Make The Right Lifestyle Changes
Making the appropriate lifestyle changes not only mitigates manic episodes and reduces the chances of experiencing an unwanted side effect it also improves your quality of life.
For example, a regular meal plan rich in omega-3 fatty acids can enhance your health and mood. Even little things such as using a meditation app or mood tracking technologies to keep up with your progress can help keep you motivated.
You should also develop a healthy routine that works with your schedule and preferences. This might include daily exercise or conversations with a loved one.
Tip : Reach Out For Face
Having a strong support system is essential to staying happy and healthy. Often, simply having someone to talk to face-to-face can be an enormous help in relieving bipolar depression and boosting your outlook and motivation. The people you turn to don’t have to be able to fix you they just have to be good listeners. The more people that you can turn to who will be available and good listeners, the more likely you are to manage your moods.
Don’t isolate! Support for bipolar disorder starts close to home. It’s important to have people you can count on to help you through rough times. Isolation and loneliness can cause depression, so regular contact with supportive friends and family members is therapeutic in itself. Reaching out to others is not a sign of weakness and it won’t make you a burden. Support for bipolar disorder starts close to home. Your loved ones care about you and want to help. In order to manage bipolar disorder, it’s essential that you have people you can count on to help you through rough times.
Join a bipolar disorder support group. Spending time with people who know what you’re going through and can honestly say they’ve been there can be very therapeutic. You can also benefit from the shared experiences and advice of the group members.
Bipolar Disorder And Other Mental Illnesses
People with bipolar disorder fluctuate between mania and depression. Because it can look like other illnesses, it can be difficult to diagnose.
Folks diagnosed with BD may experience another mental illness at the same time. Possibilities include eating disorders, anxiety disorders, or substance use disorders.
People with bipolar disorder have an increased risk of developing other chronic medical conditions including diabetes, obesity, migraine headaches, thyroid disease, and heart disease.
Below are just a few of the most common conditions that may look like bipolar disorder or may manifest as additional diagnoses. Anyone who has symptoms of these conditions should seek help from a trained medical professional, mental health professional, or specialist.
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Living With Or Caring For Someone With Bipolar Disorder
People living with or caring for someone with bipolar disorder can have a tough time.
During episodes of illness, the personalities of people with bipolar disorder may change, and they may become abusive or even violent.
Sometimes social workers and the police may become involved. Relationships and family life are likely to feel the strain.
If you’re the nearest relative of a person with bipolar disorder, you have certain rights that can be used to protect the person’s interests.
These include requesting that the local social services authority asks an approved mental health professional to consider whether the person with bipolar disorder should be detained in hospital, also known as sectioning.
You may feel at a loss if you’re caring for someone with bipolar disorder. Finding a support group and talking to other people in a similar situation might help.
If you’re having relationship or marriage difficulties, you can contact specialist relationship counsellors, who can talk things through with you and your partner.
Celebrities With Bipolar Disorder
1. Mariah Carey
Singer, songwriter, actress and producer has won too many awards to list. The iconic artist opened up in 2018 about her 2001 diagnosis of bipolar disorder, in which she was hospitalized for a physical and mental breakdown.
I sought and received treatment, I put positive people around me, and I got back to doing what I love writing songs and making music, Carey said in an interview.
2. Robert Downey Jr.
Robert Downey Jr. is an Academy Award nominee and Golden Globe winning actor who had a very public and years-long struggle with addiction to drugs and alcohol. For some, similar struggles may have ruined their careers, but Downey, who has reportedly been sober since 2003, has thrived.
Though he has not publicly stated that he has bipolar disorder, Downeys stepmother said, in a 2000 interview with People Magazine, that the actor had been diagnosed a few years ago, adding that the condition was the reason he had a hard time staying sober.
3. Linda Hamilton
Best known for her portrayal of Sarah Connor in The Terminator film franchise, Linda Hamilton discussed her struggles with depression and bipolar disorder on CNNs The Larry King Show in 2005.
During the interview, she talked about violent mood swings and suicidal thoughts, both of which she believed lead to the failure of two marriages, before she eventually received therapy and medication to manage her condition.
4. Carrie Fisher
5. Ted Turner
6. Jane Pauley
7. Halsey
8. Catherine Zeta-Jones
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Develop A Wellness Toolbox
If you spot any warning signs of mania or depression, it’s important to act swiftly. In such times, it’s helpful to have a wellness toolbox to draw from. A wellness toolbox consists of coping skills and activities you can do to maintain a stable mood or to get better when you’re feeling off.
The coping techniques that work best will be unique to your situation, symptoms, and preferences. It takes experimentation and time to find a winning strategy. However, many people with bipolar disorder have found the following tools to be helpful in reducing symptoms and maintaining wellness:
- Talk to a supportive person.
- Ask for extra help from loved ones.
- Cut back on sugar, alcohol, and caffeine.
- Increase or decrease the stimulation in your environment.
End Stage Bipolar Disorder
Although there is no official classification for end stage bipolar disorder, mild structural changes in the brain that lead to cognitive dysfunction can severely reduce someones quality of life, especially toward the end of life.
Research from 2014 shows that older adults with bipolar disorder seem to have much less gray matter in the frontal area of the brain. This area directly contributes to emotional behaviors and emotional regulation. Other studies have also suggested that bipolar disorder may impact other areas of the brain linked to cognition, memory, and more.
So, while many older individuals already experience changes in mood, cognition, and memory as a part of the natural aging process, people with bipolar disorder may experience more intense changes.
Without the right treatment, day-to-day living can be harder, and the overall quality of life may be lower toward the end of life.
If youve been diagnosed with bipolar disorder, its important to seek treatment for the condition, as it can become progressively worse if left untreated.
Although treatment varies from person to person, doctors usually treat bipolar disorder with both medication and psychotherapy.
- Medications are often the first-line treatment option for people with bipolar disorder. Medications help reduce the chronic symptoms of the disorder. Common medication options for bipolar disorder include:
with bipolar disorder, this can change how traditional mood-stabilizing drugs work.
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My Experience With Bipolar
I was diagnosed with bipolar in my late teens, in my first year at university. The diagnosis have shaped my adult identity and experiences.
People with bipolar experience both episodes of severe depression and episodes of mania overwhelming joy, excitement or happiness, huge energy, a reduced need for sleep, and reduced inhibitions. The experience of bipolar is uniquely personal. No two people have exactly the same experience.
Bipolar disorder has been associated with genius and with creativity. It is certainly true that several contemporary high achievers and creatives have spoken of their experiences. Throughout history, it is possible to recognise bipolar-type traits in the artistic, political and academic spheres. But what is it actually like?
I was lucky enough to speak to a range of people with bipolar to demonstrate the range of experiences out there and some of the things that help. Read on to learn more about their experiences with bipolar.
Getting Your Bipolar Treatment Team In Place
Once you get an accurate diagnosis, its time to get your treatment team in place . Its ideal to get a therapist and med provider that have experience treating Bipolar Disorder. They should make you feel heard, validate your experience, and clearly explain their treatment methods. Helpful questions to ask are:
- What is your experience treating Bipolar Disorder?
- How does therapy for Bipolar Disorder work?
- How will be know we are making progress?
- Will you help me create treatment goals?
- What does a good outcome look like?
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Cait Agrees With Tanya
For 13 years, I took medication, but I’ve been trying to cope without it for the past six months. So I have to be super careful, and alas, super boring. I don’t drink a lot. I have relatively early nights when I can.
Bipolar can also be triggered by trauma or other life events, and sometimes part of therapy is addressing underlying concerns to get someone to a point where they can start to see a life worth living.
What You Can Do: Daily Habits Make A Difference
These healthy lifestyle habits, along with professional treatment, can help manage the symptoms of bipolar disorder:
Treatment Works. SAMHSA Can Help You Find It.
Effective treatments for bipolar disorder are available in your area. The earlier that you begin treatment, the greater likelihood of a better outcome. For confidential and anonymous help finding a specialty program near you, visit SAMHSAs Early Serious Mental Illness Treatment Locator.
If you, or someone you know, need help to stop using substances whether the problem is methamphetamine, alcohol or another drug call SAMHSAs National Helpline at or TTY: , or text your zip code to 435748 , or use the SAMHSAs Behavioral Health Treatment Services Locator to get help.
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Dont Let It Define You
Take a second and think about the way you talk about yourself. When you talk to others about your illness, what words do you use? You hear lots of people with bipolar disorder say things like I am bipolar or I am bipolar and Well lets be clear: you are strong, you are worthy of love, and you are capable of recovery you are not bipolar, you have bipolar disorder. Bipolar is not an adjective it does not define you. It is merely something you have, just like you have high blood pressure. You do not hear cancer patients say things like I am cancer or I am cancerous they have cancer. Whether you realize it or not, that language affects you. We dont realize how much impact words have. When we use this kind of language to talk about ourselves, we are giving so much power to a disease that doesnt deserve it. Making this small change can help you in the subtlest of ways. You get to take back the power, take back control. It might not seem like much, but if you start changing the way you speak, youll see.
How To Live A Longer Life With Bipolar Disorder
Learning that bipolar disorder is associated with a shorter life expectancy can be alarming. If you are someone who has bipolar disorder, you may feel despair, anger, sadness, and hopelessness. These feelings are understandable, and you should check in with your mental health provider if learning about these statistics is triggering for you.
But with knowledge comes power, and the truth is that many people with bipolar disorder live healthy, full, and long lives. The key is getting proper and consistent treatment.
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Create An Emergency Action Plan
Despite your best efforts, there may be times when you experience a relapse into full-blown mania or severe depression. In crisis situations where your safety is at stake, your loved ones or doctor may have to take charge of your care. Such times can leave you feeling helpless and out of control, but having a crisis plan in place allows you to maintain some degree of responsibility for your own treatment.
A plan of action typically includes:
A list of emergency contacts for your doctor, therapist, and close family members.
A list of all medications you are taking, including dosage information.
Symptoms that indicate you need others to take responsibility for your care, and information about any other health problems you have.
Treatment preferences such as who you want to care for you, what treatments and medications do and do not work, and who is authorized to make decisions on your behalf.
Bipolar Disorder Fact Sheet
Bipolar disorder, also known as manic-depressive illness, is a psychiatric disease that causes unusual shifts in mood, energy, activity levels and the ability to conduct daily life activities. Severe bipolar disorder was estimated in 2020 to affect 2.3 percent of the population or approximately 5.9 million adults in the United States aged 18 or older. An estimated 51% of individuals with this condition are untreated in any given year. Suicide is the number one cause of premature death among people with bipolar disorder, with 15 percent to 17 percent taking their own lives.
The National Institute of Mental Health describes bipolar disorder as “a brain disorder that causes unusual shifts in mood, energy, activity levels, and the ability to carry out daily tasks. Symptoms of bipolar disorder can be severe. They are different from the normal ups and downs that everyone goes through from time to time. Bipolar disorder symptoms can result in damaged relationships, poor job or school performance, and even suicide. But bipolar disorder can be treated, and people with this illness can lead full and productive lives.
From the NIMH: “Bipolar Disorder in Adults: What is bipolar disorder?”
Signs and Symptoms of bipolar disorder
From the NIMH: Bipolar Disorder in Adults. Visit “What are the signs and symptoms of bipolar disorder?” at the NIMH for more about symptoms.
Diagnosing bipolar disorder
Treating bipolar disorder
Medications
Other Treatments
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Can A Bipolar Person Lead A Normal Life
I know one of the most common questions when it comes to bipolar disorder is whether people with bipolar disorder can lead a normal life. The question, unfortunately, is one of those loaded ones. It really depends on what one means by normal. However, rather than simply throw up my hands and yell Semantics!, I thought Id look at some of the different senses of normal and whether or not bipolar people can lead a normal life in those senses.
In my own experience, yes, we can lead a normal life and in the most important sense. While our lives will never be exactly the same as the lives of other people, we can enjoy the same things that other people normally enjoy.
How To Live A Normal Life With Bipolar Disorder
Take your life back.
Bipolar is a mental illness that affects your mood, attention, and energy level. After getting the diagnosis, you may be scared and wonder how to live your life. The uncertainty can be nerve-wracking. The good thing is that the life-long illness, though uncurable, can be maintained using medication.
Mentalillnesses are taking a little too long to be identified. Bipolar disorder isone of those mental illnesses that arent identified on time. The best thingthat could happen to anyone with bipolar is getting an accurate diagnosis. Thecorrect medication, therapy and a sound support system are essential in helpingyou to live a healthy life. This article will help you figure out how to takeyour life back to normal after diagnosis.
1. Learn more about the disorder
When it comesto anything that affects your life, its essential to stay on top of things.Consequently, if you have been diagnosed with bipolar, make sure that youresearch on all the information regarding the disorder that you can get yourhands on. Get to know more on the causes, symptoms, and risk factors that cantrigger the extreme mood swings.
Knowing asmuch as you can about the disorder will help keep track of any changes in howyou feel. Ensure that you talk to your doctor about what you know and dont beafraid of being inquisitive, you have every right to be.
2. Keep tabs on your moods
Some warning signsfor both mania and depression include:
- Movingaround more than normal
3. Create a routine
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A Healthy Lifestyle And Effective Stress Management
Healthy living and managing stress are therefore very important. On this point, Dr. Nelson said that one thing that helps bipolar patients be at their best is a regular sleep schedule. Why? Because ensuring you get a good nights sleep, going to bed and waking at the same time, helps the bodys clock and allows the brain to work at its best.
Exercise is another critical component of effective stress management and a healthy lifestyle. Dr. Nelson named stress reduction, social support and a balanced life as some of the many self-care advantages that a fitness regimen can offer someone living with bipolar disorder.
Build A Strong Support Network
Isolation or social alienation can increase your susceptibility to depression, so having a good support network is an instrumental part of ensuring your mental well-being over the long run. A simple phone call or a few minutes spent talking to someone can greatly impact your mental health and empower you to achieve your goals.
Spending time with people you know who understand what youre going through is a simple, but very therapeutic thing you can do to ease your stress. Joining a support group can be incredibly beneficial for you also, as you can learn a great deal from the advice and shared experiences of your group members and how they are handling their journeys.
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