Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Konglishman]

Last night, after having a long discussion with my roommate, I came to the conclusion that a certain friend of mine might be bipolar. At the moment, this friend is occasionally staying with us as he is having some marital problems (due in part to him having rushed into a marriage with a Korean girl who he barely knows and can barely communicate with). Anyways, I am all ears on ideas for how to discuss this with my friend and ultimately how to get him to seek help.

[soyoungmikey]

First of all how would you know if he was bipolar or not? If you are not trained such a diagnosis would be virtually impossible since most of lay persons conceptions of mental illness are influenced by pop-culture (music, movie references etc) and are largely devoid of fact.

See this for instance: http://www.fortunecity.com/campus/psychology/781/dsm.htm

As to how to talk to him about his mental health issues? Well as someone who has had these talks with friends and family I would suggest just coming out and talking about it. Possibly he wants to talk about it and is afraid to do so.

For help, please look at some of Harpeau's posts. He has provided some useful links and contact information for people to seek help in Korea.

Finally, if is a good friend and living with you, I 'd suggest be open, accepting, non-judgmental to anything he might say. Be a good friend to him and all should work out.

[Steelrails]

Wait, wait...someone who is married is going crazy?

I'd investigate marriage as the cause of insanity before I'd leap to any conclusion regarding a psychological condition.

[Konglishman]

[Konglishman]

[drydell]

So you did a google search on 'Bipolar' and now you feel suitably educated to diagnose someone with a complex psychiatric condition..

Advice - stay away from using google to diagnose any medical condition...

that goes for all you lot diagnosing your hagwan kids with autism and all manner of SEN conditions just cos you did a bit of SEN work back home...

[Panda]

My medical school teacher who taught us psychiatry once said:

Many people (including himself)are bipolar, its only a matter of degree, and not all of them need treatment, not all of them lead to self-destruction. Lots of workaholic people turn out to be bipolar. If they are smart and capable, they might even achieve great success. Like Wagner.



Bipolar people seem to affect people around them more than themselves because their emotions can change dramatically very quickly but they are not aware of it. My current boss is like this and it gives us a big difficult time to follow his minds.

I just added something to reply the post above mine:
To diagnose someone with a specific condition is not easy, but very often doctors don't understand a patient as their families or friends do. especially when it comes to psychiatry, lots of diagnoses are based on observation or narrating from the families and friends (symptoms and history) rather than laboratory examination, its possible to get a correct diagnosis by someone who know the patient better than a doctor.

[Konglishman]

[Kwangjuchicken]

[Sus]

If your friend is depressed and/or bipolar, it is worth a chat with him before things go to far. Many of us are alone out here, without a family or strong support systems. When someone needs emotional help, it takes a good friend to point it out and try to help. Say your piece, express concern and offer advice on how to get help.

[Died By Bear]

[BobbyOrr]

I had a friend in high school who we all loved and thought of as wacky and fun. She ended up having a blow-out night and ended up in jail, then the pysch-unit. Ended up working out for her. She got diagnosed, medicated and she's doing well.

I have an aunt, who everyone loved and thought of as wacky and fun. My mother (her sister in law) spent lots of time in the summer with my aunt. My mother noticed worrying changes in her behaviour. My mother, out of concern, told my aunt that she was worried about her and that maybe there were problems with the meds she was on.

My aunt flipped out. My aunt also went on ruin her marriage, something that never would have happened if she was properly managed.

All that to stay. It's very, very difficult to bring these things up and sadly, sometimes there's nothing you can do. Best of luck.

[12ax7]

[Dazed and Confused]

You've stated that your friend drinks alot, sleeps little, and is in a stressful/bad relationship. Who wouldn't be crazy????

[Konglishman]