NI photographer praises Kim for opening up about bipolar Kanye
A NORTHERN Ireland photographer with bipolar disorder has praised Kim Kardashian West for supporting her husband after he shared a string of worrying tweets.
Rapper Kanye West announced in recent weeks that he would run for US president and later made several alarming comments about his family life.
His wife spoke for the first time this week on his bipolar disorder, saying his words “sometimes do not align with his intentions” and called for better understanding on mental health.
She said factors like the loss of his mother and the isolating effect of being bipolar could be “incredibly complicated and painful” to understand.
Dessie Loughery (52), from Limavady, has previously spoken about his struggles with mental health.
A former Irish league footballer and referee, he wasn’t diagnosed as bipolar until his late 30s and found a way to cope through a new passion for wildlife photography.
“Some of the things she said really resonated with me. There are so many types of bipolar disorder, with me I’m cyclothymic where the mood swings aren’t as violent but they can last for weeks,” he told the Belfast Telegraph.
“At the end of the day they’re a couple and she understands him. I have the best wife in the world and she understands me inside out.
“I don’t think I’ve ever said a bad word to her in our entire marriage, but when the children were growing up they would know when their dad was feeling ‘off ’.
“It would be silly things like spilling a glass of water would put you round the bend. So I think she’s been very good to him and compassionate about it. The words might come out but it’s not the real you. I can only speak from my experience but sometimes with people I work with I can blow up and say the wrong thing, but thankfully they know me and realise it’s not meant.”
Dessie said he feared many in Northern Ireland are still struggling due to the isolation and change in routine caused by Covid-19 in recent months.
“I’m very lucky in that I’ve been at work every day. But with lockdown I’ve still lost a lot of my regular routine which has caused me a serious bit of stress.
“Maybe that’s why Kanye West is struggling, his superstar lifestyle will have changed and he’s maybe in the house too often now.
“I am glad she’s spoken out about this because it goes to show the rich and famous have their problems as well.”
In a lengthy post on Instagram, Kim Kardashian explained this week why she chose to break her silence.
“He is a brilliant but complicated person who on top of the pressures of being an artist and a black man, who experienced the painful loss of his mother, and has to deal with the pressure and isolation that is heightened by his bi-polar disorder.”
She said she had not discussed it before in order to protect their children and her husband’s right to privacy when it comes to his health.
“I feel like I should comment on it because of the stigma and misconceptions about mental health,” she said, and that his condition does not “diminish or invalidate his dreams or his creative ideas, no matter how big or unobtainable they may feel to some.
“That is part of his genius and as we have all witnessed, many of his big dreams have come true.”
Calling on society to give “grace” to those with mental health problems, she also asked the media and public for compassion and empathy.