Bipolar Disorder in the Early Morning

When I wake up in the morning I can always tell- immediately- what mood I’m in. I either have a thought or just an overwhelming feeling about what I will face during the day.

When I wake up depressed,I have the thought,“There’s no point to my life.”

When I wake up manic- if I managed to sleep enough at all! I have the thought,“All right! I’m going to get so much done today!”

The depressive thoughts are more like a flood or terrible emotion- they can cloud my day all day if I let them.

The manic thoughts are like a blast of sunlight and I spring out of my bed like an athlete.

I use this time of the day to gauge my mood before I even leave my room. I have to be that self aware. If it’s depression,I say to myself,“Ok Julie. [ Read More ]





Reader Question:Travel and Bipolar Disorder

Here is a question about travel from Karen:

Julie,was your plan to adjust your sleep schedule a week ahead of time successful?  My BP husband must travel from the West coast to East next month and I have been frantically searching for ways to help him do this without becoming ill.  Thank you in advance for your answer!

Karen

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Karen wrote this question in a comment about my blog post on how I deal with time changes now that I can travel again- if you go to the menu on the right,you can click on travel and the post will come up called Traveling to the NAMI Convention in Florida. It helps to read that before you read this post.

Hi Karen,

I always tell people with bipolar disorder to think way,way ahead about time changes when they travel.

Have you ever noticed that when we hear a tragic story about [ Read More ]





Bipolarhappens.com blog reader comments!

I’ve received such amazing comments on the blogs lately- when you look at a blog,there is a little comments icon at the top- if there is a number next to it,this means there are comments. Then you can comment on the comments!

I see all bipolarhappens.com blog comments before they are posted,so your ideas and support mean a lot to me.

Julie





Bipolar Disorder Mood Swings:Weeks of Depression

Weeks of Depression

I’ve been depressed off and on for weeks. I wake up with it and often go to bed with it. I’ve had to modify my life to take care of it. I’m going out with friends more- more lunches and coffee meetings. I want to work- but it’s time to just work on the depression.

It takes time. Nothing is going on. There were no personal triggers- at least not big ones. I had a manic episode a few weeks ago and this is just the downswing that comes after. I wish I were manic! Though I know that is just as bad.

So,today is tough. I always feel better when my room and house are clean- but it’s hard for me to do it when I’m depressed. My mother came over and helped me. It’s amazing how much it helps the depression.

This is one of the strategies in Get [ Read More ]





DBSA.. Julie Fast Podcast interview:Families and Bipolar Disorder

I’m speaking at the Depression Bipolar Support Alliance in September,2008. I really look forward to it.

My presentation is on Families and Mood Disorders. The three hour program is filled with personal stories and tips on managing the illness as a team.

I recently did a DBSA podcast interview on the topic.  Don’t worry! The podcast isn’t three hours. ;)

I think you will enjoy it!

Please click on this link for the podcast:

Julie Fast DBSA Interview:Families and Bipolar Disorder

Depending on your computer system,you can either listen directly from this blog,or you may have to download the podcast to your computer. This is a MP3 file that’s easy to download and then play. You can then put the file on your IPOD.

Let me know what you think!

Julie





bipolar disorder and depression ….

I’m so sick tonight.  

This is what I wrote in my journal last night when I tracked my mood. I’ve tracked my moods every night for over four years. It is an amazing tool. Usually,I can tell by looking at a month of data what was helping and hurting the bipolar. These last few months have not been as obvious. I’ve just had so much depression that doesn’t seem related to any event. It’s causing events!  When this happens,I try to look deeper into what my be exacerbating the depression.  1. I know it’s bipolar disorder. It’s al illness. There is nothing wrong with me.  2. I’m very upset and worried about my brother. I’m once again to the point of not spending time with him due to his moods. He’s a wonderful man,but he won’t get help for his [ Read More ]





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