Hi, how’s it going? Hope you are doing well.
I was just thinking earlier today about a conversation I had with a friend a while back. This friend hates fireworks, apparently. So the Fourth of July is not exactly his favorite holiday. There was a third person who was in the conversation, and she accused him of not being patriotic.
He calmly replied, saying that he disliked fireworks because of the pollution, the danger, and the noise. But, he continued, he loved his country and was proud to be an American. I thought it brought up a good point. You CAN be patriotic without liking fireworks.
You know what else? You CAN be compliant with your medications without liking the fact that you have to take them. Liking them and taking them are two entirely different things. Just like admiring fireworks and admiring the country are two entirely different things.
It also depends partially on why you don’t like them. If you don’t like them because they are not working correctly, or because of some awful side effect they give you, then you should talk to your psychiatrist and find out what needs to be changed.
But, if you don’t like them for the same reason that you might not like having to take any other pill for the rest of your life, then you can work your way through the dislike. I’m sure that there are many people who have insulin dependent diabetes who do not like taking their insulin. But many of them could die if they didn’t take it.
Bipolar disorder is just as serious: Many people with bipolar disorder die from suicide when they are depressed. Many people with bipolar disorder ruin their lives and their health when they are not compliant with their medications. As much as we might not like to admit to it, medications are a necessary part of life.
And that doesn’t make you a “pill popper.” Pill poppers are people who like to take medications for anything that they can get away with. In your situation, you are someone who recognizes a need to take very specific medications for a medical problem.
That’s right, I said medical. Science is finding out more and more about mental illnesses, and they are, in fact, brain disorders. Which means it’s not “all in your mind.” It’s also in your brain. LOL. No, but seriously.
If you had a serious medical problem that you had to take medications for to avoid very serious problems, wouldn’t you take it? Well, you do have a serious medical problem that you have to take medications for. It’s called bipolar disorder.
And you know what else? It’s okay to not like taking them! Nobody said you had to enjoy swallowing pills once a day, or that you have to like the concept of it. But, like many other things in life, we sometimes have to do things that we don’t like to do.
What ways can you encourage yourself to take your medications despite a strong dislike for them? What ways can you remind yourself that they are, in fact, necessary?
Well, I have to go!
Your Friend,
Dave
Post responses below
Thank you for reminding me.
Good advice Dave.
Taking pills daily is a small price to pay for medication that makes you feel and function better.
My husband on one doctor visit told her he did not want to be there and is tried of changing medication all the time.
The fact is that if he stops going and stops taking the meds. prescribed he is never going to feel normal again.
So it comes down to taking your meds and hopefully feeling better or not taking them and giving up. It’s a lot of trial and error but eventually you find the right combination of medication that works for you.
I hate being on meds, addicted to one, and having to take them twice a day or suffer from side effects within hours of not taking them. Hard to face the fact that I’ll be on them the rest of my life and the damage they’ll do to my liver, kidneys, and how hard it is to lose weight. Every time I take them it reminds me that I have this illness and how much of my life it has destroyed. That’s probably why I hate them so much.
I am sorry I did not receive your email, for the evaluation of myself, maybe it was because I did not know what was on front of your email, so by mistake I probably deleted it. “Please for give me”! I hope you can called me again, at 941-316-0151, so maybe you can help me with my Schizo-Affective Disorder, because I get very depress,at times and I really would like some help. Thank You, Ronald Freund.
Hi Dave,
Thanks for yr very suggestive idea of taking medication if we need them, especially if it is bipolar disorder.
I had been diagnoised with BP in 1991. I was administered ECT and other anti-anxiety medication like lorazepam, prozac for depression and amitripytrine. I had been in and out of hospital and everything seemed to be well since 2006, therefore, I also stopped taking any medications other than amitriptrine whenever I have problems sleeping.
I had been also in and out of job eversince. I worked for an educational centre for work 6 years, that being the longest. Currently, I am working in a law firm as a Legal Secretary. Sometimes, maybe due to work stress, I found myself lapsed into anxiety and fear that my BP will reappear subtedly.
Sometimes, I would go all out to shop and ended up buying things I dont need which later I regretted being a spendthrift. At times, I will also find myself weeping for no apparent reason or something trivial may just spark off that BP out of me. What is happening?
So Dave, do you think it’s time I should go back to my doctor to restart my medications again ?
I feel so helpless because my colleagues and bosses didnt know of my condition and I’m afraid they will find out sooner or later. Worst, my family insists I shouldnt go back to my doctor as they think I am still under the “safe” code.
I feel so alone dealing with such a complicated sickness that seemed to be incurable. I seemed to be doomed for life and have been flipping the orbituray section every other day imagining one fine day my face would appear there too…
Please give me some advice, Mr Dave.
Looking forward for yr reply and hope yr mum is getting better and better as days go by…
Have a nice day !!
To Charmaine:
Yes, by all means go to a good psychiatrist. FIrst of all, antidepressants alone are NOT GOOD for bipolar disorder (I have experienced this first-hand,unfortunately). They can send you into a manic episode, or make you cycle faster (rapid-cycling). Bipolar disorder requires mood-stabilizing medication (e.g. lithium, depakote/divalproex, lamical). Both lithium and lamictal have an antidepressant in them already. The goal is to stabilize you, not just to change the depression. It is a REALLY slippery slope with bipolar…one minute you can feel depressed and then pass by a mall, and all of a sudden hidden manic kicks in and you’re walking out of there with 3 bags, when you hadn’t even planned on going there…
I have Bipolar II disorder. It took years and years for a correct diagnosis. The doc’s kept saying “depression”, consequently, I’ve been on nearly every antidepressant there is. They all lost their effectiveness eventually, or had negative side effects (e.g. weight gain, feeling irritable or agitated).
When I finally got a correct diagnosis in 2006, I was finally put on mood stabilizers plus a light dose of antidepresant, and boy did I see a difference. I won’t say I’m cured because there is no cure. I have had to change my med’s up even since then, for other reasons.
But I am certainly more in control of my life now, more in control of my thoughts, my actions, my mouth and what comes out of it, how I deal with others, etc.
And I know that without the correct medication, this would not have been possible.
Hope this helps you in some way.
Dear Dave. I do agree with you about taking pills, I take @18 pills a day plus insulin, there are sometimes that I get depressed because I have to take them to survive. I have a fiduciary who takes care of my finances, because my psychiatrist said that I was unable to take care of them. I am on ablify, trazodone, carbamazepine, clonazepam, and mirtazapine, my psychiatrist is helping me to get through this mental situation. I don’t mind taking these and other medications because I know they are helping a little, but the depression is getting better, but taking these and other meds, and insulin, I need to take to survive, so I look at it that way, and I want to live, because God has been so good to me, and I want to enjoy life to the fullest. Dave, your emails are awesome and I enjoy reading them, because they are very helpful. Thank you again. Frankie – 7-26-10 Monday @7:26am.