Maybe I have an advantage here since I cannot be treated medically (i.e. drugs)
One thing of note is that pharmaceutical money drives research, and of course that research is corrupted (not saying that is good or bad, but it is a fact), so that the pharmaceutical company can say "buy this pill, it does X and a PHD says so too!
As many PHDs have said, "if there were funding for psychotherapy research maybe we could find something that works." But the money is in the drugs.
Well, since even the PHD's don't have a clue what is going on with Bipolar folks anyway, (Ref: "Practice Guidelines for the Treatment of Patients with Bipolar Disorder", 2002, American Psychiatric Association), the nice thing with being Bipolar is the ability to research something for like.. 24 hours straight. Some docs have found success, (but can't really research due to limited or no funding), Psychotherapy treatment principles derived from the basic understanding of human behavior. Here are some topics to research (which are similar to another PHDs recommendation which is the top link to this blog):
Types of psychotherapy
Four specific types of psychotherapy have been studied by researchers. These approaches are particularly useful during acute depression and recovery:
Behavioral therapy focuses on behaviors that can increase or decrease stress and ways to increase pleasurable experiences that may help improve depressive symptoms.
Cognitive therapy focuses on identifying and changing the pessimistic thoughts and beliefs that can lead to depression.
Interpersonal therapy focuses on reducing the strain that a mood disorder may place on relationships.
Social rhythms therapy focuses on restoring and maintaining personal and social daily routines to stabilize body rhythms, especially the 24-hour sleep-wake cycle.
Source: Kahn DA, Ross R, Printz DJ, Sachs GS. Treatment of Bipolar Disorder: A guide for patients and families. Postgrad Med Special Report. 2000(April):97-104.
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Just found your site, and noticed you haven't updated it since August. Do you plan on updating it soon? I find your information very interesting and helpful. I am bipolar II and struggle with staying the least medicated as possible after years of being drugged up like a zombie.
Hello, we are researchers from The College of New Jersey interested in gaining information on the views of authors of mental health blogs. You have received this invitation because you are an author of such a blog. Participation will involve responding to surveys about your mental health and blogging habits. The results are completely confidential. No respondent’s personal identity will be requested or associated with any set of answers. We appreciate your time and help with our study and as a thank you for participating you will be entered into a prize draw. If you are interested or desire further information, please respond to mhblog@tcnj.edu and be sure to include a link to the home page of your blog as well as your preferred contact email address. The survey will be sent to you via email within the next few weeks. Thank you in advance for your participation!
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Nice site…glad I found you!
Look forward to reading more posts…
A few months ago, you received an invitation from us to participate in a study about mental health and blogging habits as part of a research project conducted by Professor Yifeng Hu in the Communication Studies department at The College of New Jersey. We are still seeking mental health blog authors to complete our study and would appreciate your participation!
We want to know more about your blogging behavior and your perception towards blogging. Participating in the study might help you better understand your attitude towards blogging and your blogging behavior. The study will likely have practical implications in improving mental health services.
Your data will be stored in the principal investigator’s computer with identifiers removed. In fact, we do not collect participants’ identifications. The only information that may link the participant to his/her data is the email address that the participant chooses to provide in order to obtain the gift card. But this information is strictly used for incentives. Once obtained, we will separate the email address from the data.
We appreciate your time and help with our study and as a thank you for participating you will receive a $10 Amazon.com gift card. If you are interested, please respond to mhblog@tcnj.edu and be sure to include a link to the home page of your blog as well as your preferred contact email address. The survey will be sent to you via email within the next few days. Thank you in advance for your participation! Please feel free to contact Professor Hu if you have any questions. Her phone number is 609-771-2373.
Bipolar disorder is an illness of severe mood swings. Mania and depression are the highs and lows of this disorder. Typically it is diagnosed in young adults age 18 years and older. It affects men and women equally. The disorder can run in families. http://www.xanax-effects.com/
"Well, since even the PHD's don't have a clue what is going on with Bipolar folks anyway, (Ref: "Practice Guidelines for the Treatment of Patients with Bipolar Disorder", 2002, American Psychiatric Association), the nice thing with being Bipolar is the ability to research something for like.. 24 hours straight"
AGREED! you're not missing out too much by not seeing the docs. I've given up on them for therapy and the like. They're not able to relate or "get it". Since I obviously "get" myself, I do the looksy stuff and the like... and actually come up with better cognitive/behavioral plans and medication cocktails than they do. It's... annoying. Since my diagnosis last year I have become fascinated/disgusted with the psych profession and what I feel is an incredible lack of empathy in the field of mental disorders. Which is why I have chosen to study psychology and work with mental disordered folks. If you ever need to talk about anything or get another point of view, pls check out my blog or send an email!
~Ann
Hi,
I came across your blog post and wanted to say hello. My name is Iri Amirav and I am a co-founder at iMedix. iMedix is a website that helps hundreds of thousands of patients every month and we’ve recently decided to form a support group for Bipolar patients: http://www.imedix.com/Bipolar
I am looking for leaders who will be interested to start and manage this group with me and thought you might be a good person to speak with about finding patients in need. I would love to speak with you and tell you more about who we are and what we are trying to accomplish.
Please feel free to contact me by email. In addition, you can find me on the iMedix website under the nickname irus.
I look forward to hearing from you soon.
Best,
Iri
irus.imedix@gmail.com
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