Yes, notALICE, I understand the slowing down of thought and of walking, too. It's part of the depressive cycle; I'm sorry you're having it, but we'll talk about that in a minute.

The sensitivity is part of being bipolar, in my view. I was born with a sensitivity
that is unusual, probably as you were, too. It's a lifelong process to come to grips with it, so don't feel alone or upset. It will get better as you grow older provided you take the right "cocktail" of meds and get pro-active in your care.

The antidepressants and some good exercise help with the depression. Since you no longer use alcohol, you're on a road to real lifestyle improvement, but you need to watch for certain other things. I've been told that people who have alcoholism often drink coffee when they are not drinking alcohol. Please give it up if it causes you any symptoms at all. (My psychiatrist told me that it makes bipolar illness worse. Another one has suggested that, in the sensitive person, it should be removed.) Removing anything containing caffeine is a very big help in improving depression.

Some doctors now believe that alcoholism is an extreme allergy; it is distilled from grains (for many forms), and another doctor has written that bipolar patients have an extreme allergy to grains.

It is being borne out now by research that a product of gluten breakdown in digestion produces exorphins which act on the opiate receptors in the brain causing addiction and cravings after 2 -3-hour intervals. (Please read Dr. David Williams' new book called Wheat Belly to learn so much more about all this new information.) Frequently, foods that we are allergic to are ones that we are addicted to.

That's a lot to take in, I agree, but it's with the best intentions that I want to
alert you to those two things. The caffeine and the wheat should be removed from your diet if you really expect to moderate the shifts in mood and decrease the symptoms of bipolar illness. Did you know that many psychotropic medications contain an antihistamine-like product in them?

Sugar is another one that bears close examination. It has no nutritional value; it causes strong mood shifts and it is addictive.

The manic state is a little different because I have experienced only hypomanic
states in the past. For them, I simply squeeze 2 lemons into 8 oz of water and drink it. If I haven't calmed down in 4 hours, I repeat the process. That usually gets feelings in good order for some of us.

I know it sounds foolish, but the lemon (which is a citric food and very acidic) is actually digested as having a very high alkaline ash (or residue). Lemon juice does one excellent job of relieving acidity caused by medication ash and a generally acidic condition of fluids and tissues of the body. (This is quite different from the ph value of the system; that's maintained by the brain and varies only in minuscule amounts.)

Stress is a major builder of acid; it causes stomach acid to increase. A second
problem is sleep interruption. That's a subject for another time, but the "lemon
thing" will help with that, too, because it calms the irritability that high acid levels cause.

These things really help some of us if we apply them on occasion when we really are having a difficult time.

Regarding the slowing down of thought, the anti-depressants will help and changing your diet will help, too. Exercise that you can do while sitting in a chair will help alleviate some of that. Otherwise, reducing stress, getting your proper sleep schedule regulated, and eating good, nutritious food are the biggest helps I know to suggest.

I hope you feel much better very soon. It's spring here, and, of course, spring
and fall seasons may provoke mood shifts for many with bipolar illness, so be
alert to that as a possibility. As long as you're conscous of the causes, you might be able to really be pro-active in alleviating the symptoms.