The last time I checked 25% of diagnosed bi-polar patients die from suicide. I was married for 25 years to someone with this disorder, and multiple suicide attempts, wild spending and extremely aggressive behavior was not a picnic. Anyone who compares this condition to a neurosis is a fool.
Bipolar is extremely serious. It is destructive not only to the person who has it but to all who have relationships with that person.
As a friend of mine says, there are many different degrees of suicide. Some folks do it all at once by gun or pill, but many do it one cigarette or one drink or one binge at a time. And suicide is never just about the person at the center of it. It destroys big chunks of the lives of all involved.