In honor of Mental Health Awareness month here in the United States, I thought a series of newsletters on how to create a comprehensive treatment plan would be timely. Part 1 of 4 - The comprehensive treatment of bipolar disorder 

The Power of a Comprehensive Treatment Plan Current research states that 4-6% of the population of the United States has a form of bipolar disorder.  When you factor in the family, friends, coworkers, teachers and health care professionals who are affected as well, the number of people impacted by the illness reaches well over 25,000,000 people.  Considering  that the world has a similar rate of bipolar disorder, the numbers are staggering!  

My Story About two years after I was diagnosed with bipolar disorder, I realized that medications would not be enough to help me manage this illness.  There were no books on the market to help me find stability, so I created my own comprehensive plan.  This plan is now called The Health Cards Treatment System for Bipolar Disorder. I also talk about comprehensive treatments in my other books:  Loving Someone with Bipolar Disorder, and Take Charge of Bipolar Disorder.  I know that I sound like a broken record sometimes.  I always say, “You Must Have a Comprehensive Treatment Plan!” This is true for people with bipolar disorder as well as the people who care about them.  It’s the only way to manage this illness successfully. 

What Is a Comprehensive Plan?   A comprehensive plan recognizes that simply relying on medications to treat this illness is not enough.  It also understands that exercise alone is not enough -diet is not enough- a stable relationship is not enough.  In other words, the illness is too complicated for a one step solution.  What’s needed is a plan that recognizes the complexity of the illness and provides a clear and concise system that is created by you and your support people for managing all of the mood swings that come with bipolar disorder -with the ultimate goal of preventing the mood swings before they take over a person’s life.  It took me nine years to create the plan I write about in the Health Cards and my other books.  Because I now understand how to manage this illness, I no longer have a life that’s controlled by bipolar disorder.  My plan makes sure that I have the control and teaches the people in my life how to help me stay stable. This doesn’t mean I don’t get sick.  I do.  Unfortunately, that’s the nature bipolar disorder.  The difference between now and nine years ago is that I have hope and I know what works to keep me stable. 

A Simple Goal  My goal is to help people throughout the world find a plan that works for them.  If every person on this newsletter mailing list learns to manage this illness more effectively, it’s a really great start. 

A Good Start  The comprehensive treatment of bipolar disorder is a large subject, so in these newsletters I will give four effective and easy to implement ideas on how to manage the illness more successfully. These can be added to any plan you already have. Here are the tips: 

1.     Find Helpful Medications with Limited Side Effects

2.    Regulate Sleep

3.  Improve Relationships

4.  Create a Written Treatment Plan

It’s important to remember that a comprehensive plan is not something a person with bipolar disorder has to do alone.  The above ideas work better when family, friends and healthcare professionals are involved in the process.  This requires a lot of communication, education and time, but the results are worth it. If someone you care about has bipolar disorder, your role is very important which is why you need to be a part of any plan that is set up to manage the illness. On a side note, I truly understand how hard it is to love someone who won’t get help- this means that you have to create your own plan in order to take care of yourself. And continue to learn about bipolar disorder and it’s symptoms so that you gain a better understanding of your loved one. 

This first newsletter covers tips for managing bipolar disorder medications.   

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