Hi,<\/p>\n
How\u2019s your day going?<\/p>\n
I hope it is a good one.<\/p>\n
Sometimes it can be hard to figure out who to talk to about yours or your loved one\u2019s bipolar disorder and who shouldn\u2019t know. More so than that, it can be hard to figure out who to tell details to, and who should just know that you or your loved one has the disorder.<\/p>\n
But there is one person that you should never keep details from about you or your loved one\u2019s bipolar disorder. Can you guess who that is?<\/p>\n
Scroll down to find the answer<\/p>\n
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Keep scrolling! You\u2019re almost there!<\/p>\n
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Your psychiatrist!<\/p>\n
Did you guess right?<\/p>\n
Yes, believe it or not, your psychiatrist is here to help you, and in order to do so, they need to know everything.<\/p>\n
You might be wondering what kinds of things your psychiatrist needs to know.<\/p>\n
Well, for starters, anything you think might be a symptom, even if it isn\u2019t a symptom of the disorder you are already aware of. That is to say, anything that is out of the ordinary about you or the way you think or behave.<\/p>\n
Another thing that you should be telling your psychiatrist is how you are responding to your medications, especially the ones that they prescribed you. For example, are you having any side effects? Is the medication doing what it is supposed to do? Are you having any extra symptoms since the medications started?<\/p>\n
You know what another thing is that you should be telling them? Your history of symptoms.<\/p>\n
You see, it\u2019s not just important what symptoms you are having now, it\u2019s also important to tell them what symptoms you have had at any point in your life. After all, bipolar disorder can\u2019t even be diagnosed without a full history of your symptoms. If you haven\u2019t already told your doctor about a detail in your past that you think is relevant \u2013 maybe you forgot \u2013 then you should tell them now. It may or may not make a difference, but they can help you figure that out.<\/p>\n
Another thing you should be talking to them about is your other medical problems. Some of them might not be relevant, but some of them might make all the difference in the world. Certain medical conditions may make a difference in your diagnosis, or in the way you are able to be treated. Some medications might interact with your other medical conditions in a way that isn\u2019t good, so it is important that your doctor is aware of those conditions so they can avoid those types of problems.<\/p>\n
You should also be telling your psychiatrist about your ability to pay, both for their services, and for your medications. They may have a payment program to help you out with their services, but you won\u2019t know unless you ask them. Many times they will have samples available to hand out to their patients, but they don\u2019t usually do so unless they know that the patient needs help paying for their medications.<\/p>\n
Another thing they might be able to help you with is a prescription discount program, or even the number to the drug company\u2019s discount services. All of these things may or may not be available, but you will never know unless you ask.<\/p>\n
Go figure, huh? Who knew that all you had to do was talk to the doctor to find out about all these things? And who knew that when you talked to the doctor about all the different things you are experiencing, that they would be able to help you better?<\/p>\n
Your doctor has been educated on mental illnesses in general, but you have to aid them in educating themselves about the mental illness you are dealing with. Believe it or not, they can\u2019t do it alone.<\/p>\n
With all these benefits for talking to your doctor, who would want to stay silent?<\/p>\n
What do you think about all of this?<\/p>\n
Well, I have to go!<\/p>\n
Your Friend,<\/p>\n
Dave<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Hi,<\/p>\n
How\u2019s your day going?<\/p>\n
I hope it is a good one.<\/p>\n
Sometimes it can be hard to figure out who to talk to about yours or your loved one\u2019s bipolar disorder and who shouldn\u2019t know. More so than that, it can be hard to figure out who to tell details to, and who should just know that you or your loved one has the disorder.<\/p>\n
But there is one person that you should never keep details from about you or your loved one\u2019s bipolar disorder.<\/p>\n