Straight Talk on Managing Bipolar Disorder

Three ways to get the best from office visits:

1. Ask for the first appointment of the morning whenever possible. This guarantees that you won’t spend a half hour in the waiting room!

2. Take someone with you to ask questions if you feel too overwhelmed to ask them on your own. Whether you’re alone or with someone, it’s always a good idea to write down your specific questions before you see your HCP. I even tell people to hand the list to their HCP as it saves time.

3. Have a goal before you go. Is it to get new meds? Find a support group? Ask a specific question about bipolar disorder? Often we get to appointments and forget what we need from the HCP. I have often come out of the office and said- darn! I forgot to ask ….… and that was one of the main reasons I wanted to see him!

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Questions to ask yourself when you’re not doing well…

How do I get past this?

How do I get through this?

How do I stop this mood swing?

How do I learn to live with this?

Who can help me with this?

How do I make my future different from this?

What can I do right this minute to feel better?

When you’re in the middle of being ill- i.e in a mood swing that is causing you pain- or causing pain to others! it’s always a good idea to methodically ask yourself questions in order to focus your brain. I ask myself the above questions when I’m depressed and I force myself to answer them positively. If I’ve had a relationship problem that is eating away at me and affecting my sleep, I can ask myself- OK Julie, how do you get past this? It’s three in the morning. What do you need to [ Read More ]

I just did a post called My Meds are Working- there are some fantastic comments under the post. I have learned a lot from readers.

Here are the facts on generic Lamictal (Lamotrigine). There can be problems with the generic formula. This does not mean it won’t work for you- it does for many people. It does mean that you will need to monitor your moods once you switch. It’s a gradual change if the meds are not working- it seems to be around five weeks.

I really want to stress that generics are good things in many ways- costs, availability, etc. But as people with bipolar disorder, we have to take charge of our own health care. If you use my Health Cards treatment system, it’s a good idea to read your normal card while you take the generics.

Doctors can prescribe ‘brand’ Lamictal if the generics don’t work for you. I can’t believe [ Read More ]