On this World Bipolar Day, I thought I’d focus on some of the most popular posts that tell people what they need to know about bipolar disorder. These are posts that thousands have searched for and read spanning seven years. And what’s more is I think these posts are bipolar myth-busting. Share one or more on social media to help bust bipolar myths (not to mention stigma).
General Bipolar Disorder Myth-Busting Information
Even just this general information about bipolar disorder busts bipolar myths. It’s time that people know what bipolar really is.
- The Difference Between Bipolar I and Bipolar II — This is an important post for the uninitiated to read so that they can understand us all the better.
- How a Person with Bipolar Thinks — This is, by far, the most popular pieces on Bipolar Burble. It’s short and it aims to educate how people with bipolar disorder think as compared to others. No, our thoughts aren’t just “crazy” messes of spaghetti.
- Bipolar and Emotional Disconnection — I think when your emotions are so big disconnection from them is pretty normal.
- How Does It Feel to Have Bipolar? Lonely — I know what it’s like to feel alone because of mental illness. This is often because people feel the stigma against bipolar in society.
- Why Don’t People Get Help for Mental Illness — There are genuine reasons and illness-related reasons why people don’t get help for mental illness.
Myth-Busting Information About Bipolar Hypomania
People picture extreme, movie-like depictions of highs in bipolar disorder. Bust the myths around bipolar hypomania.
- What Does Bipolar Hypomania Feel Like? — Many want to know this. I’m not sure if it’s because they have bipolar and are looking for other experiences or if they don’t have bipolar and are looking to understand. Either way, this is my experience of bipolar hypomania.
- How to Handle Bipolar Hypomania — If hypomania is causing problems for you, here are some ways to handle that bipolar hypomania.
Bipolar and Depression Myth-Busting
Bipolar depression isn’t necessarily what people think it is. Bust these myths.
- The Difference Between Being Suicidal and Wanting to Die — Surprisingly, perhaps, many people want to die but are not actively suicidal. This is common in the bipolar population. Read about the difference.
- Depression and Feeling Dead Inside — Depression isn’t just about sadness. Many people feel hollowed out, too.
- Why Should I Continue to Fight the Pain of Depression? — I give out this article a lot because this is such an important question. Yes, even if you are very suicidal, there are reasons to fight. I have fought through the worst and I know others can, too.
- People Who Attempt Suicide Don’t Want to Die — Most people think suicide is about death. It isn’t.
A Little Bit of Hope — Bust Myths and Self-Stigma
But let’s not forget, there is hope for those with bipolar disorder.
- Can a Person with Bipolar Disorder Be Happy? — I might not be the best example of this, but it doesn’t mean that others don’t experience huge happiness.
- The Mind-Brain Split and Enlightenment in Bipolar Disorder — I know this one is harder to conceptualize, but there is a split between the brain and mind and understanding this (often because of mental illness) leads to enlightenment.
Education on Bipolar Myths on World Bipolar Day
When I run into people on World Bipolar Day I tend to tell them a fact or two about bipolar disorder and that’s what these articles are about. These articles are about taking a minute to recognize what bipolar disorder really is and not what Hollywood or the movies say it is. It’s all of our responsibility, whether you have bipolar or not, to educated other about the facts.
Image by Flickr user: Steven Depolo.
I am happy to report that I am off all antidepressants which I have been using for more than 20 years. For more than 7 months now I am taking the Truehope multivitamins replacements +Omega 3+Vitamin D3+Faith in God who created me and He knows best. I am still trying different dosage but for sure no antidepressants.
You left out the blog with the suicidal scale thing… ya know, of 0-10 I think and what each rank means.. in patient speak
I still, refer to it.. this many years later
no, no clinical person does and I’ve had one or two give me a one eyebrow raise when I’ve mentioned it…
but it truly does speak to this bipolar struggler’s experience when suicidal… or not necessarily, wanting to die… just wanting the pain of life to cease
it also gives those without bipolar or mental illness, as a whole.. a idea as to why we feel it and where we land on it and why it is what it is…
Hello Natasha,
I just found your blog and I’m looking forward to more posts you.
Hello Ms. Tracy,
Have you ever had to wean off of a benodiazepine? I am doing that now and I feel horrible x 1000….aside from Zoloft, this is so much worse.
If you or anyone else has these terrible symptoms, please let me know.
God bless,
Wayne A. Woodward
Hi Natasha,
Here in the US it’s also National Turkey Soup Day! Talk about stiff competition. My post sharing World Bipolar day will be taking full comedic advantage of this.
~Patrick
for some reason i didn’t comment on the “antipsychotics for depression” post when it ran, but i’d like to get this off my chest now: it’s a bad bunch of drugs. despite what the cost-minimizing bean-counters say, despite how well the molecules turn “difficult” patients into “manageable” vegetables. now i realize that your experience may be different than mine. even thalidomide seems to be staging a bit of a comeback lately. your mileage may vary. but for this here lifelong bipolar, the phenothiazines and all their modern cousins are just a bunch of bug killers. remember, a brain is a wonderful beautiful fragile complex delicate organ: it’s a bad idea, spraying it with raid.
Hi Michael,
I completely understand your perspective on antipsychotics. I spent years hating them and lord knows I have the weight gain to prove it.
But it’s a bad idea to write off an entire class of drugs because of someone’s bad experiences. Now I’m on a very low dose of an antipsychotic (in a cocktail) and it helps a great deal.
My point is, even me, who hates them viciously, can’t write them off entirely because sometimes they are the only thing that works.
(PS, I would suggest I am not a vegetable.)
– Natasha Tracy
Hi Michael,
First, let me state that I am an RN with BPI. I believe you’re correct about most phenothiazines. They are mostly an older outmoded form of treatment with some horrific side effects when used in large doses, or for too long – I’ve pretty much only seen their use in this current era due to a patient’s financial constraints, i.e., ppl. without insurance who cannot afford to pay for the newer atypical antipsychotics.
However, I’ve seen incredibly good effects from many of the newer atypical antipsychotics, both in small doses as an adjunct to other meds in BPI and II, in larger dosages for full blown manic psychosis (including my own son’s treatment,) and in tiny doses for the agitation and stress sometimes associated with early dementia in the elderly population. I have also benefited from short-term use of Abilify for a terrible, non-stop ruminating depression over the stress of a once good, sibling relationship that had turned emotionally abusive towards me. Generally, I’m a huge fan of Lithium for the manic phase of BPI.
All that being said…we really are all snowflakes when it comes to the treatment of bipolar disorders, and there is no one treatment plan for all of us – individualized plans are so important when treating this illness.
And you are also correct about the human brain – it’s not just the wonderfully complex and fragile organ you described – it’s the quintessential organ that makes us human. The essence of who we are lies within that three pound structure. It must be treated with utmost care. However, I don’t think treating the structural and functional anomalies that go hand and hand with episodic decompensation is akin to spraying the brain with raid. The brain does go awry with this illness, and it needs treatment just like any other organ system that undergoes pathological changes.
It sounds like you’ve had some bad experiences with phenothiazines – that’s understandable. I wish you better health and peace, today on World Bipolar Day, in your future treatment plans, and your overall life.