Bipolar disorder

If you or your partner have bipolar disorder, do you feel triggered when the baby cries? Yesterday, I noticed my husband being a bit aggressive with our 15-day-old baby. He was changing her diaper, and she was crying a lot because she has colic. When he was done, he picked her up in a way that was so aggressive it scared her—she stopped crying for a moment because he scared her but then cried even worse. She’s a newborn, and I’m so disappointed. I just want to hear from someone who also has bipolar disorder or a bipolar partner: Could this be related to his condition? How do you deal with situations like this? He has always been on medication, and while he has a short temper sometimes, he’s never gotten physical with me and pretty much deals really good with bipolar disorder.
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I have bipolar and adhd and yes - my daughter crying has always been a massive trigger since she was a baby, tbh its actually been worse for me since shes a bit older(4now) as its like a screeching and yelling and aggression which sends me straight into fight or flight due to past trauma and struggling with that emotional regulation myself. That being said, ive been a single mum since she was 3 months old and as hard as it can be i was always very aware of it so have learnt to manage it the best i can, do i sometimes snap back and shout/lose my temper? Yes, but ive never laid a hand on my daughter even if it means i cant always coach her through her tantrums as its safer and less harmful in the long run for me to remove myself from the situation and on the times i do lash out i always apologise and talk through with her what we could do better next time after weve both levelled back out. Obviously when she was a baby it was a lot more leaving her safely in a crib whilst i cried alone

Is he/has he been through therapy? They’re very good with helping you find safe ways to deal with the overwhelming rage and regulate yourself which can even be used to teach your little one as they grow up! Here if you need to chat tho lovely or if you wanted suggestions of ways he can bring himself back from that point that work for me, its a hard illness to go through but its so hard on loved ones too🤍

@Courtney thank you so mush for your response! I will message you cuz I’m def interested to know ways that I can help him.

I am bipolar. When she’s having a bad tantrum I’ve realized I do have a short fuse. I have yelled at her before but always apologize afterwards. I’ve learned that taking deep breathes in stressful situations, having my partner take over, put her in a safe space like the crib and step away from the situation has been helpful. She’s now 13 months and I’ve put in strategies that keep my emotions in check so to speak. I also find if I take my medication regularly it’s very helpful. I would also note I’ve never been physical towards my daughter. Maybe your husband needs to work with a therapist to be able to identify triggers and strategies to bring him back to his baseline. Hope that’s helpful 🤗

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