Stigma. One very important issue we, as a community, try to battle. It's the negative assumptions associated with bipolar and those who have been diagnosed with the illness. I personally have experienced instances where certain assumptions were made about me once I revealed I had bipolar. I became viewed as a liability. But then there are the...
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Bipolar Disorder and Weight Gain
September 16, 2011
Maricela Estrada
I hear about this so much, people hate the weight gain side effects of medication. I will be honest with you, I hate it too. However, I have learned the hard way. The most impulsive and manic thing I have ever done is get liposuction after gaining 36lbs from medication. I charged it on three credit cards. My medications caused increased appetite...
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Charlotte Walker
September 16, 2011
Charlotte Walker has been living with bipolar disorder since her teens. She works full time in the criminal justice field, while writing, campaigning and volunteering to challenge the stigma surrounding mental health conditions and diagnoses. Charlotte maintains a respected mental health blog (http://purplepersuasion.wordpress.com/) where she...
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Who’s the parent here? Raising kids when you have bipolar
September 16, 2011
Charlotte Walker
“Are you a bit manic, Mum?” says my 11-year-old suspiciously. OK, so maybe I’m a little... bouncy, although only just elevated enough to be considered clinically hypomanic. But nothing escapes the scrutiny of my children these days.My last major episode was between 1999 and 2001, when my son was 4 years old and my daughter was almost two. I have...
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Sadness Returns Quietly
September 15, 2011
Bassey Ikpi
So this sadness returns quietly. Always quietly. No great trumpeting or horn blast. No drum circle or full bodied gospel wail. No stunning metaphor or dazzling simile. There is only this throbbing and distant and empty and quiet. Always this white noise of rush and tide. It’s what silence sounds like.Water.For the last few weeks, I’ve been trying...
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Maricela Estrada
August 15, 2011
Maricela Estrada is the author of Bipolar Girl: My Psychotic Self. Estrada received her Associates of Arts degree in Liberal Studies from Rio Hondo College in Whittier, CA and her Bachelor of Arts degree in Communications from California State University, Fullerton. She works for the Los Angeles County Department of Mental Health as a Peer...
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Brian Jost
August 15, 2011
Brian Jost, author of the memoir “Grounded by Bipolar Disorder; One Pilot’s Landing,” is an experienced public speaker focusing on sharing his story of living with a psychiatric disorder and understands that mental illness can change a person’s life. Although he has worked as a charter pilot and flight instructor, the diagnosis of bipolar disorder...
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MANIA AND “HYPER-RELIGIOSITY”
August 15, 2011
Brian Jost
Just this past week, I traveled with my wife and our seven-month old son to Winona, Minnesota, La Crosse, Wisconsin, and Viroqua, Wisconsin to share my experiences of living with bipolar disorder with four different audiences. At the end of two of the presentations, I was asked a question that I am often asked when I present my story. The question...
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A Day At The Office
August 15, 2011
Christi
I'm racing out the door with my work bag slung over my shoulder, a glass of water in one hand, and my handful of morning medications in the other. Anti-depressant? Check. Mood stabilizer? Check. Adderall? Check. Anti-anxiety? Check. I gulp them down with the water and race to the bus stop. It's 7:45 am and I'm running late for work. On the walk/...
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Christi
July 18, 2011
Hi guys! My name is Christi. I’m 30-years old with a fiance, 2 dogs, and Bipolar II. My journey began in high school. I was a very depressed perfectionist and had trouble keeping friends. That led into eating disorders (both anorexia and bulimia) treated sporadically by various campus doctors, until 2004, when me and my eating disordered butt...
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