WARNING!

"FREE Breaking News On Bipolar Disorder"

Sign up today for my FREE Newsletter for those dealing with Bipolar Disorder. Here is what you'll get:

• The signs and symptoms of bipolar disorder
• Breaking news on bipolar disorder
• Advanced tips, tricks and secrets of dealing with and supporting someone with bipolar
• New changes in laws that can affect individuals with bipolar disorder
• Updates on the latest medication research
• Free Resources available to those dealing with Bipolar Disorder

And much, MUCH more!

(Note: A new page will open so you won't lose your place on this page.)

Privacy Policy

I went into a downward spiral very fast and continued to tell myself that I didn't need meds. This stinking thinking went on for years. I am not kidding when I say years. I am now 42 and finally know that playing God with my meds isn't what is best for me.

I think the hardest thing to digest is the belief that you must take this medication for life. I had a really hard time accepting that, but again that is stinking thinking. It puts way to much pressure on you thinking of it like that!

I have been in therapy most of my life and I think with being Bipolar it is very difficult accepting that we aren't normal. Honestly though "What is normal?"

I wouldn't change a thing now. My life is stable and I am currently on the best meds possible for me. I don't say that lightly either. I have been on 10 to 12 different meds for about 14 years. I have gained a lot of weight, lost a lot of hair, but my current spouse is very supporting and I thank God for him everyday!

Please continue on the right path by taking your meds, because in the long run you WILL find yourself again! I truly believe that!

If you choose to go off your medications, it will only prolong the time it takes to feel better. Going off your meds is so devastating to your well-being. I know I have done this for years. I go for about a year and decide that I am well and go off my meds. Boy, look out, because I totally become a maniac. It only takes about a week, before I am full-blown out of control and out of my mind.

Please be good to yourself, but really it is about you and only you! Please reconsider your actions. Going off your meds is the worst thing that you could possibly do for yourself! You are feeling better, because the meds are working.”

-Dawn A. Campbell

“Going off my medications makes me into the bad person I don't want to be. I don't think clearly. I lose my temper and don't care if I hurt other people. I do reckless things that should get me killed. I want nothing to do with my children. I want to do all the things that get me into trouble and oh the energy.

I promise you… life is so much more fulfilling when you see it through normal eyes!!!!! (Almost normal anyway)

I have seen people decide they were fine so they quit their medicine only to find them dead bullet to the brain a few days later. Please your medicine only works if you take it. When you take it you don't want to die. So why quit taking it when you know that is how you will eventually feel.

If your a better person with your medicine subject people to that person. You will be so much happier. Those around you would have their hearts ripped out of their chest if something happened to you. The blame would go on those closest to you, not you. Think of others before you think of quitting for yourself.”

-Allison Farar

“When my psychiatrist first diagnosed me as Bi-polar, I left his office, stopped taking the meds I was already on and didn't go back to him. The thought of actually being labeled "manic" made me feel like a failure and weak and I thought I could just manage things on my own.

My marriage fell apart, I turned to drugs, alcohol, lost friends, lost career opportunities, spent money on ridiculous things with nothing to show for it. I would go through periods where I would make all kinds of rash decisions that at the time seemed perfectly logical to me and completely off the wall to everyone around me. I couldn't see it.

My depression would hit so hard that I couldn't remember ever feeling good. When the highs would come I felt like I could do just about anything, and couldn't imagine what I was ever down about. It was like being lost at sea tossed around by waves.

This went on for years, and for the most part I managed to survive by reading material on anger management, Domestic Abuse, and even working with people who suffered with mental health issues!

It was only recently that I went into such a dark place again that I ended up taking part in a treatment program where I was observed by a therapist, a psychiatrist, and a team of program staff, who helped me understand how to manage, and accept that I need to take this seriously, and that means taking the required medication.

Without assistance/ guidance from a healthcare professional, the one who diagnosed you, or the one that prescribed your meds, you should never take yourself off of medication. Not only will it affect your mental health, but also there can be physical side effects.

Doctor's go to school for many years to study how the brain, body organs, our chemical, biological make up function together, we can't mess around with stuff like that on our own, just because we "feel good", or "feel bad". The administration of medication is serious business and should be left up to those who are trained to understand what is in our best interest.

If you are thinking about going off of your medications, please speak with your psychiatrist and tell them why you want to go off your meds. Chances are you just may not have the right mix, or you are feeling good and think you don't need your meds anymore. The feeling good, or stable is in fact the benefit of medication and clear thinking. Not taking meds for your condition is like having cancer and not getting treatment, you will get sick, stay sick.”

-Kimberly Anne Dimond

“Hello, my name is Evette. I was diagnosed with Bipolar Disorder In Feb. of 2000. I was 33 years old. I had never heard of Bipolar Disorder until 2000. I didn't know what is was or why I had it. Why me? I had always said. The doctors told me to take this medication and that one. I refused to take them.

Then decided I would take them, but only when I "felt" bad. Boy, was I in for the ride of my life. I, too, thought taking the meds would be a crock. By this time I had a problem that could have been helped by meds. I was just too darn proud. I thought taken them would mean that I was weak and incapable.

I not only lost my relationship with my guy, I lost my relationship with my parents, my kids and my friends. My children had to live with my parents.  It was my decision, but I knew I couldn't have taken care of them. I couldn't even take care of myself. I would spend days and days and days upon end in the bed. I wouldn't bathe or wash my hair. I could have cared less to eat. Daily things like going to the bathroom seemed like a chore.

On the flip side I would stay up for days and days upon end............ and then when I did sleep would crash for 2-3 days at a time. My body shut down. I went on a drinking binge because it was the only way to mask the pain, if only for a short time.

I paid the ultimate price for my being stubborn and in denial. I LOST LITERALLY EVERYTHING. I lived for 4 years knowing I had Bipolar Disorder and did nothing about it.

Until that eye opening day, when I got up and went to work. I stop dead in my tracks and said "Evette, what the hell are you doing? You need to get better. Your kids need you and you need them." I couldn't go on like this. I put myself in a mental health facility to find what worked for me. I stayed there longer than wanted but stayed until I knew that I had what worked for me.

Come April 2006, makes 2 years on my meds without missing a day. I have my kids back, which is most important. But I have my mom's support again. I have a very wonderful caring, and sincere man whom I love dearly. But mostly, I have my self-respect and self worth back. I feel complete again and I do all the "normal" things that others do.

It's good to be me again. Without the medications though none of this would have ever come to pass.

For those of you who are Bipolar seek the help you need. Don't make yourself and your loved ones suffer. Life is too short to deny yourself a happy, healthy, so-called normal life.

Thanks. I hope I helped someone.”

-Evette Staecy

“We all have choices to make in life; some of us are better at it than others. I have found out that my diagnosis of bi-polar has at times affected my own ability to clearly make the best choices regarding taking medication. The fact that you can clearly make those decisions would indicate the meds are working, and that in of itself should be a huge red flag not to mess with success.”

-Mike Howard

“I experienced my first manic episode when I was 30. Of course, a depressive episode followed. However I was not diagnosed as Bipolar at this time. Perhaps this was because I was so old.

A further severe cycle followed when I was 32. This time I was diagnosed as Bipolar. Lithium became the norm. I dutifully took this for six years. After six years and no reoccurrences I started questioning things. Was I bipolar? Was I cured? Did I need the medication?

I discussed the matter with my Doctor. After a while he accepted my point of view. He agreed that I could come off the medication. He warned me, though, that a relapse would follow.

Time went by. Still no problems. Suddenly after two years I was back in hospital with another manic episode. Yes, my Doctor was right.

This was the last straw for my then wife. She left me a few weeks after I got out of hospital. Gone was the happy family of Chris, our two children, Kate and Stefan and myself.

In the twenty years since then I have stayed on my lithium. I have experienced a couple of hypo manic episodes, which have been well controlled. Three years ago I remarried the most wonderful person. I still maintain strong relationships with my two children.

The moral of the story is this. Your medication plays a very important part in preventing reoccurrences. Please keep taking it, for your sake.”

-Ray Tyler

“If you have Bipolar you have to take medications. They keep you sane. You need it to think things through more clearly. It's not a cure. There is no cure as far as I know.

So, like you have to eat and sleep to take care of your body, you need the meds for your mind and I guess to stay sane. Trying to fit in with the "quote" normal people is what were all trying to do and having Bipolar isn't what makes you not a great person but having Bipolar and doing crazy stuff that meds can help, that's crazy. And I know bipolar people try so hard that crazy isn't something they want to be labeled.”

-Janet Dawson

“I was diagnosed with Bipolar Disorder when I was in my late twenties. By then I had been divorced twice, had two children, my third husband and one child on the way. I know, in my heart, I only wanted a family and to be loved because I had very little love growing up.

Before I was diagnosed with bipolar I had already recognized a pattern of behavior. In my early twenties, I had suffered from two miscarriages and honestly I think that is what brought me over the edge and I sunk into depression.

I knew something was wrong so I took myself to a behavioral health center. At that time I was convinced that medication was not the answer and that I could handle this depression on my own.

By the time I was in my mid-twenties I was in a miserable relationship and I had tried to take my life with an overdose of pills. There was also a time when I cut my arms in several places, just wishing I had the courage to do it, the courage to end my misery.

Also during that time I had many panic attacks that eventually drove me to quit several jobs and isolate my family as much as I could.

One day I left a great job that I had and went straight and borrowed a thousand dollars from a financial company, drove to the airport and bought a one-way ticket to Hawaii, talk about manic...I cannot explain what was going through my mind that day but just the pure fear of life and I knew I had to run away. I even convinced myself that I was so
screwed up that my daughter would be better off without me. This was me without medication!

Even during my third marriage, after finding out my diagnoses, I struggled so very much. I was seriously like a roller coaster of manic days and deep depression weeks! I struggled to get my meds right for about three years. I also tried to take my life two more times.

Finally, my doctor and I found the right meds for me. Sadly though, my third divorce will be final in a week. My first two husbands were abusive and I was young and stupid to think I could change that. My third husband, however, is a good man and I know in the beginning he really loved me. I blame myself, my manic-depressive behavior, for the tragic end of our relationship.

I now have my bipolar under control because of my meds and I am a single mother of three beautiful children. THEY are my life. I hate to swallow pills every night, but I do it for not only my family, but for myself and I am finally, for the first time in my life, learning to love MYSELF.

Please, if you are struggling with this devastating disorder, take your medication before you end up dead to all of the friends and family that you will hurt and possibly dead six feet under! It is a known fact that 15% of all people with bipolar disorder end their own lives.”

-DeAnna Fulton

“Not taking my medication makes me angry, violent, depressed, and scared. I am a totally different person when I am on my medicine than when I am not on it.

I know from experience that if you stop taking your medicine that you won't get better. You'll just get worse. You have to learn how to deal with Bi-Polar.”

-Eve Mosley McCarty

“It's simple. Medication is the main stabilizer for bipolar disorder. Even when life is good, I need my meds. I cannot control my bipolar any more than a severe diabetic can control their blood sugar, even though diet is good. Off meds, even for one night, I feel moody and unsafe.

If you are thinking about stopping your medications, this is what I have to say. So...you're considering a massive complication in your life? Even more complicated than you think? Ask yourself, 'Why?' What could possibly be gained?

I have been on meds for 20 plus years. My ups never get out of hand, neither do my downs. Taking my meds on a routine basis gives me freedom, not to mention respect from my doctor, and respect for myself for not being a fool. I function like people who do not have the illness--it's great!

There is never a good excuse for going off meds. Never. Perhaps different meds are needed but it's a transition for a doctor to assist you with. Going off meds is selfish. Consider people around you...spouses, kids, friends...who now have to suffer YOUR consequences. And, going off meds due to denial of the disorder WILL NOT make it go away, rather make it much more obvious. Time to stop feeling sorry for yourself and be an adult, responsible for your health. There are much worse mental illnesses to endure. Be grateful to have meds. Diabetics are.

-Lynn Penner

Not only was he constantly in trouble with the law, he was also promiscuous which truly hurt our marriage, he couldn't keep a job and ended up having an affair and then the ultimate was when he committed suicide.

Our son has been affected because he will never get his father back, but our son is bipolar and everyday I have to fight for his life and am doing everything I can humanly possible to prevent him from ending up like his dad.

Many times people who discontinue their meds is because they are tired of being controlled with meds they don't quite fully understand that with meds that is what builds up in their body to keep them stable much like your immune system, if you are sick, your immune system is out of whack and with meds you are able to stabilize your self. Just like those who suffer from allergies, like me mine are year round and I have to take shots or I could have a severe reaction.

I feel when you are speaking with someone who doesn't want to take their meds the more you speak at them with a judgmental tone you are setting yourself up to be challenged and the person to become defensive. I think when you approach it with factual information and in a conversational tone the person is more likely to listen, when it
comes to conviction it is about body language and tone.

If someone I loved were going off their medications, first I would ask them why they are thinking of getting off their meds.

Second I would give this person facts as to why not taking their meds is a poor choice, I would give examples of people who have medical issues and give them visuals as to what can happen to them if they discontinue their meds.

I would then ask them if they love themselves enough to continue to help themselves stay healthy. Then by the way they answered the question would determine where I would go further on giving facts as to why they should stay on to underplay that I am actually convincing them to stay on them.”

-Stacey Lynn Adams

“Because of the devastation that my son's not taking his meds caused (destroying his apartment, his computer, punching holes in the walls, and not being able to work for about a year), and having to pay most of his bills for him, I have had to go into bankruptcy.

However, the stress and the worry over what could happen to him when he is manic, is much more important to me than the loss of the money.

I am sure that you never intended your life to end up a disaster! And the most important thing for you to remember is that IT DOES NOT HAVE TO! You have control over it, whether you believe it or not, but in order to do so you need to put yourself on a routine, see your doctor, and take your meds every day.

Please stay on your meds! It is your first step toward controlling your illness, and without that you will continue to cycle out of control. Your sickness is just like diabetes, because you need to take care of yourself to stay well.”

-Nancy Fitz-Gerald Viens

“My son was on medication when he was diagnosed in 2004. Before long he went off it. He never gave it time to do anything. In February he left home and went to stay at a friend's house. He told his wife he was losing control. His wife had a protection order filed against him.

On Friday he went to his doctor who put him back on medication. Last night he
drank all night and slept till 1p.m. today. He called some female who has four kids and told me he wanted to be with her! I'm Phil's mom and now he's back here! Today he said he wants to put himself into the hospital!

He supposedly is going to have his brother go and get his kids on Saturday. I
would like to tell him to get out, but do I dare?”

-Connie Fuller

“Deciding to stop your medications means only one thing… heartbreak in the debris of debt, doubt, destruction and devastation! It is a one-way road to Hell!

You deserve to be happy! Forgive yourself and accept your limitations! I hope you will love yourself enough to make the right decision. If not, please find it in your heart to love your family or friends enough to take your meds! You'll eventually want it for you, too! May God bless you through each and every episode.

If you were a diabetic, doing well on insulin, would you decide you didn't need the insulin and expect not to go into a diabetic coma! Because you feel good and things are under control does not mean you are healed or you don't need your meds, it means your meds are working and your brain is chemically balanced.

Don't fall into the booby trap of denial and self-diagnosis! A clean clear swimming pool depends on chemicals and testing to stay clean and clear. Too much chlorine can cause severe damage to swimmers, even though the pool looks clean. Too little results in a
green, murky pool of disgusting mess! If you want your life to resemble a beautiful, peaceful pool of water, it takes persistent monitoring and adjustments to the chemical balance. Your balance depends on proper medication monitored and coordinated with you, your doctor and loved ones!”

-Gayle Golladay

“My husband decided he was all better and didn't need his med's anymore, I fought with him about it, but it did no good, he just didn't need the med's anymore.

A few months later I started noticing things. He was way to happy all the time. Him and my 16 year old daughter fight all the time, well he started telling her things like I'm going to buy you a car, pay for drivers ed. He made a lot of promises that never happened.

Needless to say he broke are daughters heart, and she loss a lot of respect for him.
All we did was fight. He came home with a new TV, we have 4 TV's now, he bought a new motorcycle, and we had a beautiful one in the garage.

I understand he is sick, but man he couldn't see what he was doing to us. Anyway lucky me got to take him to the hospital; meanwhile he was still saying nothing was wrong with him. Well, they decided he had to stay in the hospital; they called a code white (this means guards had to come and jump him right in front of me).

Of course he thinks I had this all planned, while I knew nothing about it. It was the scariest thing I have ever seen in my life. I left the hospital crying my head off only to get a call from him the next day telling me to get out of my house and never come back.

I was scared for my life and my daughters. The doctors kept him there for a week against his will, but I now know it was the best thing they could have done for him. I do wish they did it in a different way, but he is now taking his med's and he is doing great.

My husband wanted to come home from that hospital so bad, he was lying to the doctors, they saw right through him and made him stay there for a full week. I think this will make him keep taking his med's because when he was getting better he didn't like what he saw in the other people coming in.

I made a point of telling him, it was only a week ago that you were just like them, he didn't like it but it had to be said. I told him it was like looking in a mirror. He said but these people are driving me crazy, they never shut up, he was just like them before I talked him into going to see the doctor.

I can only hope that he never stops taking the meds, I'm not sure if my daughter and I could last through another stay. This is the second time for us, and it is the hardest thing we have ever been though.”

-Bernice MacKinnon

“My boyfriend of 9yrs has been going on and off of his meds for about 3yrs now. And each time he does this his disorder gets worse, and more intense. The past 2 times that he has stopped the medication I have had to leave him. He would have so much anger and was unable to control his moods.

We have 2 young children so I knew that I wouldn't be able to keep them in an environment like that. Each time that we would leave he would go back on his meds, get "better" and we would move back. It has extremely hurt our relationship, and honestly I don't know how many more times we can go through this.

I would tell people that were thinking about going off of their medications that if they care anything about their health and well being and even their family they should stay on their meds. And that each time you go off your meds it takes longer to get stabilized.”

-Stephanie Mongold

“My 19-year-old son has bi polar. Since his father died from an accident at work 6 1/2 years ago he has been on a major down side.

He has been on many different medications. He takes them here and there. His mood swings have been up and down and all around. He is unemployed, no money and waiting to go to court because of poor judgment due to not taking his medication. This isn't my son, I love him dearly but he has caused himself and the rest of our family a lot of hurt and pain.

I don't sleep wondering what he's doing where he is and if he's still going to be alive in the morning. I'm so stressed out. I can't keep up with all of my other responsibilities because of it. He doesn't see what he is doing to himself and to me.

He needs to stay on his medication. He is my "old" Jason when he does. The one I can talk to, the one that laughs and jokes around like his dad. I love him and miss my old son so much. I want him to get straighten out before I pass away because my son will not survive because I'm the only one that gives him the support and who understands his bipolar.

Everyone else just keeps getting mad by what he is doing to himself and the family. They don't understand it's a disease and he needs a lot of help. But he must help himself too.

If you have bipolar disorder, you all deserve to have and live a better life. To do that you must stay on the medication. Good luck to all and may God be with you and support you because I will too!

Please don't go off of your medications. You need to understand what you are doing to yourself. My son says that he doesn't like the way the medication makes him feel. That is because it makes you feel, like all the rest of us feel like everyday. The normal feeling that seems abnormal for you. You will have a better and happier life if you stay on the medication.”

-Robin Shelley

“My 18-year old daughter was diagnosed as bipolar two years ago. At age 16, she began taking her medications as prescribed and over the next few months it appeared that the medications were significantly improving her life, behavior, etc.

However she didn't like the side effects and unbeknownst to me, stopped taking all her meds. The rapid cycling came back with a vengeance and her behavior and actions were out of control. For example, within a week or two after stopping her medication, she received several speeding tickets, and one traffic stop involved the police finding alcohol in her car (a new problem as we had not dealt with alcohol or drugs and my daughter at this point).

She began skipping school and having suicidal ideations. In addition, I was taking care of her Godparents house while they were away on vacation and my daughter stole the key from my purse and threw a party at their house, which ended up with many of their possessions being stolen.

After this incident, my husband and I grounded her and her response was to throw a pot of boiling water on me. While in the Emergency Room getting treatment for my burns, it occurred to me that she wasn't taking her pills, however I had been monitoring her prescription bottles and count the pills and there were always the correct number of pills in the bottle.

I took her in to see her Psychiatrist on an emergency basis and she confessed that she had stopped all medications. Her doctor instructed me on how to give her medication and make sure she swallowed the pills and soon thereafter my loving, smart, beautiful daughter began coming back to me.

She's now very responsible in taking her medications and I can say that she played Water Polo at High School, has a job as a deep water life guard, is training her dog in Search and Rescue and begins college in the Fall at Cal Poly in San Luis Obispo.

I could go on and on about how proud I am of her that she realizes the importance of taking her medication and doesn't want to go through that terrible cycling again. What a difference taking necessary medication makes.

If someone was thinking of going off of their medications I would tell them to please don't do it. I would remind them of the times that they were being responsible, having fun, acting appropriately, not hurting anybody but especially not hurting themselves and if you want your life to continue in a positive way then please, take your medication and discuss any side effects with your psychiatrist so adjustments can be made quickly instead of suffering.

I would also talk with their psychiatrist and my loved one first. Figure out what the main reason is for them wanting to stop taking their meds. Side effects? Cost? Do they think they're cured?”

-Sydney Reynolds

“My daughter-in-law stopped taking her meds for a period of almost a year-she had three small children--as time went on-she reached the point where she could not take care of the children at all--when the state stepped in to take them --my husband and I took them and raised them--she kept getting worse and worse --all the while telling the family she was taking them-our son could no longer live with her so he filed for divorce.

Along with the children we also took over her care, as her parents did not believe she had a mental problem and thought she was just really wild and would have nothing to do with her.

It ended up she was admitted to the hospital ward and remained there for several months. She finally admitted she had stopped her meds--even holding them in her cheek
until whoever was watching her turned their back if no one was around she never even pretended to take them.

They had to prescribe her so many different meds to find one that would work for her and the Dr's said that once a person goes off the meds they were on --often that same medicine that had worked well for them before would not work once they went back on it.

Of her three children, our youngest-a boy developed bipolar. He is pretty good at taking his meds--however he also does drugs and is now in the justice system and giving us all sorts of problems and his Dr. isn't doing all that much to help him

I would recommend that no one stop taking their meds and if there is someone that feels they may not need them--they need to discuss it with their doctor and if he also feels they could try to go off it --the doctor should regulate and monitor the withdrawal off it--no one should stop on their own.

Never, ever, ever consider stopping your meds -- If you think for any reason they aren't working - your doctor can prescribe one that will work.”

-Gladys O. Kovitch

“My name is Robyn and my partner David has been diagnosed Bi-Polar. I have had a number of episodes to deal with but the one that affected me the most, was the one I least expected to ever happen.

David had been very slack in taking his medication and whenever I gently reminded him, I would cop a barrage of abuse about controlling him and being too controlling. After forgetting to take a number of tablets over a number of days, his mood began to get worse.

Eventually he was exploding at the smallest thing. I was pregnant with our first child and maybe it was this combined with the lack of medication that sent him over the top. After a small incident that escalated for no reason on my part, he told me he wanted to call us off (again!!), that I was too controlling, wanting him always to change, etc.

When I reminded him I was pregnant and asked where was I going to go, he ran into the kitchen and grabbed a large knife and threatened to stab me. Initially I didn't believe he would ever hurt me as even though his words can be very hurtful and upsetting during an episode, I never believed he would ever physically hurt me.

As I tried to calm him down, he grabbed me by the throat and held the knife to my throat and said "I hate you, I hate you, I hate what you're doing to me, I want you dead, I'm going to stab you."

Absolute fear and panic went through me and my knees turned to jelly. As I began to collapse he realized briefly what he had done and said "oh my god, what have I done, I'm so sorry. You don't deserve this, I'm going to kill myself".

I managed to flee briefly into a bedroom and call the police, who arrived shortly thereafter and took David to the hospital. The police wanted to take out an Intervention Order to protect me, but I convinced them this was not what I wanted.

When he was finally released into my care later that day (because the "experts" thought it was just a domestic, even thought the police could see it was not just a domestic and due solely to his illness and lack of medication) he refused to get into the car and walked off.

He didn't return home until the next day, during which time, with the stress I had experienced and was still under I ended up suffering a miscarriage.

David is now more vigilant with his medication and has to live with what he perceives to be his fault that we lost our baby. I don't wish to think about whose fault it was, because that doesn't help anybody, but I do wish he had been more vigilant with his medication before the incident, rather than after!!

If you are thinking about going off of your medications, think of what could possibly be the long-term effects of that choice. It may be something than can never be reversed. You don't know what you are capable of during an episode - no one does!”

-Robyn Louise Livingston

”When the loved one I am caring for does not take her meds, she gets very mean and angry with anyone for anything, including me.

It is extremely dangerous to suddenly stop taking medication and to adjust the dose at all without your doctor's guidance. It can get your killed!

If you stop taking your meds, you will probably end up in the hospital, in jail, or dead. At the very least you will probably lose friends and make enemies, possibly doing things you will sincerely regret for the rest of your life.”

-Nora Caterino