Stupid Idea

I remember about a decade ago when I knew very little about blogs. Out of ignorance I thought they were about the dumbest things I could imagine. Weren’t they just diaries? Who in the world wants to read other people’s diaries? Most of us have rather mundane lives – wake up, go to work, watch TV go to bed. I couldn’t imagine anything more narcissistic than blogging about oneself.

Genesis

Despite my feelings about blogs, on Friday 18th of April, 2008 I posted my first article. Not knowing what to say, it was short, but I wrote this paragraph stating why I began:

This blog will reflect my daily thoughts, random musings as well as a record of my struggle with bipolar and weight. I’m hoping that by putting it “all out there”, that I’ll stay motivated in seeking more balance in my life.

That post was titled Out of the Starting Gate, hence the title above.

I don’t recall the decision to begin, but something made me overcome my disdain for the medium. That was not long after I was diagnosed with bipolar disorder. However, I’m certain it was not suggested by my doctor. My best guess is that I came across some blogs while researching what bipolar is all about. And talk about narcissism, the original name of this blog was How is Bradley? Looking through earlier posts, it really was all about me. It needed it to be. It chronicled my struggle and made me feel connected to the outside world at a time that I struggled with agoraphobia. Hell, I probably was just plain bored since I was stuck inside all day.

They Kept Me Going

I started this blog for and about me, but that’s not why I continued. Had it remained solely about me, I probably would have abandoned it long ago. But something magical started to happen – I was getting comments and emails. A lot of emails. Comments were primarily from people trying to adapt to living with bipolar disorder, but the emails were almost exclusively from friends and family members of someone diagnosed with BP. Their emails thanked me for helping them to understand this disease their loved ones were struggling with. They’re the ones that kept me going.

Moving Forward, Moving Back

You may ask, why I titled this post Out of the Starting gate Redux. Does it mean I’m starting all over again? Sort of. At least one day each week it’s going to be all about me again. Each Monday I will document the previous week – my mood, my weight, the progress on my novel and life in general. My expectation is I will do two additional posts each week, but who the hell knows what those will be about.

I’m looking forward to moving ahead while simultaneously returning to my roots. I hope you’ll enjoy the ride. Oh, and please don’t forget to leave comments. No comments make me sad.