Here in the states, a man named Jared Lee Loughner opened fire at a super market where a politician U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords was giving a speech. She was definitely his target. There is a lot of coverage on the news here about his behavior as well as when he was in high school and once he graduated people were very concerned about his behavior. The first article I read mentioned his background and how he had left a note for the senator saying what he was going to do.
Then the article said every single thing except what was glaringly obvious. Jared Laughtner had a severe mental illness that impaired his judgement and led to this terrible event. As I was reading the articles, I said to myself: “Are these writers blind? Don’t they know anything? He is 100% showing all [ Read More ]
I am not sure what was in the water this weekend- but there were 200 sign ups for the blog. I guess it was from the newsletter on Watch out for Summer Mania. We all need that reminder. If you scroll down you can read the newsletter on the blog.
( I am not sure what’s going on with the title and the extra U in the word up. I doesn’t look like that on the editing page! )
I also received many comments on the posts and promise to have them posted as soon as possible. I read each comment carefully and though I can’t answer each one in detail- I can definitely get some advice in there and point people in the right direction. One big help is the categories column to the right- there are many posts related to the questions I receive. Also, I keep promising to start a weekly podcast [ Read More ]
It is the 4th of July. I had a great time at my brother’s birthday party yesterday- and I am going to a party with my good friends Marsh and Adam in a few hours. And I just felt my mood sweep down and I had this thought:
I don’t have any friends.
In the past, these thoughts plagued me and I didn’t know what to do about them. Now I do- but they still hurt! They still try to control me! As you probably know either through personal experience or seeing it in a loved one, bipolar causes thoughts that ARE NOT REAL- but they feel real. And if we say them out loud or act on them, they become real- especially to others. So, when I had this ridiculous thought – I said to myself, “Julie, this is a bipolar thought. It’s not true. Get up and do something. It will pass. ” [ Read More ]
Oh man am I sick today.. depression has me in it’s tentacles!
- It’s hard to get on with life, but you usually have to. – It’s hard to have conversations because you’re stuck in your own gloom, but you still have to talk to people. – It’s hard to get out of your bipolar fog and work, but you have to sit down and at least get started. – It’s hard to feel any hope, but you have to remind yourself that there is always hope because this is at treatable illness and it won’t always be like this.
Can you tell that this is what I’m saying to myself today? I have been sick for months off and on- lots of depression and rapid cycling between feeling pretty normal and then going way down. I haven’t had much hypomania- which is a bit odd as it is finally sunny here (off and on!) [ Read More ]
I hope that all of you have a subscription to the excellent magazine BP Magazine: Hope and Harmony for People with Bipolar Disorder as it’s a truly amazing resource- it really does make you feel better to read each issue! I have had a column in the magazine for four years. I write on a variety of topics. My last topic was on work. You can read the whole article under my posting at the top of the page. It’s a great article for all of us who struggle to reconcile our work desires with our actual abilities. Ok, let’s be real- what I just wrote is an euphemism for the reality many of us face- we want to reach a work (or school) goal and bipolar disorder gets in our way and we then have to rethink, regroup and try something that may be quite different from what we want for ourselves. Bla.
My ability to work without struggling all day is very, very random. I wish there were more of a pattern as it would be easier to get things done with ease! I actually worked for five hours yesterday and I feel like I can do the same today. There is a big reason for this- I finally got an office that feels comfortable. It took seven years to find the right place. I always knew that I could better deal with the restless ADD/Depression if I could just find the right place to work. I tried coffee shops, the library, individual cubes in a rental space and even my own section of an artist’s collective. And nothing ever worked very well. This new space just feels right.
I am lucky- it only took seven years! ha ha. It’s so important that we all have a place to go and people to see throughout the day- [ Read More ]
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