What should i do if my wife has manic depression?!
Question:
What should i do if my wife has manic depression?
My wife and I have been married for 8 yrs now with 3 children. I believe my wife has manic depression.
The problem is she is in denial and will not go for the necessary tests or diagnosing. This is very difficult at home to say the least. Constant verbal and physical abuse for about 5yrs now, towards myself and the kids.
Our oldest child is 6 and youngest 2.
I feel my job as a husband should be to support my wife but I always get hurt in the process. I take my marriage vows very seriously and am a born again christian, but am actually contemplating divorce.
Plz help me what should I do?
PS. Her mother believes she has it and her father had been hospitalised for 1-2 yrs for manic depression and is now on the maximum dossage you can give to someone before hospitalisation.
Answers:
You can only confront her about it, but unless she is a physical danger to herself or others, it would be morally wrong to force treatment on her. Instead of playing psychiatrist and telling her she's bipolar as that is something no one wants to hear since that means medication (and psych meds are hell), ask her if she'll go to marriage counselling with you. It can help a little bit, at least with the verbal abuse. Just because she has violent mood swings doesn't mean that she should be constantly abusive. She might want to try counselling herself. The medications are hell and personally, unless her bipolar is very severe or she wants to try them, I don't think it's worth the side effects.