In my last article, I talked about how many with bipolar disorder don’t have insight; so, the next question is, how do you develop insight into bipolar disorder if you recognize you don’t have it? Developing bipolar disorder insight isn’t necessarily easy – it requires looking inward and doing the work – but it is possible.
I like to think my first book, Lost Marbles: Insights into My Life with Depression & Bipolar, whets one’s whistle for insight. What I hear from people from people who read it is, “Oh my god! I thought that was just me,” or “I had no idea that was the bipolar,” or “I feel like I could have written that exact thing.”
What those people are experiencing is insight into bipolar disorder in new ways.
So, obviously, if you want to develop insight into bipolar disorder, you should read my book. (Okay, sorry, shameless.)
Ahem.
Here are a few other ways.
Developing Insight into Bipolar Disorder
Here are some things you can do to foster your own insight into bipolar disorder:
- Make sure your mental illness is being optimally treated – I know not everyone is going to get to a place of zero bipolar disorder symptoms, but whatever wellness is for you, try to make sure it’s the best it can be. I say this because when you’re battling medication fog, zombie-meds or nasty side effects, it’s very difficult to focus on developing bipolar disorder insight.
- See a therapist who specializes in bipolar disorder – You don’t know all about a mental illness just because you have it. There are experts out there who can help you learn more and psychotherapists are some of those people. Good therapists can walk you down the path of insight – both insight specific to you and insight specific to bipolar disorder.
- Get cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) – I know CBT is so in fashion that some eschew it but I happen to believe it’s in fashion because it really works. Cognitive behavioral therapy helps explain how your emotions are linked to your thoughts are linked to your actions. No, this doesn’t help everyone, but I feel like everyone should at least give it a try. (This therapy is often done in a group format and thus is more accessible than one-on-one therapy. There are also workbooks for it but I can’t recommend one in particular.)
- Start being mindful – Yup, mindfulness is seriously in fashion too and as I’ve said before, mindfulness does not help my bipolar disorder symptoms. That said, mindfulness can help develop insight and that insight can help you cope with your illness better. Mindfulness is simply about tuning into yourself in the here and now and feeling what you are feeling without judgement. If you know how to tune into yourself like this, it can start filling in some of the blanks when it comes to figuring out why you are doing what you are doing. There are plenty of books on this too.
- Start mindfully meditating – This is actually more like a continuation of the above. Mindfulness meditation just takes mindfulness up a notch. It’s about devoting specific times to being mindful and more answers may present themselves if you focus more on this principle.
- Read books/watch videos about the experience of having bipolar disorder – There are many fine books/videos out there (many memoirs) on having bipolar disorder. I think memoirs are great because you can look at the book as say, “Oh my god – me too!” And when you do that, you suddenly realize that the illness is driving those thoughts/feelings/actions and not just you. Voilà – insight!
- Get all the coping skills you can – There are lots of kinds of coping skills that come from various therapies that can also be helpful. Therapies like:
- Psychoeducation (literally, learning about bipolar disorder)
- Prodrome detection therapy (spotting moods before they happen; knowing the early warning signs)
- Interpersonal/social rhythm therapy (deals with relationships and routines)
- Family-focused therapy
No matter where your coping skill comes from, using it does give you some kind of insight into bipolar disorder (some more than others).
What About Those with Substance Abuse Issues or Anosognosia?
It’s quite possible that none of the above might help a person with anosognosia or a substance abuse issue. In both cases, other things likely need to be dealt with before true mental illness insight can take place.
In the case of anosognosia, treatment is critical and this may include treatment without consent. Unfortunately, many people with serious cases of anosognosia won’t agree to treatment and it’s only after they have had treatment that they see the need for it. (Which is their first glimpse of insight.)
As for those with substance abuse issues, they, too, have something to deal with before pursuing bipolar disorder insight. Typically, addictions must be dealt with first. It’s only once you get your head out of a sea of chemicals that you can hope to see the light of insight. The desire for a substance tends to warp everything else.
Is Developing Insight into Bipolar Disorder Really Worth It?
Whether working towards bipolar disorder insight is worth it depends on who you ask. In my opinion, insight into bipolar disorder is what will get you through the hardest times of the illness but also what will make the everyday times more livable. There is the saying that “Ignorance is bliss,” but for those with a serious mental illness this just isn’t true.
The statements that are true for bipolar disorder is “Knowledge is power,” or, more to my point, “Insight is power.” Any type of learning you do can increase your understanding and control over bipolar disorder, but none will do it like true insight into your own bipolar disorder can.
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