How Do You Help Children Cope With A Bipolar Parent?
Living with bipolar disorder can be a challenge for everyone involved, including children. Children tend to show their stress in ways that are different from an adult’s and may not even know what they’re stressed about. The behavior of a person with bipolar can be confusing to adults and children. Children may react by acting out, becoming withdrawn, or developing a perfectionistic attitude. It’s important to give kids the skills and information they need to cope with bipolar disorder in a healthy way. Mentally prepare yourself. Knowing ahead of time how you’ll explain things to your children and how you’ll handle different situations (including emergencies) should they arise can help you stay calm and focus on the needs of your children. Keep children in the know. Using age-appropriate language, explain mom or dad has a condition called bipolar disorder which can make a parent feel sad, happy, angry or anxious for reasons that are not connected to anything else going on. Ask children
