A few days ago, my partner told one of their coworkers about me making cookies at night, and the coworker immediately asked if I was manic. I decided to look into it and while I don't get highly manic or depressed, my behavior does match the symptoms pretty well. On top of that, about half of people with MS have a mood disorder.
I guess I don't want my partner to think of me as a normal person with a layer of personality on top due to BPD. And I really don't want them to be scared of my hurting them due to stereotypes about it. But there is a really good chance I have it (I will seek a diagnosis) and they have a right to know.
Edit: I sort of soft launched it by asking if they would think of me different or be scared of me if I had bipolar disorder, and they just straight up said yes, at least for a while. I'm hoping that at worst it's Cyclothymia.
depending on how long you've been with your partner, they probably already suspect it and so an official diagnosis isn't really going to change the dynamic between the 2 of you.
If they like you, then they like YOU. No matter what labels have been applied to your personality
They're pretty good on most stigmas and things, but they aren't so good on Bipolar. Especially because they work with someone who I guess had to be hospitalized because she punched someone during a manic episode.