I went undiagnosed and unmedicated for over a decade while I suspected that I had bipolar. The hypomanias are mild enough for me to manage and enjoy so I decided to not bother getting anything done that would stop them. When I finally decided that I need meds for right now... I still didn't disclose the suspicions until the anti-depressant I was given put me immediately into a rather annoyingly long hypomanic state!

I know what my own temptations are for risky behaviour. So I set up rules and guidelines for myself. I follow them pretty well. Not always mind you, I have days where I go "That rule is stupid!" and ignore it. But a lot of the time I go "Oh... yeah... ok. Well I really really really want to do this, but I guess there's a reason why I shouldn't. FINE." and listen to myself.

But I'm fairly self-disciplined even when I'm at my worst, so this works fairly well for me.

Like, if I want to make a large purchase? Like an extremely large purchase? I have to wait a while on it. I don't buy big things on impulse (of course, I might still walk home from WalMart having spent $100 on dvds because they were a good price and then have STILL not watched any of them five months later....)... but at least the really large impulses, like "Hey, I want to get a sewing machine and learn how to make clothes!"... yeah, I resist that one. ((I fully believe whenever I own a house however, that I WILL get one!))

It's just a matter of knowing your weak areas, and deciding what will work best for you to manage them. If you're a big spender.... give your credit cards to someone that you trust when you notice you're in an up state. Or completely get rid of them and then you can't easily make purchases online.

I tend to find that I also will obsess over a topic - I limit myself to reading about htem online, because then I'm not spending my money. And I have to ensure that I do at least the necessary chores each day (dishes, keep the cat fed, shower, take out garbage and kitty litter when needed, eat supper, etc). because if not I will read obsessively until I decide it's time for bed.