What is Digg?161 Comments
- bushout, on 09/19/2008, -2/+79I got paranoid at college, I concocted this strange fantasy world where a beaurocratic organization was taking tens of thousands of dollars I hadn't actually earnt yet and in return was forcing me to become sleep deprived but all the while feeding me facts 8 hours a day and seeing if I could remember them months later.
- SeaMowse, on 09/19/2008, -10/+46This is an awful disorder to deal with. I worked with somebody who was bipolar. It was exasperating, given the fact that she didn't always take her meds. My boss would give her the 'kid glove' treatment. Well, I sure didn't. I don't feel sorry for somebody with a disorder who doesn't take their meds.
Anyhow, my husband is bipolar, although not officially diagnosed - he refuses to see a doctor but exhibits at least 3 of the classic symptoms. There are other symptoms that express themselves, but not as regularly. Anyhow, he hates taking any sort of prescription meds. Upon my prodding, he began taking Omega-3, which I heard from a bipolar support forum on LJ worked quite well. Anyways, it works like a dream. Whodathunkit - fish oil, could help control such a debilitating disorder. I think I feel the effects of the symptoms of his disorder more than he does. But still... it's an awful disorder to deal with, but if you do decide to deal with it, life will flow pretty smoothly. - time4wrk, on 09/19/2008, -2/+32I have Bi-polar disorder and I am trying to fight it without pills but it's definately hard to do so.
- abarysh2, on 09/19/2008, -0/+26It is incredible how college stress is a trigger for so many people in these situations. A girl who lived in my dorm lost her mind in the first few weeks of school. She was walking around our (top) floor saying she couldn't go downstairs because that's where the devil is, and she thought one of my friends was Jesus. A group of Christians on our floor then got together with her in a room and were trying to "save" her. She needed help, not some religious intervention. Thankfully, her mom came and got here out of there and to the hospital.
- daeken, on 09/19/2008, -1/+27I think you need to learn a lot more about bipolar meds before passing judgement. I've been on half a dozen different drugs in a dozen different combinations and every one has left me either useless (no creative thought processes, no emotion) or sick as a dog. Yes, the drugs occasionally work just like they're supposed to, but they wreak havoc on every other part of your life.
- ZurMacht, on 09/19/2008, -3/+27Unless you have a strong background in the field of Psychology I would highly recommend against diagnosing your husband... Even if you do, diagnosing people you have strong attachments to can be risky.
- sockpuppets, on 09/19/2008, -0/+22You'd make a good scientologist if the hippie thing doesn't work out for you.
- DoctorChrissy, on 09/19/2008, -1/+20The side effects of those drugs can be very, very bad, and are sometimes worse than the disease itself. For some people. Also, the meds don't always work. And bipolar disorder is incredibly over-prescribed. Often it is agitated depression, and people see the mood swings and automatically think bipolar. Then again, it could be an extreme food sensitivity- wheat, dairy, etc.- and most doctors don't even look at that.
- bronxelf, on 09/20/2008, -0/+17I wish there were a way I could dig you up more than once for this. I'm so tired of people who think that the drugs work for even *most* of the people they're used on. It's a pharmaceutical rodeo that often leaves you sicker than when you went on.
Further, there's more than one type of bipolar disorder- though type 1 gets all the press and attention, type 2 is just as damaging and the drugs that work for one type won't work well for the other. - Iwantawii, on 09/20/2008, -0/+17A lot of commenters are throwing the B.S. flag with respect to the people claiming to be or knowing someone who is bipolar without ever being "officially" diagnosed. I'd like to throw some light on how it is different from other mental illnesses.
I have bipolar disorder. I knew this for many years before I went in to a doc to get diagnosed, and sure enough I was bipolar. It's easy to lump a unfulfilled feeling life with depression, and compulsive worrying and thinking with anxiety, and we all know in many cases the drugs prescribed are a cover up for a state of consciousness dysfunction that the sufferer hasn't quite fully realized yet. Not always, but many.
However bipolar disorder is quite different. See we've all been depressed, anxious, and A.D.D. at one time or another, but Mania is an experience that relatively few people will ever see yet is an unmistakable symptom of bipolar disorder. It's more than just a jolly mood swing, even excessively so, it disrupts the balance of the brain in such a way that normal functioning is between difficult and impossible.
For me the onset of mania usually starts with a "feeling." Yes I know that sounds weird but I just know when it's going to happen about 2-3 minutes before time starts moving really, really slowly. So slow that the space between the syllables of people speaking to me feels like a couple of seconds in perception-time. Then the tremors start, usually my lower legs. I cannot control it. It's not a quiver like when you're cold or sugar-high but a pulsing, pounding, rhythmic contraction of the muscles. Then I experience what I call "The Wall" to myself. "The Wall" completely cuts off a portion of my brain from the ability to use it. I cannot do simple things like write, tie my shoes, or speak. I can put a pen to paper but the process stops there. I know that I KNOW how to write my name, but that part of my brain is gone. There's just nothing there. I can still spell and think crystally clear through all of this, but there is just no line of connection between the thought and my hand. It's hard to explain. My words slur so much that people think I'm "on" something, usually drunk. I stumble around and my sense of up and down wanders.
What I usually do is fake that I'm sick to my stomach, then go be alone somewhere. I can't sleep usually. I don't feel particularly excited or happy, but I feel a sense of power that I only wish I had in day to day life. I feel like a God, that the universe is turning on my every action, that I am the lone warrior in a world turning to give me the experience that I call this life. I am in the middle of a very long spiritual journey, I just had to stop by Earth and have a physical life quick and then I'll be back on track. Every thought is a devine message from a place I don't remember, and I can do no wrong as I'm guided by the very impulse the put the universe into being. I have made some life decisions while in this state of mind, some of them good some bad. This experience is very real to me at the time. And still at that time, I cannot comprehend how I don't see this when I'm not manic, it blows my manic mind! After a while I kind of snap out of it, and the mania turns into terror. Terror about... everything yet nothing. As the saying goes, there is "nothing to fear but fear itself." It's a fight like hell but I know it will pass, I know it's not real. I know I'm safe in my bed, but it's a fight like hell for a while.
Then I come out of it like I'm coming out of a dream. I "wake up" or snap out of it. Hardly anyone knows I have this condition. See bipolar is very "episodic" for me. I have a healthy sense of being and don't get too anxious or depressed in day to day living. My wonderful friends all around me suffer 1000x more than I ever will with their anxious tensions. I work as a mechanical engineer and don't have any cognitive impairment 99.9% of the time. I have worked through the terror a number of times, but not the mania. The mania is too physical and I start to panic when I realize that I can't speak, write, or drive. Only a couple times a year I have one of these episodes. I have been prescribed every drug they have a name for, but none of them were worth the side-effects. Acceptance is the only choice I have. Because what else is there really? And this acceptance means that although I have bipolar disorder, I truly do not suffer. The disorder cannot take me over because somewhere in the background I know that it's not real and that instead of fighting it, I invite it. Once in a while I even get a good laugh out of the episodes.
Mental illness has a reputation of being held by "cheaters," or people that can't handle the stresses that everyone has to. Or people not ballsy enough to fix their life, or people that just don't care enough about anything, or even themselves, to come out of it. I think that is very unfair, since the majority of these people don't want anything from you, what they want is usually somewhere between wanting to be understood and wanting to be alone.
I just wanted to throw this story out for the diggers who probably wouldn't otherwise read up on bipolar disorder but are curious enough to read the comments. Hell, I didn't even RTFA! Namaste. - DangerCollie, on 09/19/2008, -0/+17It is hard. And, sometimes, the meds are almost as bad as the disease. If you get the right meds, it does get better. Unless you're BP II, one of the milder cases, I don't see how you can control your symptoms without medication. If you can, you're a special case.
It's a difficult disease and most people don't understand how to act around friends who may have it. - inactive, on 09/19/2008, -2/+19"I even thought I had ESP—when a song would come on the radio, I thought, "Hey, I predicted that song." I sensed something was wrong, but I didn't know what it was."
I seriously thought I was the only person in the universe who could do this.
Bipolar Disorder has once again made me feel insignificant. - RickyBarnes1960, on 09/20/2008, -2/+16It might interest the less than subtle critics here that a deficiency in empathy, compassion, and tolerance is a dysfunction far worse than bipolar disorder. Sadly, the only treatment to your attitude to is to be similarly afflicted with that which you mock.
- RuffRidr, on 09/19/2008, -0/+12No. I do, however, think that you may be obsessive-compulsive.
- crestfall, on 09/20/2008, -1/+12that's what i told my dad when he got brain cancer... the sissy died.
- aresef, on 09/19/2008, -3/+14I believe they call that college for short.
- flagelin, on 09/20/2008, -0/+11Im bipolar (I). I get both manic and depressed and to extremes on both. I take Lithium and Seroquel as mood stabilizers. With out them I am a train wreck. Everything from staying in bed for weeks and weeks to trying to sue my university for one reason or another. Therapy helps a lot too.
When i first got diagnosed, I couldnt believe it. I had no idea that what I thought reality was, well wasnt. This is a really hard disorder, particularly on the ego. Imagine if some one told you your idea of what was going on and how to react to it was all skewed and there was no way to know for sure if you werent acting out because of mania or depression (or both). - PamalaLauren, on 09/19/2008, -3/+13My husband just started taking Omega-3 as well as some other vitamins to go with his Bi-Polar medication. I too do not treat him with kid gloves. He has no excuse for his behavior. If he takes his meds he's controlled. He knows how to recognize a manic phase and to contact the doctor if he's in need. He has no excuse. When it was first diagnosed, yeah he got away with some pretty ***** things. But it's a year and a half later now, and there is no reason for a manic phase to control him if he does what he's supposed to. Sadly because he is Bi-Polar that means I have to monitor his meds and make sure he's taking them. It's not what I want to do, but I have to protect myself and my daughter, as well as help him.
- inactive, on 09/19/2008, -0/+9Lithium creeps me out.
- anycolour, on 09/20/2008, -0/+8While not the best article on Bipolar disorder, it's still informative and very true. I have Bipolar (II) and it's no joke. And though medicine does do wonders, it certainly causes problems of its own, especially lethargy and drowsiness for me. Then again, I don't think lethargy is such a big problem when compared to if I don't take meds- paranoia, hallucinations, insomnia, and violent mood swings, all of which is more horrifying when you experience it than it is to describe.
- inactive, on 09/20/2008, -1/+9I'm kind of manic depressive and it totally blows. When I have my good days, people always tell me I'm obnoxious and I need to shut up and on my bad days I don't even want to get out of bed or anything. There really isn't a pleasant median I can get into.
- kismetropolis, on 09/20/2008, -1/+9*Sigh*
Bipolar disorder is not whininess, nor attention seeking.
It's a genuine medical condition wherein the chemicals in the brain are not balanced properly.
Really disappointing to see such reactions. - thegrantman, on 09/19/2008, -0/+8You are an idiot.The tinfoil hat is firmly on your head.
- DownIsTheNewUp, on 09/20/2008, -2/+10There is no such thing as bipolar disorder. Psychiatry is a Nazi science. These alleged "symptoms" are just a sign that the soul needs to be cleansed of thetans, and the only way to do this is with exercise, vitamins, and Dianetics.
Your Lord and Savior,
Tom Cruise - byrdgang, on 09/20/2008, -0/+8I am going to be honest here: when I worked in a pharmacy, everyone made fun of mentally ill people, even the pharmacists who should have known better. I did too. I only gained appreciation for the difficult life mentally ill people go through after I left the pharmacy. Even as educated experts (I am not the expert, but the pharmacists are), we ridiculed people who sought treatment. If mental illness is a stigma among medical professionals, what do you think it's like in normal world? No wonder people don't want to seek treatment.
- darkfire79, on 09/20/2008, -1/+8Coming off one's meds is a common occurrence with people who are bipolar or schizophrenic. Taking their meds or not, shouldn't factor into "feeling sorry for them.".. which, actually is sort of offensive. You might want to pause and ask, "why do they come off their meds?" instead. Have you ever had to take the medication? Experience some of the potential side effects? You might very well find yourself coming off them too. It all depends on the person. Also, with some people they can be off of meds and not have any episodes for years.. or they've learned their "triggers". There's probably more then just that going on if your boss is giving them the "kid glove", treatment. A lot of people with this disorder have to learn to tolerate everyone else too.. so it's a two way street. As long the person isn't going around using their problem as an excuse, crutch, or blatently going out and doing stuff they know will set it off. (which is different then being manic, and going out and doing stuff..since you're not yourself) - then lay off them. Also.. I agree with the one person that made the comment about not trying to diagnose people or your husband unless you have a background in Psychology or happen to know how to use the DSM-IV manual. Though there are some easy signs.. like, for me, it was being up for a week at a time. ( Which is where the psychologist and the DSM-IV comes into play, since the criteria has to rule out drug use. ).. rambling.. anyway.. People who have stuff like this don't want your pity. We want understanding, which personally, I think is almost impossible unless you've had it or some other mental illness. Also, another note, some people stuff taking their medication, because it makes them lose some of the "beneficial" things that sometimes come from being bipolar... When you're in your up phase, (of course, depending on the person).. you can out produce the average person, etc. You might be more creative. You're might be more social, whereas normally you're quiet and find it hard to be social. There's different levels. Bipolar-I people should never come off their meds. I'm II and do just fine without them, but then I have the type of bipolar where I tend to be more depressed then up. Anywho, thanks for reading my rambles :)
- DangerCollie, on 09/19/2008, -3/+10I have a theory...can't prove it, it's based on observations dealing with a family member who has it. But I believe with enough pressure, almost anyone can start to exhibit bipolar symptoms. Or symptoms that closely mimic bipolar.
- NippleNutz, on 09/19/2008, -0/+7I have no problem with my Bi-Polar when i take no meds. My wife on the other hand cant stand me. So meds for me w00t. I get no side effects from lithium so i guess I'm lucky.
- bratterscain, on 09/20/2008, -0/+7It appears so.
- mattlohkamp, on 09/20/2008, -0/+7@allenfresno - that's true up to a point - a lot of it is inside your own head. But you can't fight it all the time without meds, you're fighting your own brain chemicals, and let's face it, you are your brain chemicals. Imagine how it feels to be so drunk you're about to either pass out or throw up - if you try really hard and are really careful, you can keep from going to sleep or being sick, right? Now, imagine doing that for the rest of your life. It's almost not worth it - which is why I don't fault people for taking drugs to make things easier.
- gordigor, on 09/19/2008, -0/+7You also need to remember that there are different degrees of bipolar. For me, I was finally diagnosis with bipolar 2. Its characterized by medium highs and lows. I didn't even know it until I was 38, and people finally convinced me to go.
There are some very effective meds. Lithium fixed the issue but left me shaking. Currently taking lamictal and wellburtin, works wonders for me.
The only thing that sucks is now I have to be responsible for my actions. Before everyone else was screwed. - sodade, on 09/20/2008, -0/+7That's because it is a sane reaction to an insane world.
- sockpuppets, on 09/19/2008, -1/+8Were you on or off your meds when you made your digg screen name up?
- inactive, on 09/20/2008, -0/+6Mental diseases suck ass. I was severely depressed from when I was 14 until 27. It somehow got better. I'm not in perfect shape but at least I'm not a reckless ***** anymore. As you can tell by most of my comments, I still have the maturity of a 14 year old.
The best is when people label you some kind of attention whore or an emo. If they tasted that ***** for one day they would change their tune pretty quickly. - Evolutuon, on 09/19/2008, -0/+6While I suppose I should be taking some sort of medication like I used to, I've found that meditating, eating healthy and a bit of exercise has helped me cope with bi-polarity. Medication just didn't make me feel right.
Interesting fact: Carrie Fisher has bi-polarity. - flagelin, on 09/20/2008, -2/+8nothing makes you look crazier than suggesting that food sensitivities and the conspiracies around them are to blame for mental heath and prescription side effects
- graemee, on 09/20/2008, -0/+6At least college appears to be working for you. a lot of people just remember waking up in strange places & often with strange people. Those poor amnesiacs.
- forbiddensiren, on 09/20/2008, -0/+5From experience with family members who have psychiatric illnesses, over-medicating can be worse then the actual illness. I have a relative who was quite depressed and went to a psychiatrist, within a year of seeing the doctor he was on 4 medications and constantly looked quite drug-***** and intellectually disabled (even though he's quite an intelligent person), had gained about 60 pounds and just looked really awful. He changed doctors and his new psychiatrist took him off all his meds (gradually of course) while he was receiving cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT). He's doing a lot better now days.
I'm not against medication but this whole "take a pill and everything will be great" kind of attitude we have in society is just extremely unrealistic. It takes a lot of work to get better and no amount of medication will change that. Sometimes the cure is worse then the disease. - BillOReilly08, on 09/19/2008, -1/+6I can't believe there are people who actually think like you do. Douche.
- anycolour, on 09/20/2008, -0/+5And you are an *****.
- jikmo, on 09/20/2008, -1/+6BP II does NOT mean mild. BP II just means that the episodes last only a short time. BP II can be just as or more debilitating depending on its degree.
With severe BP II, you can expect to have a manic or depressive disorder once every few days even with the medication. This means that within the span of a few minutes, you can go from feeling completely fine to being severely depressed and suicidal. Medication makes the episodes less frequent are more mild, but even with medication, they can be bad enough that people will think that you're off it.
With BP I, you have to be afraid that you'll have an episode that will last a few weeks or months, but if with medication, you can be fairly confident that they will be few and far between. It's terrifying though to know that at any moment, you can spend that much of time suffering with seemingly no end in sight, and even more terrifying to be in it.
But imagine having an episode of that intensity that lasted a few hours to a day or so, that came with just as little reason, and happened once every few days. You don't have to worry about losing large chunks of time to moments when your life is in complete disarray, but your never "in order" for more than a week or so.
With BP I, you suffer immensely for long periods of time. It's like being in prison just to suffer with it (and if you're hospitalized, then it's quite a bit like prison). With BP II, you suffer greatly and constantly for short periods of time, kind of like if once a week you were tortured for a few hours.
And this is even with medication. Without it is far worse. - anycolour, on 09/20/2008, -0/+5Seroquel is a bitch, ain't it? Dugg for fellow bipolar wisdom :D
- inactive, on 09/20/2008, -0/+5Thank you.
- BoneheadFarker, on 09/20/2008, -0/+5The whole ESP comment has me thinking. I know I've seen some of the classic behaviours in myself, and have an aunt who has been diagnosed and put on meds. It's an eerie thing to think you're seeing connections between things that no one else sees. That fed into a desire to learn more about alternative spiritual beliefs, strange ideas on coincidences not really being coincidences (Deepak Chopra, Celestine Prophesies, that sort of thing), and a whole range of other things. I also had a friend interested in the same things, to the point that she eventually wanted to quit her job to focus on spiritual healing.
The thing is that even though I really wanted to believe, I eventually found myself questioning the validity of all of it. She, however, didn't. She bought into it completely. What really made me start questioning things was when she'd lead me through a discovery exercise, where she'd have me hold my arm out and then ask questions, pushing on my arm after each question to find the answer. The idea was that if my arm was strong, that was a yes. And if my arm was weak and easily bent, that was a no. The problem was when she wouldn't get the answer the she was looking for. She'd get visibly upset and just end the session. I found this odd, to be honest, since she was directing the questioning and the answers were just suppose to be take at face value.
There there came the orgone energy stuff, chemtrails, crystal energy collectors...it just got too much for me to take seriously anymore. Especially since these connections I once saw didn't seem to really be connections anymore. I've since stopped talking to her because of a ***** argument that could have been resolved long ago if she had just stopped the ***** and actually talked to me instead of running stories about me to everyone. At this point, I don't want anything to do with her because she's just too far out there for me.
My point to all of this is that these manic phases seem to play a large role in people religious beliefs. I've see it in myself and others. It a strange feeling when you can suddenly see all of these connections between things that no one else sees, these seemingly random patterns that make sense only to you. And the ego boost you get from telling others that really want to believe in that sort of thing, even though they're just taking it and wrapping their own interpretations around it. It makes me glad that people like James Randi around... - Peko, on 09/20/2008, -0/+5BP often seems to start exhibiting around college age. I've known BPs who exhibited earlier, some later. Teens to 20s is most typical, iirc.
- Peko, on 09/20/2008, -1/+5I am not a medical health professional, take this as you will.
I have known some BPs who have successfully found non-phara management solutions. I can't speak accurately to the details of their personal situations but the gist is they found and leveraged the non-phara solutions possibly including diet, therapy, routine, mindfullness, exercise, etc. They also have seemed like extraordinarily autoaware people, far moreso than an average person.
I have also most certainly known BPs who _thought_ they could go off meds and subsequently ***** up badly. It's not uncommon with BP. I've also seen it as a persistent pattern, where they keep "turning the corner", ***** unravels, then they ***** up huge.
My point is I have known people who have gone without meds and managed quite well. But also heed my experience with the second case. - bratterscain, on 09/20/2008, -1/+5SeaMowse, because meds don't fix everything. Maybe you can "cure" her bipolar with meds but then there's other things that she may do that the general concensus may not agree with. Meds can't find a cure for being different, at least not yet.
You almost call her a child. Perhaps something else about the meds weren't agreeing with her. I guarantee that if you try to understand someone's behavior, usually you'd wind up doing the same thing in their boots. The world would be a pretty ***** boring place if we were all "normal", meaning nobody is different. - oveedrx, on 09/20/2008, -0/+4you had me scared for a sec until I re-read this... i was like.. wait that means your bi-polar?
- jmantra, on 09/20/2008, -0/+4actually an agitated depression is a symptom of bipolar disorder:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agitated_depression - daeken, on 09/19/2008, -0/+4I've never been sicker than while on lithium. Apparently my body is fairly sensitive to it and the relatively low dose I was on was enough for my body to freak out. Constant body temperature variations, stomach issues, etc. One of the worst experiences in my life.
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