February 27, 2011
**LOOKING FOR MORE AUTHORS** If you are interested, please email me at marybeth @ askabipolar . com (remove spaces) with a guest/sample post about any topic involving mental illness. For further details, please feel free to comment and ask. It’s on a volunteer basis. And we aren’t looking for any medical/professional advice. Just personal experiences/opinions to help identify with others going through the same situation. Thanks!!! Do you have a question that needs answering? Click here to submit… Tweeta1181a3c1f317f6a452303985cffd3dfLink to this post!
February 26, 2011
So now it’s our turn to ask our readers a question. Yes, I know, I know, but we have questions, too! Many of us that have Bipolar Disorder have children of all ages. I know my children have been very curious as to what this disease is all about. And to be honest with you, my children have seen me stable at all times except for the last four and a half months. That’s when they started asking questions about this disease called Bipolar Disorder. And I will say it’s been a big roller coaster and I am very tired of it. I want the stability back that I had going for me for over six years prior to last September. Children are curious creatures. I think it is very important that they know on a child’s level what is going on with the parent that has the disease. I [...]
February 25, 2011
Spring is pretty much here and I still feel like crap. When will my seasonal affective disorder end? ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ I do not mean to scare you, but seasonal affective disorder is different for each person. Some suffer symptoms from fall to late spring, others spend one winter depressed and dodge any symptoms the next year. For some people, it starts at the same time each year and ends at the same time. And even if you’ve been diagnosed with SAD, and not Depression, it is not uncommon for the symptoms to turn into full-blown Depression. Waiting for the days to get longer will not help. You need to have conversations with your doctor, family, and friends. With your doctor, make calls in the spring and explain the state of your symptoms. Are they waxing and waning, getting worse, or confusing the heck out of you no matter how hard you [...]
February 24, 2011
I read an article once about bipolar disorder being a genetic illness. I guess I can see where that might have it’s merit. My family has always assumed my great grandmother who was institutionalized may have had bipolar disorder, and I have it as well. If this theory is indeed true, how do I not blame myself for my son’s illness when it was obviously me who passed it down to him? And is it irresponsible of to want more children when I know I might pass it on to them as well? ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ This is a question that I am sure many Bipolar parents ask themselves if they have a child with early onset Bipolar Disorder. I have asked this question to myself also. Bipolar Disorder is a disease. Diabetes is a disease. Mastocytosis is a disease. And you know what? Genetics can affect any of our offspring for [...]
February 23, 2011
Why are people with bipolar so resistant to change? ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ I don’t think change is easy for anyone, but I know it is especially difficult to work through for me. Little changes aren’t so bad; painting a room, buying a new car, etc. Sometimes I even enjoy these changes. But the big changes; moving, starting a new job, having a baby, changing churches … I loathe changes of this sort. And obviously the changes aren’t bad. Having a baby, getting a new job and moving are usually exciting times. However, each one of these alterations to my daily life throws me out of my comfort zone and into the land of anxiety! There are three main reasons I despise changes … * Interruption to my routine – Routines are almost necessary for those of us with bipolar. Without routines things get forgotten, tasks go undone and freak out sessions creep [...]
February 22, 2011
What are some common misconceptions about bipolar disorder. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The list on misconception regarding bipolar disorder is disturbingly long. And it falls upon those of us in the know to dispel the following fallacies. A major tide going against us is the one where many people do not think bipolar disorder is a real disease. Bipolar disorder is very much a truth, and it affects a larger number of people than most realize. Some may think it is not a real disease because it is cyclical, and not always long-term each time a person has a behavioral flareup. And instead of using statistics to prove the extent to which bipolar disorder does affect people, we need to continue working on our won treatment. Unfortunately, the reverse of the last misconception, is that some people assume every mood and behavior you exhibit is a product of being bipolar. That is definitely not true. Every [...]
February 21, 2011
I’ve never been hospitalized for my bipolar, can I still get disability? ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ I did quite a bit of research on this one… It was pretty interesting, too!!! I thought that you could receive disability, regardless of being in the hospital or not, and guess what??? I was right!!! Yay me!!! lol So, I found a lot of information and data to back me up… First of all, you have to be found to have a disability… This could be quite simple-or difficult, depending on your record keeping… You have to have proof (namely doctor’s records) stating that you have been disabled, or will be disabled, for at least 12 calendar months… A disability is defined as a condition that “Prevents claimant from achieving any type of ‘substantial gainful activity’… It must prevent you from performing duties of a previous employment, and impossible to find a new line of work [...]
February 17, 2011
Does everyone with Bipolar experience Hallucinations? ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ I do believe that some people with Bipolar Disorder have hallucinations. I have experienced this after I have crashed and gone into a deep depression. There are many of those with Bipolar Disorder who experience hallucinations while they are manic. It can happen in both instances. When the diagnosis came for me I was not hallucinating. I was in a manic high and just had a ton of energy. Once we got the manic high under control then I crashed hard. Once I crashed I started hearing voices and noises that weren’t really there and I was also seeing things on the wall. After experiencing this myself and talking to others with the disease as well I realized that many did hallucinate and others did not. I really think it depends upon the person and the severity of illness. As I have gotten [...]
February 16, 2011
How do I know what are normal emotions and what ones are caused by bipolar? ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ This is a question I myself am struggling with hardcore lately. I’m constantly on the verge of tears and almost always on edge. I can hide it at work and/or in public, but when I get home I’m like a ticking time bomb. There are a number of factors that could be contributing to my anxiety/sensitivity/emotional instability lately … 1. My Bushia (that’s Polish for Grandmother) passed away two weeks ago. I miss her … A LOT! And I’m not quite sure I gave myself enough time to grieve. So am I emotional because I’m just trying to process her death? 2. I just started a new job. It’s the first time in THREE YEARS that I’ve been in the work force. I love my job too, but it tears into all the me [...]
February 15, 2011
What made me lose control??? Hmm… Which time??? Lol I can’t pinpoint any one thing, but I will tell you a few things that usually make me lose control and send me into the hospital or end up with a serious, self-inflicted injury… I guess you could say I go into these major downward spirals… I start to get really stressed out by life in general-even the little things can set me off… Fighting is a big one… Whether it be between me and another person, or between other people, I simply can’t stand it!!! I’m not too sure why, it could be because of some things that happened in my past, or it could just be that I get really scared… Who knows… I’ll start lying to everyone, including my therapy team, and tell them all that I’m perfectly fine, that everything is going peachy-keen… I don’t want them [...]
What made me lose control? ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Hmm… Which time??? Lol I can’t pinpoint any one thing, but I will tell you a few things that usually make me lose control and send me into the hospital or end up with a serious, self-inflicted injury… I guess you could say I go into these major downward spirals… I start to get really stressed out by life in general-even the little things can set me off… Fighting is a big one… Whether it be between me and another person, or between other people, I simply can’t stand it!!! I’m not too sure why, it could be because of some things that happened in my past, or it could just be that I get really scared… Who knows… I’ll start lying to everyone, including my therapy team, and tell them all that I’m perfectly fine, that everything is going peachy-keen… I don’t want [...]
February 14, 2011
How can I maintain a romantic relationship throughout all my bipolar ups and downs? ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Yes, I believe it is possible to keep romance alive in a relationship. And of course, you know that relationships of all kinds have ups and downs. The marriage/long-term relationship does work I believe if both partners are the ones contributing. It will not work if there’s only one person working at it. I can only speak from my own personal experiences on this particular subject. I, personally, have only had two romantic relationships. The first one was when I was twenty-one years old and the other started when I was twenty-three and I am married to that man still fourteen and a half years later. The relationship hasn’t been without bumps and rocks. However, our relationship is the best it’s ever been right now. We seldom spat, argue or have to show the “stink [...]
February 13, 2011
How do I cope with losing friends due to my mental illness? ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ We sufferers of mental illness are all too familiar with loss, and sadly, one of the most painful is the loss of friends. And what really sucks is the loss is because of the illness, and not because of who we are. And here’s the really sad reality: are we not as fun as we used to be because of our mental illness? Well…perhaps not. There’s a myriad of reasons we lose friends. But when it’s because of an illness we suffer, the connotations are different, and a million questions arise. Did so-and-so stop talking to me because they are afraid of the stereotype of my disease, or because I am a truly different person? Am I not doing enough to combat my illness? Will they start speaking with me as soon as I am back to ‘normal’? None [...]
February 10, 2011
Can you work in the Psych Field if you have Bipolar Disorder? ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ I can honestly say this is going to be one of my most favorite questions to answer!! The answer is a very simple …………… ABSOLUTELY!!!!! I have been a Licensed Psychiatric Technician in the state of California for 29 years. I’ve worked in two state hospitals, one of them being the only one of the two Forensic Psychiatric State Hospitals in California. Currently I work the ER Department of Psych Triage in a large County Hospital. Oh… and I have Bipolar Disorder. Now of course you do have to take care of the minor little details like completing High School and then completing the required education for whatever your choice may be working in the Mental Health Field. There’s actually a term coined for those of us who have a mental illness and work in the psych [...]
February 8, 2011
How do I begin to rebuild after hitting rock bottom? ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ I’d like to say that I have an easy answer for this one, as many of us have or will be at this spot one or more times. (How’s that for optimism…sigh…) The best I can do is share my own experiences on how I climbed out of my deep dark pit full of spiders and mud. I’m pretty sure most people know my rock bottom story … if not feel free to read this guest post I did a couple years ago (This was actually the FIRST post I ever did that included the word “bipolar”. Kinda like my “coming out of the bipolar closet” post if you will) Needless to say, I pretty much lost everything … house, credit, job, friends, dignity, sanity, almost my marriage … you name it, I’d pretty much watched it disappear right [...]
February 7, 2011
This is a very interesting question… I have my own opinion as to the answer, but I don’t want to be too opinionated, so I looked up some other peoples responses… First, my own opinion!!! I think that bipolar does not make you do anything (including cheating…) Sure, it gives you the feelings and the urges, and sure, they can be very difficult to control, and sometimes impossible, but with the right form of therapy and support, you can overcome the bipolar symptoms (to some degree!!!) I know, you’re probably thinking “Yeah, right… This chick is delusional!!!” But it’s true!!! Just look at Cat’s post from yesterday… Her friend still has some symptoms, but she’s managing great!!! So anyway, back to the question at hand… A lot of people do believe that BP can make you cheat on your significant other… When someone is in a manic or hypomanic state, [...]
February 6, 2011
A Success Story I’d like to tell you the story of a young woman I’ve has the honor and privilege of knowing for quite a few years. I’ve chosen to keep her identity anonymous out of respect for her privacy. She is a single mother of a young child under the age of five and receives no help what so ever from the father of her child. She also just happens to attend one of the most prestigious private Universities on the west coast. This school is extremely difficult to gain admission to and it has produced Nobel Prize Recipients, world-renowned physicians, researchers and scholars. Now you may be thinking, so… there are plenty of single mothers who have done so, and many more who will continue to do so. What’s so special about this young woman? I will tell you what’s so special about her…. she has Bipolar Disorder. [...]
February 5, 2011
I get to ask a question and it’s so way much more than just idle curiosity. Well, actually it’s more like a series of questions that add up to my need to implore “Please, someone say that they have felt this way so I don’t feel so weird and think I’m the only one who has felt this way.” Sorry if that sounds rather needy, I don’t mean for it to be…I just hate being the “odd man (well woman) out” don’t you?? Ok, so as a few of you already know, for the past several months I’ve really struggled and have had a very difficult time with both my mental and physical health. I know most of you have no idea what I’m talking about and I won’t bore you with a long tale of woe. Finally things started to get better and the depression I was feeling was [...]
February 4, 2011
The medication for my mania seems to work reasonably well, although not terrifically well, but my the meds I take for depression don’t seem to work to well. I am on Welbutron and Deplin for depression. When I first started the Deplin I felt great for about 3 weeks than I returned to my normal depressed self. I have rapid-cycling Bipolar II, anxiety, and ADD predominantly inattentive. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ I apologize in advance, because this probably is not the answer you are looking for. However, it is the best answer I can give. Medication posts are always so difficult to answer. They are all so similar, yet so different. In the end though, it all boils down to the same question … . “Can you tell me what medication I should be on?” And as much as I want to help and offer advice in every way I can, this is [...]
February 3, 2011
What is the difference between mania and hypomania? What are the different symptoms? How can you tell the difference? ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Before I started this site and began researching bipolar disorder, I had no idea what hypomania was. I mean pretty much everyone has heard the word “manic”. So what the heck are they referring to when they say, “hypomanic”? I decided the best way to begin explaining it is to start by dissecting the word “hypomania”. hypo- or hyp- pref. 1. Below; beneath; under: hypodermic. 2. Less than normal; deficient: hypoesthesia. 3. In the lowest state of oxidation: hypoxanthine. [Greek hupo-, from hupo, under, beneath; see upo in Indo-European roots.] So if we take these definitions and add the word “Mania” to the end it would look like … hypomania(per Marybeth) pref. 1. Below mania; beneath mania; under mania 2. Mania less than normal 3. In the lowest state of [...]
February 2, 2011
My husband of over 10 years has bipolar disorder. He is on medicine but refuses therapy. During a recent manic episode, I found out that he was texting sexually inappropriate messages to a mutual female friend of ours. (She also has bipolar disorder.) When I ask him why he did this, what he was thinking,etc he insists that he doesn’t know or remember. He seems so devastated though. I want to believe that he’s sorry but he’s done things like this before. Do you think that he really can’t control these impulses or that he chooses not to? I love him more than anything and I know he loves me but I can’t just give him a free pass to do anything and blame it on his illness. Any insights into this sort of occurrence would be much appreciated since his communication skills are seriously lacking. Thank you! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Urges [...]
February 1, 2011
My question is do bipolar people have to change their meds after a period of time. It feels like my meds just stopped being effective lately and I am about to turn 50. and no I had a hysterectomy 3 years ago. I take effexor xr and lithium. My reading comprehension is low, my ability to learn quickly has slowed, my concentration and focus, cannot multi-task, deep depression, no enthusiasm… ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ This is a very good question. I can speak from personal experience and what has happened with me and medication changes. However, I do believe there are times when a person had to add a medication, delete a medication or change dosages to what they are prescribed. This can happen for a myriad of reasons. When I was first diagnosed with Bipolar Disorder I was prescribed just Lithium. The psychiatrist kept changing the dosages trying to figure out what [...]
