Unintentionally, yet somewhat intentionally. Hard to explain. I don't think I cognitively plan to trigger mania, yet find myself drawn to actions and things that might precipitate it.

Sleep is my primary trigger—or lack of sleep to be exact—and I know it. Sometimes I'll have a week or two period where I can sleep if I attempt to, but I'll get so engrossed in writing a story or watching something on TV, I'll stay up later. I always tell myself one night isn't going to hurt me, and then days later, I've done this six nights in a row and I'm headed for disaster.

Basically, the more I feed into this, intentionally or unintentionally, the more I'll trip up, up, up. BUT not always in a good way. Occasionally, I'll get annoyed with myself when the not sleeping is no longer a choice, but rather the main symptom. If I go mixed over manic, or maybe just really dysphoric mania, being unable to sleep drives me nuts. If I'm euphoric manic, however, I take it as a blessing to pursue new activities or a superpower that I can go without sleep while others have to. I always HOPE I'll get the happy high when I do this, but it's like playing Russian roulette with my brain. It took a lot of introspection to uncover this pattern, but it definitely seems to be my mania/mixed trigger. I wish I could just induce hypomania and never go mixed.

Speaking of energy drinks, even small amounts of caffeine can trigger me. If I'm depressed, no effect. Normal, can handle small doses, but if I'm anywhere remotely manic, I can't even handle what's in chocolate it seems like.