Greek philosopher Epictetus compared the masses to the white threads of a toga. He declared himself to be a purple thread among the common white threads, saying “I desire to be the purple thread–that small and shining part which makes the rest seem fair and beautiful.” He went on to ask, when contemplating changing his personhood, “why should I attempt to be like the many, and if I am, then how shall I remain purple?” I think of this often, as a bipolar person struggling with the daily infusion of what that brain chemistry means. We are not like everyone else, and I hope that you, like me, want to remain purple, even as we struggle to live in the ‘normal’ realm.
In a word: Acceptance.
This is where we reside – in this dual reality – where the inner landscape of our head constantly distorts and alters the exterior landscape of ‘reality’. It is not a common existence – and it’s very interesting and epic and rich. But it’s also super hard to navigate. Which is why, like Epictetus, I like to think of myself as the ‘other’. As a Harry Potter amongst Muggles, or an alien on a mission to earth, conducting my experiments on a world full of white threads.
The point is: You are unique.
It may not seem like a big deal, this awareness, but when it comes to healing heads, I find it helps not to expect of myself to become someone else – to be cured – but rather to dwell in the space where I have a special head with special talents and which needs special care. I’m not sick, I’m purple. 
Bottom line: Be well, but stay purple.