What It’s Like to be in a Codependent Relationship with a Bipolar Partner
How to recognise the codependent traits and resolve them internally.
I didn’t know how intense the highs and the lows would be when the person you’re in love with is bipolar. The problem wasn’t his manic depression, but I had created codependent behaviours based on his mental health.
It would be easy to blame everything that was wrong in the relationship on his behaviour. I now realise the relationship suffered because of how I tried to manage his moods constantly, sacrificing myself, and in the long term, us.
Since then, I have made a conscious effort to identify these past codependent behaviours as my own red flags. I could never ‘fix’ him, I could only manage how I acted in our relationship.
Constantly ignoring worrying behaviour to manage their feelings
When I was in this relationship, there wasn’t as much awareness around mental health as there is today. I knew he had a problem, but I didn’t want to confront him about it. I saw the tablets that he took every day but turned a blind eye, not wanting to change the mood.
I was in love with the side he showed me the most, which was when he was manic. I saw…
