Most people who don't have any experience of Bipolar interpret the "mood swings" as something rapid. This is probably what leads to the flippant misuse of the term Bipolar to describe people who are emotionally volatile, easily upset, change their minds at the drop of a hat. But this is far from what a Bipolar mood, or rather episode is. When I speak to people about my condition, they're always surprised at how long episodes actually last. But how to we measure them, and mark the start and even coming out of the episode? Even those of us who live with Bipolar aren't even always aware of it's ..read more

This is a big topic to cover, and it's one that is very much based on my life experience - so please don't think I'm trying to speak for all people with serious Mental Illness in this post. Take it as a memoir-style post where I share my thoughts, feelings and experiences over several years of trying to navigate different difficult stigmatising situations and how it felt to go through them. I'm especially not proud of some of the thoughts I've had, either, but I'm being honest here. The thoughts, feelings and views I share here may resonate with some of you, but not others - and that's okay ..read more

Starting at square one - getting the meds in As I said in the intro, it's not always straight-forward when you have your first discussion with your psychiatrist about taking medications. Whether you're geared up and ready to give anything a try, or you're a little more wary of starting the trial-and-error journey of the drug life, it's important to know that things won't be simple. I personally feel that it's not discussed enough between psychiatrists and their patients, based on my experiences and those of people I've spoken to. It's also not made clear that medications, even when you find t ..read more

There are many important symptoms of Bipolar Disorder that still aren't very widely known, or understood. Although it has been a recognised disorder since the mid 1800's, the understanding is still very poor, which makes it more difficult for those of us who suffer from it to manage the symptoms. Bipolar affects all areas of our lives, but as we're not educated on all of its effects and what to look out for, we can be left feeling isolated, thinking it's something only "wrong" with us. One of these effects is cognitive impairment. It can have a huge impact on our lives, and in turn, our confi ..read more

Ask anyone with a Mental Illness what negatively impacts living their daily lives with their condition, and stigma will be close to the top spot. Of course, managing symptoms, medications, side effects, and the financial impact are also huge issues too, but stigma can be found at the root of many of our negative experiences. We feel the impact of stigma in many areas of life, from employment opportunities, accessing benefits, getting support from medical professionals, as well as our personal relationships. Sometimes, however, we take on this stigma and turn it onto ourselves - often without ..read more

If you ask someone what Bipolar Disorder is, they'll likely jump to "mood swings". Actually this isn't even accurate, as it suggests fast and rapid shifts in moods within the normal range (basically suggesting someone who's just...really moody). But the point is, although Bipolar is largely characterised by these mood shifts between extreme highs and painful periods of depression, it's not the only symptoms. It's becoming more and more evident that those with Bipolar find their cognitive processes are also affected by their disorder - this includes our ability to think clearly, process inform ..read more

Working with a Mental Illness can be difficult at the best of times. Changing jobs...now that brings it's own unique set of challenges. Changing routine, getting to know a whole new set of people, this causes a lot of stress even for those without a mental condition, but it's certainly amplified for us. So how can we minimise the stress and possibility of triggering symptoms when applying or and starting new job roles? It's difficult, but there are things we can do in order to make the shift that little bit easier on us. As I'm in the process of starting a new role myself, I figured it would ..read more

I sat at my desk at work and plugged in my earphones so I could listen to something to help me focus on the task at hand. It was pretty noisy in the office and I'd been having a tough week with some symptoms of depression and psychosis, so I needed a bit of help from my favourite playlists. A few songs in, an ad started to play. "Take a deep breath...deep sigh...feel better? Good." An advert for Calm app followed, which promised to offer a deep sense of well-being with simple breathing exercises. It played what felt like another 100 times, punctuating my playlists, and every time I mentally r ..read more

I’d been suffering from deep depressions and the odd uncontrollable high for as long as I could remember. Even as young as 7 or 8, I had pretty clear memories with overwhelming feelings I could still relate to today. Emotions I used to describe as feeling "too big for me". At 36, during a particularly bad episode, I was finally seen by a GP who was clued-up on Mental Illness and he referred to a psychiatrist, as he suspected I had Bipolar Affective Disorder. This was because after starting me on antidepressants, I’d suddenly been thrown into a whirlwind of intense hypomanic episodes in quick ..read more

It's pretty clear cut when someone with Bipolar experiences either a manic, hypomanic or depressive episode. It pretty much makes sense how the symptoms all fit together. Depressive episodes bring low mood, withdrawal, loss of energy, feelings of guilt and poor concentration. At the other end of the spectrum, the highs bring increased energy, elevated mood, racing thoughts, less sleep, increased extroversion and talkativeness. But what about when the two ends of the mood scale merge? This becomes even more difficult for someone who doesn't suffer from Bipolar to image and understand. How can ..read more