A Long Road

A long road, they told me,
We may control it, but
Never cure it.
Bipolar is
Its name.

One drug to control mania, one
For the depression, then
Another and another,
Until a balance is
Maintained.

Coping, and hoping, mind games with
Triggers, until you succumb; high
Spirited with the mania,
Hopeless with the
Depression.

Drugs control mania, and drugs
Control depression; control
Is the word, never cured.
Bipolar is the
Name.

Bipolar is my new name.
Hush, don't you tell.
It’s a stigma to
Live with, to
Retain.

I am now a new normal;
My norms, the doctors',
My family’s,
or it is my
Friend's.

A long road, it is controlled, never cured.

Copyright Denise A White