Having bipolar disorder isn’t a personality trait or a string of bad moods. It’s a serious illness that affects every day, every decision, every relationship. But the most frustrating part isn’t just living with it, it’s having to constantly prove to others that you’re actually sick. Like you need to convince them of something that’s already eating you alive.

Only people who’ve been through real illness understand the toll. The rest keep expecting you to “try harder,” “cheer up,” or “think positive.” They don’t get it. They don’t want to. And that kind of loneliness weighs as much as the illness itself.