The Highs & Lows of Motherhood
Throughout the years, my mother’s lessons and advice have continued to prove necessary and invaluable. My mother taught me kindness, compassion, strength, and most importantly standing in my convictions. My mother is a person living with bipolar disorder, which means growing up we had our good days and bad, but even on the bad days, I adored her. Often, when I share this with people, they are understandably astonished. Most people don’t know the experience of being raised or even in the close company of a person with bipolar disorder. Oftentimes, people have a skewed view based on a limited understanding built on memes and internet posts regarding mental health. As a child being raised by someone with mental illness this is a fact I quickly became all too familiar with. Unfortunately for them, many people don’t realize that although my mother’s diagnosis presented some difficulties, it also provided a whole new lens through which I could view the world and those around me. My mother isn’t strong despite her illness. She is strong because of it, and that strength has influenced me in ways I can only attempt to express through words.
