Dec 28 2008
Twenty million entries for bipolar? Sheesh!
I have spent a couple of weeks now pouring over online resources available to people with mental illnesses. I already knew quite a bit about bipolar disorder but I wanted to know what was now available for people seeking information. I have found why many people are confused or give up altogether.
Google the word “bipolar”. The resulting search will yield about twenty million entries. I am not exaggerating. This would be overwhelming for anyone. With this many entries, where do you start? At the top, of course. Unfortunately, the top entry simply does not provide enough information. It only gives a basic rundown of the disorder. The next few entries will give you clinical terms and medical jargon. This further confuses most people and by now, some people will have already given up.
The internet is a wonderful collection of information but sometimes it can be too much. Thus is the case with bipolar disorder. If you want someone to learn about the illness, you will need to point them in the right direction. Don’t expect that they will be able to easily find what they want to know in the vast amounts of webpages that discuss the disorder. Think about one particular thing you would like someone to know about bipolar disorder and then search through those links to find it. How long does it take? How many links must you click through? See my point?
When you find something of interest or a website that provides information you can relate to, save it. Send your links to those who want to know more about your illness. It will save everyone time and trouble and your friends and family will be able to read relevant information.
