(Photo by Jeff Kravitz/FilmMagic for HBO)

Jeff Garlin Reveals Bipolar Diagnosis: ‘Sometimes It’s Just Too Much To Deal With’

by TK Sanders September 23, 2022, 1:08 pm 27 Comments

Actor and comedian Jeff Garlin recently revealed that he lives with bipolar disorder, a mental health disorder which he called a “motherf — r”.

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“Sometimes [my condition is] just too much to deal with,” Garlin, 60, wrote on Instagram. “I’m doing the best I can. This is the first time that I’ve opened up about this.”

Bipolar disorder causes manic-depressive mood swings and extreme changes in energy levels. There are four regular types of the disorder, which are characterized by periods of elation and hyper-activity known as manic episodes, which are then followed by depressive stages. The patient often experiences feelings of sadness and depression once energy levels drop.

Jeff Garlin said his mental health antics led to issues on set of The Goldbergs

The disorder also causes emotional distress and sleeping problems, in addition to long bouts (sometimes weeks) of mood instability. It can become difficult for people suffering with bipolar disorder to maintain healthy relationships. Celebrities like Kanye West, Bebe Rexha, and Mariah Carey have all previously opened up about their experiences with the mental illness.

Garlin’s Instagram message came the same evening of The Goldbergs season 10 premiere. The actor and longtime sitcom star exited the show last year amid allegations of inappropriate behavior on set. He then admitted to “silly” behavior in a Vanity Fair interview last December.

“There has been an HR investigation on me the past three years. HR has come to me three years in a row for my behavior on set,” he said at the time. “It’s always the same thing. It’s about me and my silliness on set. They don’t think it’s appropriate. I do. That’s where we’re at. I’ve not been fired because of it. We just think differently.”

Garlin also insisted he never meant to harm his colleagues, saying, “I’m sorry, I truly am sorry, to have hurt anyone’s feelings, or made anyone feel greatly uncomfortable.”

Mental health advocacy groups estimate that about 6 million Americans suffer from bipolar disorder. Garlin rose through the comedy ranks opposite Larry David on HBO’s Curb Your Enthusiasm for many years.