OT-SIAP: Johnny Manziel Diagnosed as Bipolar

Being an asshole can be disguised in many ways; however, at the end of the day he is still an asshole. 

Because mental illness is not a joke.  However, this excuse is all too convenient for an asshole who looked down at his gut, and just realized he threw his career away.

The Pardon My Take interview (released yesterday I think). He's pretty candid and doesn't make any excuses. He owns most of what he's done in the past without pointing fingers. He says he's writhing hard on a comeback and staying away from bad influences. While I'm still skeptical it's evident he's not completely clueless.

That, or has a pretty good agent/PR consultant.

1) I wish him well and hope for his sake and that of others in his life, that he gets to the better place he cleary wants to go to

2) It's impossible to diagnose from afar. However the described behaviors from media and other reports are often seen in folks with bipolar illness. T

3) Causality and responsibility are tricky things in health (are you overweight because of your metabolism or actions you have chosen to make? The answer is yes) and are expecially true in mental health. Bipolar illness is real and can benefit from treatment. So can personality disorders and other conditions. Does that mean Manziel should not be held accountable for any actions that might have hurt himself if he meets criteria? Legal definitions aside, the answer for most of us is "of course not". However, it also means that there are potential explanations for his behavior that might elicit more sympathy from people, and help frame the concept of substance use and certain behaviors in general, which brings me to my main point:

3) Athletes are objects of our projection, not just affection. We use them as a way to express feelings we have about others including people we interact with including our family, friends, and co-workers. I mention this because in my experience people who "believe" Manziel's problem are at their root character flaws and not treatable illness tend to act the same towards people close to them (and towards themselves), which on balance I consider unhelpful to society because of the tremendous undertreatement of mental illness in the country. Whatever your feelings about Manziel, I hope that people can at least acknowledge the possibility of him having a treatable illness and that the many other people out there who might be having similar challenges can see in his case (and of the responses of those to it) support for seeking help. 

but, sadly, there are no cereal boxes in his future

Depression is easier to treat generally speaking.  Bipolarity is much harder to manage. 

As for his responsibility to control his behavior, it is possible to see him as someone who needs to make better decisions but also as someone who has had significant roadblocks to making good choices.  And self-medicating with booze and drugs is very common for people with his affliction.  That doesn't make it a good idea, but he's hardly alone in responding as he has.

Most times, with age comes self refelction..Some do not have this but some do..Hopefully, Johnny has grown up some and now understands the strength in looking at himself instead of pointing the finger.

I hope he learns to enjoy life in a healthy way..He always seemed like a likeable kid to me..I was young and dumb once too.

Can't say the title left me shocked.  His behavior certainly strayed from normal on a number of occasions so perhaps this is the explanation.  If so, I hope he can find a way to manage it and find his way to a healthy productive life.

Disclaimer:  If this is some stunt to deflect blame for his ass-hattery through the years, then may he find many more years of disappointment and failure.  I have no compassion for someone trying to hide behind serious mental illness.

True confession time.  I LOVED the draft pick and was one of the guys in the stands screaming for Pettit to pull Hoyer and put Johnny in the game.  I was one of the Browns fans who were convinced that if he was given time would lead the Browns to victories just like he did at A & M.

And you know what?  The dude was fun to watch.  Hell, he won two games in 2015 and that's twice as many as we've won since.  There was an electricity to him when he was in the game that I havent seen to often by any player, much less a Cleveland Brown.

I hope he makes it back.  If his mental illness was legitimately causing him to behave the way he did here in Cleveland then a lot of what he did (like his infamous trip to Vegas the last weekend of the season in 2015) makes sense.  But I also would caution anybody to take anything he says with a giant grain of salt.  JMFF is a world-class bullshit artist who says what he thinks he needs to say and not necessarily what is truthful.

I honestly hope he actually IS bi-polar and gets help.  He's a fun football player to watch.

and it is a 200 point font IF 

IF he is telling th truth, then I hope he can get himself sorted out

However, as a Browns fan, there were SEVERAL times during his career in Cleveland where he'd come out in the media and say some stuff that'd make for good PR and people to give him another chance and yadda yadda yadda, only for his real self to come out shortly down the road.  He's very charming. People eat it up.  

So, hopefully he's sincere. Hopefully he can et himself sorted out and get himself on a healthier path.  I'm just glad he's not doing it in Cleveland so I don't have to worry whether or not he's shining everyone on again.

(And its not even entirely his fault, the media eats up his garbage like tripe and makes it incredibly easy for a psychopath to sell their "stories".  If the media likes you (and they love them some Johnny Footbaw) they'll do the selling for you)

and it is a 200 point font IF 

IF he is telling th truth, then I hope he can get himself sorted out

However, as a Browns fan, there were SEVERAL times during his career in Cleveland where he'd come out in the media and say some stuff that'd make for good PR and people to give him another chance and yadda yadda yadda, only for his real self to come out shortly down the road.  He's very charming. People eat it up.  

So, hopefully he's sincere. Hopefully he can et himself sorted out and get himself on a healthier path.  I'm just glad he's not doing it in Cleveland so I don't have to worry whether or not he's shining everyone on again.

(And its not even entirely his fault, the media eats up his garbage like tripe and makes it incredibly easy for a psychopath to sell their "stories".  If the media likes you (and they love them some Johnny Footbaw) they'll do the selling for you)

and it is a 200 point font IF 

IF he is telling th truth, then I hope he can get himself sorted out

However, as a Browns fan, there were SEVERAL times during his career in Cleveland where he'd come out in the media and say some stuff that'd make for good PR and people to give him another chance and yadda yadda yadda, only for his real self to come out shortly down the road.  He's very charming. People eat it up.  

So, hopefully he's sincere. Hopefully he can et himself sorted out and get himself on a healthier path.  I'm just glad he's not doing it in Cleveland so I don't have to worry whether or not he's shining everyone on again.

(And its not even entirely his fault, the media eats up his garbage like tripe and makes it incredibly easy for a psychopath to sell their "stories".  If the media likes you (and they love them some Johnny Footbaw) they'll do the selling for you)

...If he is indeed bipolar.  But let's get real - his statement is not exaclty reliable, given his history.  It would be incredibly self-serving for him to invent such a diagnosis, but would you put it past him? And oh, by the way, the NFL teams considering drafting him certainly had ample opportunity to diagnose him with a real mental disorder, but the did not. Makes you wonder, doesn't it?

And lets say he truly is bipolar.  It isn't like this is some mentally ill homeless person who doesn't have access to mental health services. His family is incredibly wealthy.  While the rest of the world saw the obvious warning signs of addiction or possibly mental illness, his mom and dad decided it would be cool to have matching vanity license plates of "JFFBMOM" and "JFFBDAD" (Johnny F&%#ing Football Mom)

His family, A&M coaches,  and his circle of hanger-on friends intentionally ignored the obvious signs so that they could cash in on his fame and fortune, and he was a willing participant the whole time.  

But if you want to express concern and sorrow for someone with mental illness, "JFFB" is well down the list of those who really deserve .  I won't be shedding any tears for him or his family any time soon. Sorry if that offends some of you.

Well I hope he's being sincere and if so best of luck to him. Mental illness isn't a joke and it's extremely difficult to overcome. In some cases you can't ever fully beat it, and all you can do is either mitigate it or find a way to live with it. But he's said he's been clean and gotten his shit together once before already, and then his whole career fell off a cliff from there. So yeah, I'm still a bit skeptical. 

That being said, I think his days in the league are over. Even if he was clean and somehow got into NFL-shape by August. Disregard the fact that he's been out of the game for two full seasons. He's a huge liability to whatever team signs him, and he's bringing a media circus wherever he goes. Whoever would have the courage to sign him would likely withhold a good chunk of his salary until he proved he could go through a full season without any incidents. That and his whole backyard football style of play, coupled with his size (or lack thereof) likely isn't sustainable over a long career. What made him special at A&M would likely get him killed in the NFL. 

I just hope he's not using football as his only motivation for recovery. I hope he's doing it mostly for his own sake. Because if football ultimately does not pan out, I'd hate to see him get clean and then fall off the wagon again. 

Michigan. Chocolate is sweet. I mean. Mental illness is a real thing, and I’m glad he’s getting help, but wasn’t this obvious to everyone but him a couple of years ago?

Absolutely explains his unpredictable swings ...and addiction is common amongst those suffering bi-polar.  Glad to know he's pursuing a healthy path and curious to seek help, if needed.

 

So were not allowed to call him a douchebag anymore?

My thought with Manziel was always, "why is he choosing such self-destructive behavior?"  Well that is one of the symptoms of bi-polar people.  So, yeah, that doesn't absolve him of his choices, but given that bi-polar tends to rob you of the ability to make good decisions for yourself, maybe that played a part.

If that is true, then only he can make the choice to continue to receive treatment and try to get better.  It will be a major struggle for him, no doubt, but I wish him well. 

If I considered ONLY the informaton in that Manziel article, I would say that he is probably an alcoholic with "normal" depression. There's no mention of anything about mania. Manic phases are what basically separate bipolar from normal depression.

I was diagnosed during a manic phase so it was an easy call. Prior to that I had been treated only for normal depression so it can be hard to diagnosis. But I can tell you that someone in a manic phase can appear to be a drunken asshole even if they're not drunk.

But hopefully he's getting the help he needs.  Football should not be on the list of his priorities.

Even people who are bi-polar are responsible for not taking the first drink, or the first drug, one day at a time.

I am rooting for him, because sick he really is, but nobody, most of all him, will really know what it is until he achieves some continuous, long-term sobriety.  The odds are not good, but everyone who works at it recovers.

His entire demeanor is different than it was 2-3 years ago. He does seem truly vested in his recovery, which is important on the long road he has ahead. His story is important, as the stigma of mental health issues in this country needs to change. Shining a light on how recovery can happen helps so many - I have a close friend who was suicidal and has a bipolar diagnosis. His recovery is miraculous, and he is now a peer mentor for others struggling with mental illness.