The result of this seems to be that when I become unwell people in this group provide me with the best kind of support that they're equipped to give while others help me talk it out.
Unfortunately this hasn't been so easy to achieve with family members as it has with friends since they're so desperate to see me well, although things are improving. Fortunately (or unfortunately) my wife is also bipolar so I don't have that problem with her.
As to balancing talking it out vs. distraction? I rapid cycle so distraction can be very effective for dealing with short-term mood swings. If I notice that I'm distracting myself a lot then that's a sign that bigger trouble is just around the corner and is when I start to seek help. My wife and I discuss the state of our mental health very frequently so there's always a certain amount of discussion going on as well.
> On the other hand, I'm usually happy to be treated differently by people that have had similar experiences to me. I can often communicate to them in a sentence things which would take hours of conversation with somebody who'd not been there before.
I very much agree with both parts of what you've said here. I'm curious if & how you tend to balance between the two?
Generally when I'm having a bad time just having some casual distraction works fine, especially from someone who doesn't know what's wrong.
When I'm stuck in a rut, just having a few friends who can stop me bullshitting and keep me talking works wonders.