My engine temperture gauge rises almost to red, before i turn the heater on, to drop it back down. then after a while that stops working and i pull over.. is my thermostat in backwards? coolant was bubbling in resevoir tank and coolant was being spit from resevoirs bleeder..

 

Definitely sounds like you have a blockage somewhere. You specifically are asking about the thermostat. Was it recently replaced? Could be a number of things. Can you elaborate on how long this has been going on, what work was recently done, etc.