I have been wanting to tackle this topic head-on for a long time. I have my children's permission to do so now. We've waivered between wanting to protect our privacy and wanting to reach out to other people who are in difficult positions. Maddy just wants some publicity for her blog. Not surprisingly, she is the more manic of the bipolar twins.

Amanda tends towards the depressed end of the spectrum. She just doesn't want to feel like there's a secret. About 4 years ago, a soap opera star she really liked went public with his bipolar. I showed her the article. She read it, looked at me, and said "you mean when I grow up, I can have a regular job." I never knew she had that doubt. She's now well-medicated and a mostly A, occasional B kind of student. She's never had to have special ed. Yet, she thought she was crippled for life.

Besides their permission, enough of their symptoms and worst days have been public that a lot of people know and word gets passed around. Keeping it secret tends to fuel the rumor mill. So we're going public. If you want to read Maddy's point of view, she's starting to post about it on the twins' site.