This is the eighth in a series of 26 posts covering a variety of stress management tools and techniques, starting with the letter A. For some background information on stress and bipolar disorder, the blogger recommends reading her three-part series, “Getting a Handle on Stress When You Have Bipolar Disorder,” starting with the first one.Reducing...
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A to Z Guide to Stress Management for People with Bipolar Disorder, Part 8: Use Humor and Laughter
April 9, 2018
By: Carrie Elizabeth Lin
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By Michael Kinyanjui
Until my psychiatrist diagnosed me with bipolar disorder and prescribed medication, every aspect of my life was broken. I rarely talked to my family, and my friends were a distant memory. Worst of all was not knowing why everything was so screwed up. The one conclusion I reached was that it was my fault. It was my fault for getting arrested twice...
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The Inspiration Behind Founding Campfire
April 3, 2018
By: Daniel Pourasghar
How I stumbled into support, and hope to pass it on“Bipolar? And I’ll have this for the rest of my life?.” At twenty-three years old, ready to take on the world, I was in shock and disbelief. “Why me? Why now?” I asked the doctor. That was 10 years ago, shortly after my college graduation in Germany.Over the years, through plenty of highs...
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Dare to Be Different: World Bipolar Day 2018
April 2, 2018
By: Conor Bezane
I used to be ashamed of my bipolar status. I was ashamed of all of the screwball things I did when I was manic.That was back in 2008, when I tipped the shoe-shine guy $60 because that’s how much I had in my wallet and it seemed like the nice thing to do. I stopped strangers on the street, asking them what they were listening to on their iPods and...
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Becoming Your Own Advocate
April 2, 2018
By: Danielle Workman
Being your own advocate is neverending.In January, I had to be admitted to the emergency room due to an unusual complication to a common ailment. While it wasn’t related to my mental illness at all, the emergency room staff was convinced that it was completely and totally related to it, and in turn exacerbated the situation.Bipolar Disorder comes...
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Aren’t You Jealous?
April 2, 2018
By: Sabrina Ruediger
This series is exploring the mania, including psychosis, in manic episodes of Bipolar I and my experience with that in a psychiatric hospital. I was inspired by a poem I wrote during my stay at Aurora Behavioral Health Psychiatric Unit in 2016, “Aren’t You Jealous”. I had been coming down from a manic episode in my Bipolar and was getting sick of...
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Jails Are No Place For Those With A Mental Illness
March 28, 2018
By: Carol Ray, Ph.D.
Prisons and jails have become America's default mental health institutions. More individuals with severe mental illnesses are housed in prisons and jails than in state psychiatric hospitals. Individuals with severe mental illness, while in prisons or jails, lack the proper treatment and care needed for their conditions. Lack of proper...
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By: Courtney Davey, MA, MFT
There’s nothing quite like having a long-term relationship. After you have moved past some of that initial nervousness, it can feel great to have a steady person in your life to be a friend, lover, and support. Knowing their patterns and knowing how to predict interactions and conflicts can create a sense of stability. However, falling into a...
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When You’re Bipolar, It’s Better to Give Than to Receive
March 21, 2018
By: Conor Bezane
I still make mixtapes. They may be on CD, but, to me, they will always be mixtapes. Music is my higher power in AA and even though I don’t go to very many meetings anymore, music still plays a pivotal, necessary role in my recovery — for my dual diagnosis of bipolar and addiction.My recovery is emboldened by music. Every day, I listen intently to...
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Creating a Positive Attitude When You Have Bipolar Disorder
March 19, 2018
By: John Poehler
Getting the news that you have a chronic mental illness can be quite disheartening. It can be extremely overwhelming.You cannot change the fact that you have bipolar disorder.You can change your perspective about mental illness by reframing your thoughts..I was extremely elated when I first received my diagnosis of bipolar disorder. ...
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