After being diagnosed with bipolar disorder in 2011, my psychiatrist and I spent the next few years figuring out the right doses for my medication. At first, sleep was not a problem. My medicine actually made me too tired; I took both around 6:00 pm and would be in bed by 7:00. Since couldn’t be …
The good, the bad, and the ugly (See also: hypomania)
Because of my medicine (which is awesome in every way) and how vigilant I am with sleep, I spend a lot of time in hypomania or just shy of that extreme. What is hypomania? Terri Cheney describes hypomania as three-quarters manic. Speaking from experience, I have boundless energy and ideas are fast when I’m hypomanic. …
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A pointless post
Yesterday, I woke up at 1:00 AM after six hours of sleep (yes, I went to bed at 7:00—thanks Geodon). Waking up that early can go one of two ways. I can be energetic and witty and happy all day (very rare). I am energetic and witty, but easily annoyed and incredibly irritable, pretty much …
My authentic self
Earlier this week, I posted a piece called Taking off the mask. It's about using humor to avoid vulnerability and to keep people at a safe distance emotionally. After some reflection, I’m afraid I inadvertently downgraded the benefits of humor. The cliché saying that laughter is the best medicine is not far from the truth. …
Please don’t assign my moods
Even though I’m prone to melancholy, I love to laugh, and I especially love making other people laugh. Oftentimes, the best jokes stem from self-deprecation, and I’ll be the first person to make fun of myself. I particularly enjoy making crazy and bipolar jokes. I typically don’t mind other people making jokes, as long as …
Medicine’s unjust stigma
Bipolar and other mental illnesses have a stigma surrounding them, but they are more understood now than they were thirty years ago. One place, though, seems to be stuck in the dark ages. The church. Thankfully, I haven’t experienced too much criticism from my church family, but not everyone there knows about my illness. I’ve …
Hypomania is where it is at!
For a person with bipolar disorder, hypomania is the place to be! Hypomania is a wonderful area on the mood spectrum. As one of my favorite authors says, it’s three-quarters manic. With hypomania, a person has all the good things about mania, sans the dangerous disregard for consequences. For me, I am my best self …
Between Two Poles 