what are you afraid of?

....if you are true bipolar....thrn you can see it coming...

does not mean to say there is much to do about it....

just got to manage it....does anyone else know how to?

I manage it...I am nuts a total screwball....but I have the sense to manage my moods......

and helll they are intense and extreme

....I am in one right now!

...and not some pissy little mood swing...but life or death struggle with my brain...

and screw it it's tried to take me before........

not this time

how do you nutbags stay alive.......and is it worth it?

I say so

Never been called a "nutbag" before. I wonder how Michaelangelo, DaVinci, Vangogh, Lord George Gordon Byron, John Keats, Emily Dickenson, Edgar Allen Poe,Herman Melville, F. Scott Fitzgerald, not to mention the geniuses of music, among many, many other artists and geniuses would have felt being called that? They were all bipolar, you know. And they made strong positive contributions to society. And they had no modern medical techniques for treating their illness.

You underestimate the contributions of the giftedness of bipolar illness. You have yours, no doubt. I wish you could climb out of the mood and think and see clearly
the contributions you have to make to life.

Get your meds schedule adjusted if necessary and congratulations on keeping things under control as much as possible. It doesn't need to be really as difficult as you
present it, however.

How's your diet? You know that has a huge place to play in your moods, I'm sure.
Caffeine addiction alone is one that can present itself as bipolar illness if you're sensitive to it and use it. Avoid alcohol; both caffeine and alcohol make bipolar illness worse.

Then there's watching the acid-reacting foods you eat. See Acid-reacting Foods.com to learn which ones to avoid to keep the fluids of your system more alkaline.

That's my answer to your "get the duck outa' here" position.

Some of us try to force feed when necessary!

Take care of yourself.

Genetic

Ugh, I hate that post-humanous diagnosis of famous people because that's accurate and totally not made up to make crazy people less inclined to self destruct, as if that would work..well, maybe...

Bipolar really doesn't make for more creative. There are plenty of uncreative and average to below average intellects running around the world with bipolar, many more of those dummies than DaVincis.

But hey, maybe I just have a caffeine and acidic food problem, heck maybe it is gluten, refined sugars or aspartame that's why I'm not creative.

Well, cocoabeans, maybe you're right, although research indicates that bipolar folks
are 20% more likely to be gifted in artistic fields than a random selection of people.

When you think that the average educational level of people used to be about 8th grade, it's nice to think that one may have some talent.

Sure, they're plenty of people who do not have talent in artistic fields, but everyone has a talent of some kind--hopefully.

I think it's rather nice to think that bipolar folks are somewhat more likely than others to have a talent that the world appreciates.

The intellect is another thing altogether; bipolar illness is a mood disorder. For genius, it takes more than a mood disorder to create!!

Hey, give us credit for knowing what we have and how to manage it; most of the
world of bipolar folks never seek help for their illness. They are the ones who really struggle, in my view. Give yourself a pat on the back for being alert and smart about how to care for yourself.

If you're amazed about caffeine risks, go to DoctorYourself.com and look down the
left column for "caffeine allergy". Read what Ruth Whalen has to say about it. She
has given me permission to quote from her works, but you can read the whole thing
for yourself and find it amazing.

As for the food thing, all medications are digested as acidic. It's best to keep the body fluids in a slightly more alkaline state for good health. It's worth your time to
do some research on that if you're serious about wanting any kind of improvement
in mood.

Genetic

I'm far from seeing my mood changes. I hardly am able to put label on emotions, let alone what's "with in normal limits." So mood changes hit me like a ton of bricks. That doesn't mean I don't have BP. I'm just clueless when it comes to emotions.

I'm trying my best to manage it but after 7 years I'm still clueless.

how do you nutbags stay alive. with the help of the people I trust.

Well this 'ere nutbag, rides the waves, and makes use of life jackets and rafters such as the kind people ove here! James! Glad you're looking after yourself and über-proud too!

Hmmmm.......never been referred to as a "nutbag" before. Bipolar, yes; nutbag, crazy, off my rocker, goofy, screwy, f'd up, loony, freak, whacko, cheese slid off the cracker......not so much.

I've never been called a "nutbag" either. I've been called 'crazy' enough times. If I am a nutbag, I hope it's mixed nuts and not just peanuts, which is boring. And hopefully honey roasted.

How do I stay alive? One foot in front of the other. Repeat.

Glad to hear you say it's worth it.

If I'm a nutbag, I'd like to be Cashews, they are my favorite.
How do i stay alive? By finding things to concentrate on that will bring me pleasure. An upcoming birthday that I get to buy gifts for, or decorate for. The plans can keep me going for weeks. The holidays in November and december keep me sane, as there is much to do, and much to look forward to.

I want to be a nut sac, old and wrinkly just for kicks. Maybe a lil sweaty but meh don't sweat the petty stuff and don't pet the sweaty stuff.

Seriously though, the thing I fear most about bp is that I have passed it down to my children. I can already see something going on with my youngest and it scares the crap out of me. I am also scared that I am going to screw them up with my mood swings, what a life to live Me, personally, I am terrified of Micheal Jackson. I am also scared that this bp is going to get worse. I haven't been really really low yet and haven't been really really high yet (hopefully never on both).

I have always agreed with that. Non-creative bipolars always existed, they just did not make any marks, and thus are not counted. This creates a skewed perception that bipolar equates with enormous contribution to humanity.

I recently started drinking coffee. Not just coffee, but a lot (for me): today I had a double cappuchino in the morning and a latte after lunch. I am not addicted. Moreover, I do not even enjoy - I strongly do not enjoy and basically drink it like bitter medicine. Left to my own preferences, I would be drinking black tea all day long, and it contains far less caffeine than coffee. And I do drink several cups of tea a day, but it does not help me not fall asleep at work. Coffee does. So it is literally like medicine - a counteragent against my bipolar meds that cause heightened sleep requirements. When I see my p-doc, I will talk to her about caffeine pills - they release caffeine more steadily than shots of coffee and are more approptiate for me given that I am not a coffee lover, as I said.

So it would be interesting to me to read some solid research (like peer-reviewed articles available in PubMed) proving that caffeine is bad for bipolar. It would be purely academic for me, for I cannot NOT take caffeine - I do not want to fall asleep at work and be fired, coffee is a blessing in that it keeps me alert - but I would still like to read it for the knowledge. If you have it, please quote it.

I am presently afraid of old age. I am afraid that my daughters would not visit or talk to me when I am old. I am afraid of loneliness in old age. I am afraid of frailness and osteoporosis and chronic pain.

I am pretty afraid about being alone forever. My relationships don't last very long because my self esteem is so low. I just met this beautiful girl at this bar. So sweet it was intimidating. It hurts me that I know I am not in the right emotional place to ever be a healthy person another deserves. Damn that's cold.

sorry to high jack but does coffee really do that to ppl with bipolar? I remember trying to drink coffee when I was younger and it made me feel so weirded out. And a couple yrs ago I tried it again and same thing.

Me - caffeine = bad-tempered beeyotch I could never do without my morning coffee, my sweet tea in the afternoons, and my Diet Coke whenever the mood strikes me......while I'm sure it doesn't do my BP any good, it's my very last vice and I am NOT giving it up. So there. Nyaaaaaaah!!

Coffee to me is what an 8ball of cocaine is to a "normal" person.

[quote=dubblemonkey;2415357
how do you nutbags stay alive.......[/quote]

I regret saying this it's not cool at all....really not

I guess what I am afraid of is myself the not nice me...

Oh monkeyman, no worries. Been called a lot worse from my 7 yr old lol :P

Good point. I would like to add that there is so much crappy stigma out there, why not embrace that there are and were bipolar people who left an amazing legacy. I feel proud when I find out that someone important or creative, etc. has bipolar.

What am I afraid of? For the past year or so I'm more afraid of living than dying. Thoughts of death excite me and yet I still chose to live.

Agree with that, too.

I think this word "Nutbag" would be used to describe parts of a mans anatomy.

Just hang in there your just having a hard day and tomorrow will be much better

My exhusband called me a wingnut magnet. But actually I would be almonds yum.

BI-POLAR 1-2 MIXED WITH SOME PSYCHOTIC PARANOIA, SEVERE. That's what I am, and I can write awesome music and play guitar like or even better than people you call pro musicians. Matter of fact I am so creative I have my own album out for sale at amazon.com and all the other music sales sites. You want to call people like me a nut job? Well, I am sorry but the above proves you wrong. Yes I get fear and paranoia and really deep and dark depression. It has ruined my working life and has disabled me. But it takes no effort at all to pick up my guitar, plug it in, and write a kick azz song and video. I have so many videos on youtube that I cant even count them all!
I'm taking-
Celexa
Xanax
Neurontin
Seroquel

Am I cured? No! Am I messed up? Yes! Am I worthless? No! but I feel that way sometimes. My moods swing like a tree in the wind. I am under 2 Doctors for help plus I have a Therapist. Life is hard, but not impossible. So I can not agree with you aka "Nut Job"