mental illness issues Archives - Page 4 of 52 - Natasha Tracy Bipolar Expert

How to Start Writing a Book About Your Mental Illness

Posted by Natasha Tracy | May 18, 2023

I get asked about how I wrote a book about my mental illness all the time. My book is Lost Marbles: Insights into My Life with Depression & Bipolar, and I published it in 2016. It has done very well for me, and I don’t regret writing the book for a moment. That said, writing a book about mental illness is not for the faint of heart. It’s harder than you think, and many people find it less rewarding than they think. If you carefully think ahead, though, you can avoid some of the pitfalls.

Separating My Emotions from Bipolar Emotions — How Do I Know Which Is Which?

Posted by Natasha Tracy | May 10, 2023

Bipolar emotions and my genuine emotions are two different things, even though they come from one brain. In fact, they can be two opposite things. It’s quite complicated to separate a bipolar emotion from my legitimate, organic emotion. What I often find is that the bipolar emotions are so overwhelming that my genuine emotions get drowned out. I feel like I’m trying to separate s specific drop of water from the ocean.

Redefining Success: Thriving with Bipolar Disorder

Posted by Natasha Tracy | May 4, 2023

People with bipolar disorder can be successful. In fact, people with bipolar disorder can be very successful. You can, indeed, thrive with bipolar disorder. That being said, thriving and success may look different for a person with bipolar disorder than they look for others. Redefining success is something you have to do if you want to thrive with bipolar disorder. Constantly reaching for goals that your bipolar will prevent you from achieving just isn’t a way to thrive with bipolar disorder.

What to Do If You Have an Ongoing Psychiatric Crisis + Planning Ahead

Posted by Natasha Tracy | Mar 28, 2023

In an ongoing psychiatric crisis, you’re in extreme distress, but your life is not on the line. It’s not an acute psychiatric emergency. (For information on acute psychiatric emergencies, please see here.) While an acute psychiatric emergency almost always requires a stay in a treatment facility, an ongoing psychiatric crisis doesn’t necessarily. The idea here is to get help as soon as possible to prevent the crisis from becoming an acute psychiatric emergency that does require hospitalization. You also want to think about planning ahead for psychiatric crises/emergencies.

What to Do If You Have a Psychiatric Emergency

Posted by Natasha Tracy | Mar 21, 2023

It’s important to know what to do in the case of a psychiatric emergency. Sure, you could float along with treatment righting every issue before things get really bad. You could catch everything early. You might have a proactive psychiatrist. Or, then again, this may not be your experience. I would argue that people with serious mental illnesses like bipolar disorder are just crises waiting to happen. That’s not anyone’s fault; it’s just the nature of the disease. Thus, knowing what to do when a psychiatric emergency arises is critical. Here are some psychiatric emergency tips and things to think about.

Staying in Active Addiction Is a Choice Even If Addiction Isn’t a Choice

Posted by Natasha Tracy | Mar 16, 2023

Staying in an active addiction is a choice. I know that’s a controversial statement, but I believe it to be true. This is not to suggest that addiction itself is a choice — it isn’t — addiction itself can be considered a mental illness, and an illness is never a choice. That said, when a person continues in their addiction, that is a choice. I wish people would acknowledge that. This becomes particularly salient for those with bipolar disorder as more than half of people with bipolar disorder abuse substances.

Don’t Kill Yourself — My Daily To-Do List

Posted by Natasha Tracy | Feb 8, 2023

Do the laundry, wash the dishes, and don’t kill yourself — those are on my to-do list. That last one is on my daily to-do list. (Yes, I realize it’s more like a to-don’t item, but allow me some latitude, if you would.) Yes, I have to remind myself every day not to die. I put it on lists. I remind myself of it in blog posts, and I say the words to myself almost as a mantra — “no kill, no die.” Let’s talk about why I need to do that and how I can not kill myself every day in spite of the desire to do so.

Worst Advice for Bipolar I’ve Ever Received

Posted by Natasha Tracy | Jan 24, 2023

I focus on good advice for bipolar disorder here, but whoah boy, have I also received some of the worst advice for bipolar disorder you can imagine. This advice has come from loved ones, natural medicine practitioners, and even a psychiatrist. However, just because the advice comes from someone you respect doesn’t mean it’s good advice. Here is some of the worst advice for bipolar I’ve ever received.

Why Do We Feel Menta Illness Self-Stigma? How Do We Fight It?

Posted by Natasha Tracy | Jan 11, 2023

Mental illness self-stigma is essential to recognize. Stigma is a very popular word in mental health advocacy circles. People talk nonstop about the effects of stigma, stigma, stigma. However, self-stigma gets somewhat less press. I don’t know if that’s because it’s people with mental illness talking to other people with mental illness about self-stigma (as opposed to advocates who may or may not have an illness) or because people just don’t like to cop to perceived weakness, but self-stigma is real, harmful, and something we ought to be talking about.