[SilverSprings]

Hi all, I have been reading lots of great books lately... there is a suggestion to cut down on sugar and refined carbs as part of bi polar diet. Have any of you had success with this? I have a nutritionist (helping me with ED, and I lost wt on my own but am looking to keep losing in a healthy fashion without flairing up my bi polar either). She has me on a meal plan and it allows for 6-8 starch and 3 fruits a day, which I am wondering may even be too high. I recently (in hypo mania) had gone vegan for 2 weeks, experiencing terrible effects and am now back eating according to 'plan'... I am wondering if lower carb is the way to go. Thoughts?

[NoIdeaWhatToDo]

I don't have any advice as to what you, personally, should be doing. But I do know that sugar is an issue for me and is a factor in my bipolar episodes. I haven't figured out yet whether my bp cycles affect my cravings for sugar, which leads me to eat more of it, which them becomes a cycle of it's own - or if I lose track of how much I'm eating, then get into the cycle of having too much sugar, which then triggers a bp episode. I don't know where the cause/effect begin and end. I know when I get a handle on it, though, it improves my ability to cope with the bp episodes.

I do find that if I eat the right kinds of carbs (oatmeal for breakfast is one reliable one, even though it's not my favorite), I crave less of everything throughout the day, and don't turn to sugar as much for the quick energy fix. I also feel better the more vegetables I eat, so I try to incorporate them into more meals (loads of sauteed veggies in a morning egg scramble, for example).

Hope you find a plan that works for you...

[CopperStar]

I am currently doing a ketogenic diet, and even having been on Zyprexa for 9 days now, I have lost a few pounds already and have noticed more stable energy (as opposed to roller coaster energy). I'm doing it due to the higher risks of weight gain and diabetes with Zyprexa, since if I gain too much weight my pdoc won't let me stay on it.

[Elbows]

I cut caffeine completely out of my diet and it has drastically decreased my manic energy. I would recommend this to anyone suffering with BP. ( and when I say caffeine, I mean all caffeine! Even chocolate... Coke etc...)

[~Christina]

Carbs bog my mood down and increase my Fibro pain .. So I avoid them. Eliminate any and all processed food and that makes anyone feel better.. It's amazing how much processed food people eat and don't even realize...

[CopperStar]

I must admit for all my efforts to eat healthy, I have a serious love/hate relationship with peanut butter.