The artist Viktor Frisk lives with ADHD and bipolar disorder, something that has affected his entire life.
– I have felt terribly bad, I have run away from myself, from my own problems, says Viktor Frisk in UR’s documentary series My anxiety and me.
Mania and depression
Bipolar disorder involves times of mania and times of depression. And it’s not just Viktor Frisk himself who is affected by the diagnoses, his relatives too.
– Having a child with this problem means a lot of worry. When Viktor has had dips, you have gone through the roof. You haven’t been able to sleep at night, there have been emergency calls. We have had to go up to Stockholm and tried to be nearby, says Viktor Frisk’s mother Anna Frisk.
Very hereditary
He will never know how he got bipolar disorder, but the disease is hereditary.
– It is one of the most hereditary diseases there is. It is often triggered by traumatic events. It can be separations, losing a job, death in the family and so on. But that is not always the case. Sometimes it can just happen by itself, says psychiatrist Anders Hansen.
See the first episode of My anxiety and me on SVT Play.