I’ve written before about rapid cycling. I was rapid cycling that time if that wasn’t obvious enough from my writing style. I also wrote something similar here. I figured I’d put together something describing to muggles a comparable experience of rapid-cycling (not bicycle related). And some of the possible triggers (only two). The DSM-IV describes […]
Continue Reading
Retrospect is 20/20. I’ve been living with varying degrees of bipolar for as long as I can remember (I’ll chat about the first ‘incidents’ some-other time).
Continue Reading
To tell or not to tell, that can be the big question with bipolar disorder. It’s your choice. There’s still a stigma surrounding mental illness, so you may want to be less open about it. You really don’t need to tell anyone at work about your bipolar disorder. But in certain circumstances, it can be […]
Continue Reading
First up: the decision to share or divulge an illness with anyone is yours, and your choice alone to make. Now I can only really speak for my own ‘coming out’ story: on the one hand telling the world of my HIV status (yes, I was hypo-manic at the time also, no I don’t want […]
Continue Reading
Look, there’s definitely some correlation between the frequency and severity of manic episodes related to environmental stimuli. In this posy I postulate some of the things I feel contribute to triggering (hypo)manic episodes and, in some instances, suggest ways to avoid them.
Continue Reading
As much as I hate being “labeled” anything I have to admit that putting a name to my behavior and symptoms over decades of going undiagnosed was a great comfort. It helps to know that there are others out there that are in the same boat as me, and how many.
Continue Reading
[I came back and read thins and it’s all a lot of baloney. I think I was confusing rapid-cycling with mixed episodes…] Run-of-the-mill Bipolar Disorder (BP) is a cycle between usually extreme moods that typically last for a couple of weeks or months and, for the very unfortunate, years. The good news is that BP […]
Continue Reading
It’s estimated that there are over 46 million people living with Bipolar, on average 3% of the developed world are living with this manageable disorder. The tragic thing though is that many, if not most, of those that are said to have Bipolar spend years with no diagnosis or worse are misdiagnosed and living under […]
Continue Reading
Glennon Doyal Melton is a supurb storyteller. In this TedX talk she shares how a stint in a mental hospital was the beginning of turning her life around and reveals how the comradery of the patients there that helped her realse ‘I’m not alone’. Her story of overcoming her addictions is truly inspirational and speaks […]
Continue Reading
Turns out it’s much easier to write from experience, so I’m gonna stick with speaking from the heart. Sorry mom. Overshare, probably (see symptoms)… might delete later. My bipolar diagnosis has, in many respects, been life changing. For the most part in the good sense. Something that I wasn’t ready for is the period before […]
Continue Reading
Right, so I firmly believe that Bipolar Disorder (BP) cannot be cured. Since this assertion is so wildly disputed I’d like to get that straight right out the blocks – if you disagree and aren’t willing to engage in meaningful debate you can leave now.
Continue Reading
It’s likely there will be many more posts about (hypo)manic episodes on here I guess – it’s probably a sign I’m heading that way when I post. It is what it is. I also loath the term ‘episode’ … this isn’t “Pleasantville: A limited series”. Here’s what I remember from recent episodes (some of which […]
Continue Reading
The Bipolar ups are called mania, the downs are called depression and a bipolar sufferer oscillates between the two over a period of time – sometimes for days, often weeks and, for some unlucky folk, years at one of the poles.
Continue Reading