Working without the internet… not acutally working for Starbucks! 😉
I’ve found that going to Starbucks where there is no wireless is immensely helpful work wise- especially on the days when I’m depressed and unfocused. It’s amazing how the internet can keep a person from getting work done! I do my email and then send them from home. This helps a lot. It also keeps me from compulsively checking to see if someone has written. Nothing is so important that I have to check my email every few minutes! When I was on Facebook, it was awful. People write constantly and before you know it, you’re over there looking for friends. I won’t have a personal Facebook any time soon- and even if I did- I couldn’t check it at Starbucks!
You can survive this illness…… even when it feels impossible
I’m just getting out of two days of hell. Absolute hell. I had simultaneous severe depression and relentless OCD thinking. I am finally better tonight. Here’s what I did:
Dealt with work disappointment in a reasonable and realistic way. I am in a tough, tough business. There is more disappointment than success- that’s part of being in a media profession. This means I MUST be ready for the depression that comes with disappointment. Once I realized I was depressed- which was not hard since I know my signs completely- I then went into management mode. This is an illness. I used the tips in all of my books 24 hours a day. Literally- because if I wake up with obsessive thoughts, I have to take care of things so that I can get back to sleep! It’s hard. I got out of bed. It’s the [ Read More ]
Here is an excellent question from Julie- I’ve asked this question of myself many times:
I like your blogs… all the advice about keeping a positive attitude, keep busy, think about the positives in live… I know I need to do those things but what if I don’t want to? One little (ok, not so little) thing made me sad today and now all of life seems pointless & not worth doing. I’ve been up since 4am & now I’m just waiting to get tired so I can sleep through the day & not have to take care of my kids, fix lunch, take a shower, or go to church (which I KNOW I need). “Stay strong,” people say, but what if I don’t want to?
Hi Julie,
That is the language of depression talking. I think that way all of the time. First of all, people who tell a depressed person to stay strong [ Read More ]
Julie, I love these blogs but I have an 8yr old girl with bipolar disorder and everything is about adults. Her anger just gets worse and worse and I don’t know how to teach her the stuff i read from you. the hcp has her on depakote and risperidal, please tell my wife and I how we can help her. I feel so bad that she has to feel this way.
**
I will answer this question either tonight of tomorrow. I thought I had time right now, but I am off to a meeting to interview a potential speaker for the Latino Mental Health event that my friend Gayathri Ramprasad is doing here in Portland, Oregon.
The childhood bipolar questions are so important and I want to give this a lot of thought before I answer.
UPDATE: I have not forgotten this question- I [ Read More ]
I want to thank everyone so much for sharing, jumping into great conversations and sending me such great support. Your blog comments really make my day. When I’m down, it’s great to know I can help someone else feel better.
Even if you’re shy to write about your experiences, this is a great place to share- you don’t have to use your full name and others here are very supportive!
I read ALL of my comments from people and will try to answer as many questions on the blog as I can. So keep on writing !
I believe that how I deal with problems when I’m well determines how well I will deal with problems when I’m sick. I’ve had a stable mood for four days in a row now. I love it! I’m also thankful as work has been very stressful. There was a problem on amazon.com for my book Take Charge of Bipolar Disorder and I’ve had to wait a few days to get it resolved. This took patience and a lot of my coping skills. My books are my career- so it’s like having a bad day on the job when amazon.com has trouble!
I work up early in order to work early and there were the negative and worried thoughts. I stayed in bed a while and listened to them- and then I said to myself- use the tips in Get it Done When You’re Depressed. Get out of BED and get [ Read More ]
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Mom Brain Podcast
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