthy.  However, I find that spending all of my time with “normal” people can be unhealthy, since they just don’t get it, and make comments that not only leave me feeling misunderstood, but can really undermine my moral.  

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