Hi,
I hope you’re doing well today.
I have to tell you about the funniest thing I saw (heard) the other day.
I was in a restaurant, and there were four older women sitting in a booth near me.
They were sort of arguing.
Now, I’m not an eavesdropper or anything, so this argument was loud enough for me to hear from where I was sitting (and I’m sure, from where everyone else was sitting, too).
Here’s the conversation:
Lady 1: “I can’t believe you just did that.”
Lady 2: “Did what?”
Lady 1: “Put the pink stuff in your coffee.”
Lady 2: “I always use the pink stuff.”
Lady 1: “Well, I always use the yellow stuff.”
Lady 3: “Well, I don’t see why the two of you are even arguing about it.”
Uh oh, I thought, here comes trouble.
And I was right.
Lady 1 and 2 turned on Lady 3.
“Ok, if you’re so smart, which one do you use,” said Lady 2.
Lady 3: I use the blue stuff.
Well, all this time Lady 4 had been real quiet.
Then the other three women turned on Lady 4.
“Okay,” said Lady 2, “You break the tie. Which do you use?”
And here comes the funniest part of all –
Lady 4 said, “I just use plain old sugar. I don’t go for that fake stuff at all.”
And then they all started the whole argument all over again! It was hilarious!
You should have been there.
Ok, so what does this have to do with bipolar disorder? (you know I always bring everything back to bipolar disorder LOL)
Here’s the question for you:
Are YOU using the real stuff?
Or are you using one of the fakes (substitutes) out there?
Here’s a real good example, and a VERY DANGEROUS one:
MEDICATION
Are you taking the right medication?
The bipolar medication prescribed by your doctor?
Or are you taking one of those supposed “natural cures” you hear about on the Internet?
Now, I’m not against herbal or natural supplements, don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying that at all.
But I’m saying to use them with your doctor’s permission, most important of all, and I’m saying to use them WITH your medication, and not INSTEAD of your medication.
Too many people with bipolar disorder believe the ads saying these herbal remedies are a cure for bipolar disorder, when they’re not.
Then you might find out later that they’re actually dangerous for you, anyway (besides the fact that you can go into an episode for going off your REAL medication).
I even talk about this very thing in my
courses/systems below:
SUPPORTING AN ADULT WITH BIPOLAR DISORDER?
Visit:
http://www.bipolarsupporter.com/report11
SUPPORTING A CHILD/TEEN WITH BIPOLAR DISORDER?
Visit:
http://www.bipolarparenting.com
HAVE BIPOLAR DISORDER?
Visit:
http://www.survivebipolar.net
Another example is information on bipolar disorder, which I also talk about in my courses/systems.
About how important it is to be knowledgeable about the disorder.
But you have to have REAL information! NOT misleading or false information.
Can you imagine how dangerous it is to have the wrong information about bipolar disorder?
For example, the truth is that there is NO cure for the disorder at this time.
But some people believe that there is.
They have FALSE information.
So they are chasing after something that is not real. And they are wasting their time, unfortunately.
Instead, they should be going after the REAL thing – REAL information that will help them get better.
Here’s some other things to think about:
Would you rather have a REAL doctor, or a FAKE doctor?
A REAL therapist or a FAKE therapist?
A REAL pharmacist or a FAKE pharmacist?
Or even a REAL friend or a FAKE friend?
See what I’m getting at?
This is more than just an argument over real sugar vs. fake sugar.
This could mean the difference between continuing to struggle with your bipolar disorder or actually becoming stable with your bipolar disorder.
Do you agree or disagree with me?
Do you think it’s important to have the right medication?
Do you think it’s important to have the right information?
Post responses below
Could someone tell me how to contact these folks! I have left a couple of messages and no return call. I see no email address or other way of contacting them.
Thanks!
Hi Dave,
Just as a post script to what you said about taking real medication along with the (fake) herbal mediciation please tell your readers to check with their doctors first before combining. St. Johs’s Wart for instance should not be taking with your meds. even though it is sold over the counter. It interacts with some meds. so your readers should be cautioned about this.
Thanks.
i have had bipolar for about 2 years now, and its nthing but ups and downs, i hate getting advice from people telling me to be more positive becasue its not that easy….. i have been working hard to get better but it only last for a little bit then something bad happens again.
everyday i struggle and no mount of advice i get helps becasue i dont feel i will ever get any beter.
people make it sound so easy just think positive, its only a small glitch you will get there, just takes time.
I dont think people realise i dont have time, i dont want thinks to take time i have tried long enough i have used enough time.
so what comes next for me if i struggle this much at the age of 18 what bright future do i have, hat is the point in any of this, wheres my support i come from 2 broken homes with no support at all each individual in my family is selfish so who do i turn to really, where do i go form here. i need to there is something out there for me but then again if you told me probably wouldn’t beleive you.
I came upon an article about an herb called everlast that the Amish are reputed to use for mental illness situations. One link led to another and I found myself at a website for Young Living essential Oils. Once again links followed one another and a couple claimed that they manage the husband’s bipolar with these YL essential oils and “other products”.
I am a skeptic. The thought of super juices, supplements, oils and other esoteric products sounded a whole lot more appealing than lithium, benzodiazepines and antipsychotics so I decided to dip my toes into the alternative bipolar waters. I started with something benign – an essential oil. It was $72.00 for a small bottle that lasted less than a month. I can’t say it helped my depression but it smelled really nice.
Then the campaign started – emails & websites with alternative cures of many types. I became very cynical when I started to shop around and found huge discrepancies in the cost of these products -NONE OF WHICH ARE COVERED BY MY INSURANCE.
Luckily I maintained my med routine the whole time and I only spent a couple of hundred dollars before I came to the realization that alternative bipolar remedies are very expensive and potentially deadly.
Dear Dave,
I have never responded to any of your messages. I just wanted to say that I value your time put in daily and I learn something continuously from you. Thanks for giving practical info that I can use to support my Dad. I suffer from this disease as well-so it is trying. Keep up the good work- I appreciate it.
Thanks,
Ria Winchester
hey i dont know any thing about the meds Im on:I think thay help a little: iv been on so many new ones that Im sick of the doctors. well lets try this and lets try that alwas the storie, im going to try sleep know ihope to be happy some day. thanks ur friend sharon
To LIZZIE: No, you probably WON’T believe me, but – it DOES get better with time. Like Dave says – delve into as much information about bipolar disorder that you can find, to EDUCATE yourself about it. Treat it as something “alien,” like – it’s a DIFFERENT part of you, and not YOU at all. Be sure to follow your doctor’s orders – TAKE your medications. They will soon begin to work on your behalf, and you WILL notice a BIG difference.
I have had bipolar disorder since I was 20. I’m 61 now, and my last hospitalization was when I was 29, so you can see – I’ve been relatively STABLE for a LOOONG time. That doesn’t mean there haven’t been mini-episodes and times when my meds have had to be tweaked – but ONLY by my doctor.
If you work at it – I mean, don’t PUSH yourself – but really TRY to maintain a positive attitude and surround yourself with positive people – perhaps even join a Support Group with other people with bipolar disorder — then you can see how well off you really ARE!!
BIG HUGS to all bipolar survivors and those who love us. May God bless you real good. I pray for my country.
To Lizzie,
Hang in there, don’t ever give up, I know you are struggling and its hard,but understand you are not alone in what your going thru, alot of people with BP have the same feelings.Just don’t give up and take it day by day..Your in my thoughts and prayers.
keep doing the things you need to do to get healthy and a better day with better feelings will come.take care.
Hi,
Please go to:
http://www.leverageteamsupport.com
Hi Lizzie,
I can see you are really feeling desperate these days, but you must have hope. My son was diagnosed with bipolar actually just Major depression at about 16 yrs. old and he had his ups and downs. At one point a real down and we switch doctors after about 3 years. Then we found a doctor that told my son he was bipolar and put him on two different meds. and before long he was doing much better. He is now 26 and looking forward to getting married next year. So as much as it hurts when you find the right doctor and the right medication you will do better. Since your support group at home is not very good, may I recommend a pyschologist as well. My son saw one along with the psy. doc. and that really helped him. I always tried to be very understanding, but my son would get angry at me and I understood it was not me but his illness. An impartial 3rd party can point that out and make you understand better what is happening.
So please keep trying and as soon as you hit it all right you will start feeling better. Good luck and God Bless you.
DAVE, that story really made me laugh. However, it just goes to show that some people have no real problems or concern for anything important, if they can argue over such trivia as the colour of coffee sweeteners. My boyfriend’s bipolar is real and his current depression is real. He has just had the dosage of his meds adjusted, as he does not seem to have found the right cocktail yet. We know there is no cure for bipolar. I have heard of people who claimed they were cured of it. When researched these people had bipolar symptoms and episodes, which were not caused by an imbalance in the brain, but were drug induced. They may even have been diagnosed with bipolar plus drug addiction. Once they were weaned off the drugs they were “cured” of bipolar, which in their case had been a “fake” disorder.
Dave,
I tried to answer your survey twice tonight and tell you to keep up the good work, but everytime I try and send there is an internal error and I loose the whole thing. So please be advised if no one seems to be answering your survey it’s because the link is not working correctly.
An you are doing a good thing with your e-mails.
You give hope, information and sense that one is not all alone with their bipolar, or bipolar loved one. Not to mention your humorous slant on things which is important. Thanks for all you do.
Dear Dave et al,
Just wanted you to know, that THIS article has helped me ALOT, even more than it does some days. I think the info. and my interest in it, is cumulative; that is, when I read your entries every day, it keeps my knowledge abt. my illness, in the forefront of my mind. Thanks for all you do for us. Oh, by the way, to all persons WITH bipolar out there, I FIRMLY BELIEVE that taking my prescribed meds as ordered, by my Dr. that I trust, is KEY–IMPORTANT to my daily recovery.