Hi, how are you doing today? I hope you’re having a great day.<\/p>\n
I know you’ve heard me talk about my goddaughter before. Well, the other day, she was visiting, and she started “twirling” in circles. She would twirl and twirl until she finally got too dizzy and<\/p>\n
fell down, giggling. Then you know what she did? She got right up and did the same thing again! She just wouldn’t stay still.<\/p>\n
It’s the same with bipolar disorder. It doesn’t stay still, either. And it definitely doesn’t go away.<\/p>\n
It changes, and as it does, you have to adapt to it.<\/p>\n
But that’s the same just in life in general. Change is constant, and you can’t let down your guard.<\/p>\n
What I’m talking about here is more like:<\/p>\n
What worked for you yesterday may not work for you today, and what works for you today may not work for you tomorrow. And you have to adapt to it \u2013 make changes, if necessary.<\/p>\n
First of all, you can’t change anything until you realize what needs to change. You need to constantly monitor that. You keep what works, and you change what doesn’t work. You don’t just stay still and do nothing.<\/p>\n
Let’s look at some examples of things you might need to change:<\/p>\n
1.\tSleeping too much or too little<\/p>\n
You need to keep a steady, routine sleep schedule. Get at least 8 hrs of sleep each night, go to<\/p>\n
bed at the same time at night and wake up at the same time each morning. Sleep (or lack of it) is one of the biggest triggers for a bipolar episode, so you need to watch that, and change your routine if necessary.<\/p>\n
For instance, I know someone with bipolar disorder who was having trouble getting to sleep at night (she kept having racing thoughts). So now she drinks a cup of hot herbal tea before bed each night, and that works for her.<\/p>\n
2.\tPoor diet<\/p>\n
If you eat lots of junk food, sugar, fats, and cholesterol, your body is not going to reward you with good health. For instance, you may get high cholesterol and need to go on medication for it, before it endangers your life. Changing to a healthy diet will keep you balanced and stable.<\/p>\n
3.\tNo exercise (or not enough)<\/p>\n
You need to exercise for your own physical health, besides the bipolar disorder. You can do it at home, join a gym, or join the Y, but you do need to exercise, even if it’s just walking.<\/p>\n
4.\tLow self-esteem<\/p>\n
You can raise your self-esteem by doing things outside yourself \u2013 Doing things for other people<\/p>\n
makes you feel better about yourself (like volunteering).<\/p>\n
5.\tNon-productivity<\/p>\n
Being idle or lazy (unproductive) can be a trigger to a bipolar depressive episode. It can make you depressed and affect your self-esteem, and definitely affect your bipolar disorder.<\/p>\n
Making changes in your lifestyle can go far in making changes in how you feel about yourself \u2013<\/p>\n
both physically and mentally.<\/p>\n
Well, I have to go!<\/p>\n
Your Friend,<\/p>\n
Dave<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Hi, how are you doing today? I hope you’re having a great day.<\/p>\n
I know you’ve heard me talk about my goddaughter before. Well, the other day, she was visiting, and she started “twirling” in circles. She would twirl and twirl until she finally got too dizzy and<\/p>\n
fell down, giggling. Then you know what she did? She got right up and did the same thing again! She just wouldn’t stay still.<\/p>\n