Doing Whatever You Have to Do with Bipolar

As children, many of us hated doing what our parents told us to do, even when they told us it was for our own good. Now, with bipolar disorder, we have doctors, psychiatrists, and therapists doing the same thing. They tell us what to do, and tell us it's for our own good as well.

We're told tht we need to take medication, every day, and as prescribed, for the rest of our lives, if we're going to keep our disorder under control. We want to control those symptoms, so we have to do what they say (or else). Never mind what we really want to do (who of us wants to take medication for the rest of our lives), we have to do it if we want to keep our bipolar and its symptoms under control.

We're told that we should see a therapist for the emotional side effects of our disorder - that he/she can help us deal with the issues surrounding our disorder. And that we should keep regular appointments, usually every week or evey 2 weeks. Again, we do this because we want to keep our bipolar and its symptoms under control.

We're told that we should eat a healthy diet and exercise, basically keep our physical selves healthy, as that will help keep our minds healthy as well. Well, I don't know about you, but I hate eating "rabbit food" all the time. And exercise isn't one of my favorite things to do, either. But I do them both, because I am adamant about keeping my bipolar and its symptoms under control.

We're told to keep to a regular sleep schedule - 8 to 9 hours of uninterrupted sleep each night, going to bed at the same time and waking up at the same time every day, because lack of sleep or a disrupted sleep pattern can be a trigger to a bipolar manic episode. Now, this I've experienced firsthand, and don't want to go back there, so I definitely keep to a good sleep schedule.

We're also told to keep as stress free a life as possible, which sometimes isn't so easy, but still we have to do it if we're going to avoid those bipolar episodes. We can practice meditation, tai chi, relaxation exercises, stress reduction exercises, listen to soothing music, do crossword puzzles... again, whatever works (we're all different, remember) - as long as it keeps that bipolar episode away.

Stress can definitely bring on a bipolar episode if you're not careful. And this is something else I know about firsthand (and do not want to experience again). So do whatever it takes to keep your stress levels to a minimum.

We may not like to do "what they say," but we must willingly do it if it keeps us out of a bipolar episode, and as long as it keeps us stable. We must do whatever is within our means to do, like take our medication regularly and as prescribed (for the rest of our lives), like it or not, just so we can maintain control over our bipolar disorder.

BTW, don't forget to check out my new bipolar book at: www.brokenroseministries.com

Wishing you peace and stability,

Remember God loves you and so do I,
Michele