My next book is for couples. In one chapter, I talk about herbs and bipolar. Here are my thoughts on cannabis and bipolar disorder.
…….There are 113 cannabinoids in cannabis. Two of them concern us. Cannabidiol, also known as CBD and tertrohydocannibinol also known as THC. CBD is relatively benign and in a pure form, it rarely causes mania and psychosis. It is used around the world for anxiety. But as you know, the bipolar brain is not about one symptom. Our symptoms are mixed.
What works for anxiety and even depression is not the same as working for our bipolar brains.
My beef is not with CBD, but I am passionate about educating people with bipolar about the dangers of THC. If you have bipolar disorder and use THC, [ Read More ]
Julie, how do I get my partner to read your books? Help me! Hello to all partners out there who write me and ask how they can get a partner to read my books- use the Health Cards, take care of themselves and get better in general. My answer to this question might surprise you. If you are one of my clients, the answer will not surprise you! Answer: You can’t get someone to do something they do not want to do. That is not your job as a partner. It is not your job to manage someone’s bipolar disorder. It is not your job to beg and cajole and bargain. Instead, it is your job to take care of yourself and learn how to be a parter of a person with bipolar disorder. You [ Read More ]
The following is my blog from Bp Magazine. It starts like this….
My brain has an extra groove when I’m depressed. This mood swing opens a channel where music and conversations are recorded and played back over and over and over again. I then fly back to my past and dwell on what went wrong and feel an incredible sadness.
My latest depression happened while I was revisiting the original Broadway cast recording of Evita with Patti Lupone and Mandy Patinkin. I am not saying this caused my depression (haha), but it was in my ears when the down swing hit.
One line from one song got stuck in my head: “It doesn’t matter what the morons say….” It started to loop. I heard bits of the music and then the words, then [ Read More ]
Julie, I just can’t seem to get my Lamictal regulated. It’s ridiculous. I’ve been taking this drug for three years! Why on earth would I suddenly have dosage problems? It was working so well and now I am getting a bit sick and this is terrible! What is wrong with me?
Janna
Hello Janna,
There is nothing wrong with you. I would say this is actually a good sign. Your body is changing and it means the way the medication metabolizes will change as well. Few people stay on the same meds with the same outcome for a life time. It is completely NORMAL for meds to work and then not work and then work again. Sometimes we have to change the mediations and I know how hard this can be.
When I have a lot of mood swings, as I’m having now- managing bipolar disorder becomes my job. Everything I do has to be examined- will this help me get better? Will this make me more ill?
It’s hard. I just want to be a person who gets up, works, sees friends and family, has fun and goes to bed. That is my dream! I have lived it a few times, but bipolar always returns.
When the bipolar shows up, I have to be ready for it. I can work on prevention all day long and the mood swings will still sneak in. It is an illness.
This afternoon, I saw a nice looking woman who was in her 50’s walking down the street. She was beautifully dressed. The well [ Read More ]
I often feel great rushes of emotions when my mood swings are triggered. I can go from sitting normally to spitting mad or feeling ok to sobbing in a short amount of time. Depending on what kind of bipolar disorder you have, this could be your life as well.
Bipolar disorder has many permutations. We all share the same symptoms. The difference is duration, the space between the mood swings and intensity.
I have the most rapid of the types of bipolar disorder called ultradian rapid cycling bipolar disorder. This means I cycle daily. I have had rapid cycling from the beginning of my symptoms. I have dozens of mood swings a year and have been on this pattern since age 19. When I was finally diagnosed with bipolar disorder [ Read More ]
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Mom Brain Podcast
Listen to Julie’s latest interview on bipolar disorder and mental health in children, teens and adults on the Mom Brain Podcast with Hilaria Baldwin and Daphne Oz.
The health information contained herein is provided for general education purposes only. This site should not be seen as a substitute for an official diagnosis or for professional health care.
Julie, how do I get my partner to read your books? Help me! Hello to all partners out there who write me and ask how they can get a partner to read my books- use the Health Cards, take care of themselves and get better in general. My answer to this question might surprise you. If you are one of my clients, the answer will not surprise you! Answer: You can’t get someone to do something they do not want to do. That is not your job as a partner. It is not your job to manage someone’s bipolar disorder. It is not your job to beg and cajole and bargain. Instead, it is your job to take care of yourself and learn how to be a parter of a person with bipolar disorder. You 
