I personally share your skepticism about certain aspects of psychiatry in general but I can tell you that bipolar is real, I suffer from it. I’ve been psychotic and had some serious problems with episodic memory during those periods, at least this illness in particular is not a man made construct.

Take care.

I do know a very few bipolar folks… but they don’t try and sneak “helper snacks” into the theater, sneak “helper video cameras” into concerts, or sneak “helper puppies” into grocery stores.

And maybe… in general… I’m skeptical of the psychiatric community’s affinity for describing everything as an illness or disease (overeating, laziness, etc). I know that doesn’t relate directly, but it makes me suspicious of everything else they come up with.

Just as with a person, if the dog is disruptive, makes a mess, etc., the management have every right to require that the owner/handler remove the dog from the store.

Some mentally ill people cannot function even close to normally without a service dog.

I say, do whatever you gotta do to keep the nutsos happy. If she has to carry a small dog around with her everywhere she goes, so be it. Whatever, if Toto stops her from shooting up a school, then I’m all for it.

Schizoaffective disorder (and schiziphrenia, too) is *completely* different from multiple personality disorder, which may be what your closing joke refers to?

More on schizoaffective disorder: http://www.nmha.org/infoctr/factsheets/52.cfm

I have a relative with this disorder and his main problems are paranoia and hallucinations. People with multiple personalities (aka “dissociative identity disorder”) have several distinct personalities within one body, usually as a result of trauma as a child (like sexual abuse).

*Thank you for listening to this public service announcement from your local therapist/mommy, Tara*