All About Bipolar

Bipolar Disorder Awareness Month – New Treatments: Saphris or Sycrest

February 13th, 2012

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New drugs are being introduced all the time, but this one is supposed to be different than other drugs on the market. People who frequent sites like Guide to Healthcare Schools may have already heard of these. Here’s what is being said:

“Sycrest is marketed as Sycrest in Europe, and as Saphris® in other markets worldwide. Sycrest is marketed in Europe by Lundbeck.

Sycrest is a sublingual tablet indicated for the treatment of moderate to severe manic episodes of bipolar I disorder in adults. It is an antipsychotic that differs structurally from currently available medications to treat bipolar disorder and has a functional activity profile that is different. The clinical significance of this is unknown.

Sycrest has been granted Marketing Authorisation in Europe for the treatment of moderate to severe manic episodes associated with bipolar I disorder in adults.”

Source: http://www.sys-con.com/node/2129220

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Bipolar Disorder Awareness Month – Art, Love, and Madness

February 10th, 2012

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Check out the online book, “Art, Love, and Madness: Giving Birth to Oneself”. It is written by a professional artist who has bipolar disorder and post-traumatic stress disorder.

“I put my personal experience into the book Art, Love, and Madness: Giving Birth to Oneself . The book tells the story of regaining one’s real Self impaired by the illness and pathological family relationship. The story is conveyed by love letters, essays, and artwork (the composition of the book is clear in Content, please see below). The idea is to pull the reader into the bipolar world and walk him/ her, stage by stage, from total chaos and despair towards self-understanding and regaining control.”

The book is currently being publishing online using WordPress – one chapter per week. This is a non-commercial project.

Visit http://enemandanimus.wordpress.com/

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Bipolar Disorder Awareness Month – Laura Hart’s Story

February 9th, 2012

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Hello!

I’m Laura Hart and I run my own blog spot site, “The bi-polar American” and have many experiences to share with other bi-polars. However, my take on these matters may be a little different and controversial in a certain sense that I’m quite open about “all of it.”

There is a rich texture to bi-polar, it is colorful, creative, free, and then it can be horrifying and deadly, depending on how we handle it. And also depending on how others handle us. I may not be a poster child for anything, but I am an example of the bi-polar spirit, exhausting itself trying to be free-freely expressive-while living in a world that can’t handle our kind.

Living in a world that wants to medicate rather than appreciate the remarkable things bi-polar has brought to this world, this is a big impediment to becoming a functional, happy, bi-polar. Leave us alone or support our daily struggle which it really doesn’t have to be, but we are made to struggle. Read more »

Bipolar Disorder Awareness Month – Hopping Roller Coasters

February 8th, 2012

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Rachel Pappas shares her touching story in her book, “Hopping Roller Coasters”. While I haven’t had time to read it just yet, I’m hoping to soon. Here is a little bit about her book:

Hopping Roller Coasters is about my daughter and me, both diagnosed
with bipolar disorder. I have not had an easy time, but Marina’s had a
rougher ride. Thirteen hospitalizations, five schools in five years,
and in between, two separate, year-long stays in a residential
treatment center.

My memoir shows and tells how I loved and abused my daughter. It’s
about our relationship; how my words and actions, compounded by her
own mental illness, recognized at age 11, affected her. And how all
these things affected us.

The story begins with my cancer diagnosis, then goes back in time,
telling the story in chronological order to show how we got to where
we are today. It’s much like a journal; in fact the chapters are
titled Hello Marina (her birth); One Year Old; Two Years Old, etc.
And I write it as honestly as if it were a journal that no one will
ever see. Read more »

Bipolar Disorder Awareness Month – Erin’s Story

February 7th, 2012

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Here is my basic story….I am 28 years old and was diagnosed with bipolar disorder when I was 20. Technically, I was battling with it since I was 17. I’ve learned so much about this disorder from experiencing it for more than a decade. At first, I was diagnosed with depression at 17 and for 3 years was treated with different antidepressants. Treating me with antidepressants alone caused rapid cycling and very bad decisions. I tried going away to college and the stress and distance from my family caused me to become more depressed. I moved home and tried to go to community college and work. It was at this time I was dating a man 10 years older than me who used my credit and I ended up having to file for bankruptcy at 20. I also had other challenges to deal with based on his influence, which led to legal issues. I was lucky to be under 21 and have them expunged from my record. Read more »

Bipolar Disorder Awareness Month – Louisa’s Story

February 6th, 2012

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A year ago my 15 year old daughter suddenly got really depressed, she had always suffered from bouts of depression since starting her periods at the age of 9 but this depression was different, she had been back at school about 2 days after the Xmas holidays when she said she felt really down and didn’t want to go in, I had no idea that this was the start of a year of hell for her.From this day on she cried constantly and didn’t want to leave her bed,she wouldn’t leave her room and refused to see anyone but me, she would stare into space and repeatedly say she didn’t want to be here anymore.I managed to take her to the doctors, the school was on my back as she hadn’t been in for awhile and they needed a note confirming she was ill , i asked the doctor if she could refer her to the children’s mental health service, only to be told by her that they were so busy they would only take on severely ill children, I came away from the doctors feeling deflated and helpless and felt we wasn’t taken seriously.

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Bipolar Disorder Awareness Month – Rachel Pappa’s Story

February 3rd, 2012

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About the “B” word and me

By Rachel Pappas

How has bipolar affected me? Hmm, that’s a tough one, because I never know what to “blame” on being a clinically-certified screaming meamie. And I don’t know what to blame on myself—diagnosis or not. That’s actually one of the ways my human condition has most affected me—not really understanding how much is the illness and how much is “me” that I just need to find a way to fix. And the pain I’ve caused the people I love most—that’s what takes me for a real tailspin.

As I’m sure is the case with many of you, I don’t fit the classic mold: I do not literally bounce off walls (though through chemo, the steroids had me up 72 hours straight after every hit; in and out of drawers and the fridge; pounding away on my keyboard …). I don’t go out on the loose, ratcheting up the Visa account with a few new house deeds, a fleet of jets, and the airport to house them. Read more »

Bipolar Disorder Awareness Month – Bill Birdsall’s Story

February 2nd, 2012

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I’d like to say a very special thank you to Bill Birdsall for submitting his story. The length prevents it from being posted in its entirety, so he has been kind enough to submit it as a PDF file. His story is well-worth the time it takes to download and read through it. Here is the first paragraph:

The consequences of untreated manic depressive disorder are mercilessly insidious. On June 26, 2008, on a beautiful, sunny, early summer day I suffered from what my Italian relatives called “una piccolo morte”…a little death. My three and a half year marriage to a woman I was in love with, was by now disintegrating. Both of us, each with two young adult children from previous marriages had settled into my house, now ours, after she sold her house. we were on the cusp of a fresh journey with a life partner, making wonderful plans to savor our new union while enjoying the progress of the four young people we had dedicated much of our lives too.

Download the entire story: William Birdsall: True Life Story – Una Piccolo Morte

Visitors:

If you would like to learn more about bipolar disorder in order to better understand this mental illness, please visit http://allaboutbipolar.com/types-of-bipolar/.

If you would like to help with Bipolar Disorder Awareness Month, please visit http://allaboutbipolar.com/category/bipolar-awareness-month/. Please consider hosting one of our banners during the month of February. To submit your story to be shared during the month of February, please email it to support@allaboutbipolar.com. Thanks so much for your support! Education is key to raising awareness and dispelling myths concerning bipolar disorder.

Bipolar Disorder Awareness Month – Cqui’s Story

February 1st, 2012

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Life has to become pretty unbearable before one starts seeking out answers. Thanks to the World Wide Web they are found easier and faster than ever before.

I was diagnosed 4 years ago. However I fought against it and tried another job, insisting I could beat it with medication! I was wrong. I have been out of work for over 3 years and no one will keep me on staff. So I started my Social Security application. I am up to the hearing phase which is still 5 months off. They turned me down saying they think I need a simple job with little stress. So I resubmitted it and they said they were correct the first time.

Now with the hearing coming up I still wonder why they think my disability is stupidity. I’ve even had other bipolar people tell me they are sure a combination will be found that “works” for me because they have. Mine fluctuates. I am so many things to so many people! I am a wife, mother, designated payee for my autistic son who does not understand the concept of money management, employment seeker, house keeper and animal care giver when my husband is out of state 5 days a week. So I must have no stress because I’m jobless! Read more »

Fourth Annual Bipolar Disorder Awareness Month February 2012

January 5th, 2012

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February 2012 marks our fourth annual Bipolar Disorder Awareness Month. As always, I will be accepting guest posts from anyone who has been affected by bipolar disorder. I’m looking for personal experiences, insight on the disorder, new medical findings – anything related to bipolar disorder. This series may also be of interest to those becoming a medical assistant.

As many of you know, our host disappeared overnight without warning a few months ago and I had to rebuild the site. Some of it was lost, and cann0t be recovered. I worked tirelessly to bring as much as possible back online as a testament to my dedication to helping others cope and to help educate the public. Your support during Bipolar Disorder Awareness Month means a great deal, and I am hoping to see a lot of submissions. You can send them to me by using the contact form by clicking Contact in the right sidebar, or you can email support@allaboutbipolar.com. I am accepting graphics, cartoons, stories, news, anything related to bipolar disorder.

I would like to thank Lisa Marie for her graphic work, which will become the official button for the 2012 Bipolar Disorder Awareness Month. Over the next few days, I will resize the button so it can be used on blogs and other websites. Be sure to check back. Posting the button on your website is a great way to show your support and help raise awareness.

If you would like to volunteer to help in some way, please email me at support@allaboutbipolar or use the contact form on the right sidebar. I am always in need of volunteers. Together we can reach a lot of people. Educating the public about bipolar disorder dispels the myths about this disorder. We need the world to understand this disorder. There are still lots of people that don’t understand the disorder, and this is why people are still throwing around the term “bipolar” as an insult. This is why people are embarrassed by the disorder. It needs to change, and you can start by helping spread the word.

Here is Lisa Marie’s graphic: