Straight Talk on Managing Bipolar Disorder

Are you manic Julie?

I get so pissed when my mom asks me this question! Of course, I taught her to ask it and I want her to ask it, but it always makes me mad.

I mostly have euphoric hypomania. It is wonderful at the beginning. It’s tricky as it usually comes after a depression- so I desperately want and need to feel better. But I know that what goes up must come down, so I have to be ready for the downswing.

I’ve trained myself by using the Health Cards to go into treatment mode as soon as the hypomania starts. Damn, damn, damn. That is actually mild language for what it feels like to realize that feeling good is actually being manic.

If you have a lot of mild manias, this means that you’re rapid cycling. It means your meds are not working fully or that you or something outside of you is triggering the mania in some way. Like many people, I have a lot more euphoric mania in the summer because of the sunlight.

What a complicated, awful illness this is! Bipolar mania is dangerous. It’s sad that something can feel soooooooooo good and be so dangerous, but it’s something we must accept if we want to get better. Stability is good; mania is bad.

So, when my mom says “Are you manic Julie?” I get pissed, but I always listen and do what the Health Cards say I have to do. 

Julie

Hi,  Julie. I know you have been on Lamictal a long time. What side effects do you have? Regina

Hi Regina,

I call Lamictal my wonder drug. It gave me a much more normal life. It can have some intense side effects though.

Lamictal side effects can be there from the beginning- literally from the first week- in the form of a stiff neck, clenched jaw or some mild breathing problems. I had these for quite a while and then they went away.

There is definitely a rash associated with Lamictal- one, called Stevens Johnson Syndrome is serious the other benign. My coauthor Dr. John Preston said that most of the rashes from Lamictal are very mild and not of concern- but I also know one person who had the rash from head to toe.  No matter what, see your doctor if you see a rash. This does NOT mean you have to stop the drug unless there is a serious rash. People do learn to manage the itchiness. Talk with a doctor who really, really understands Lamictal. All psych drugs have potentially serious side effects, so don’t throw Lamictal out too soon!

I’ve been on Lamictal for three years. My side effects come and go. It’s frustrating, but I need this drug so I deal with them.  I have a stiff neck that makes it hard to get comfortable at night and I’m now experiencing extremely intense itching- without a visible rash.

I’ve talked with my doctor.  It’s pretty bad.

So, it’s always a tradeoff with psychiatric meds like Lamictal. Can you live with the side effects? Are there ways to make things easier such as massage, chiropractic help and ice packs? That’s what I do.  If I get a bad side effect, I stay calm and do what it takes to deal with the side effect.  This determines if I can stay on a med or not.

Julie

Bipolar Disorder Mood Swings are so unpredictable!

Well, I just got out of a rotten down swing. What’s so amazing and just as frustrating about this illness is that we can be extremely ill one day- even suicidal and then boom. It’s gone. It wears me out, but I’m glad to be my normal self again.

When I get really sick- no matter what the mood swing- I use all of my energy to remind myself of one thing:

I think, say and do certain things depending on the type of mood swing I’m experiencing. This means it’s an illness.

Once I learned all of my symptoms- I wrote them on my Health Cards and my life changed forever.

I used the Health Cards all week last week! Depression is so hard. But it can  be treated.

Julie

People often ask me how I function so well even though I have constant mood swings.  My answer is that I use the Health Cards. It’s that simple- well, the work is hard- but the choice to use the Health Cards was simple! Click here to read more.