What can I do to be happier or content?

I'm pretty unhappy with my life. I have everything in my life that a person would want but I'm still unhappy. I have a car, a job, some friends, a family, I'm going to school, I have money, a high school diploma, a beach condo in Turkey that I can go to every summer and some other things. It mainly bothers me that I'm bipolar. I need to accept that I'm bipolar. I've been really depressed for the last month or so. I almost hurt myself on Monday. I've been depressed because my psychiatrist had a stroke and now I get depressed for no reason sometimes. I think my meds are off. I really hope I can find the right med combo. I'm also unhappy because I had a severe nervous breakdown 9 months ago. I guess I'm not over. It was really traumatic. I also think really negatively.

I want ways to be happy. What can I do to be happier?

I would say stop focusing on chasing " happy"

Make small attainable goals. Yes bipolar can take nice stability and slam it into hell in a half second but coming out of it takes time, and that time does drag on and on.

Are you set up with a new pdoc? Its very likey that you do in fact need a medication adjustment, Its very rare that people find the " right" ones and they last forever..

Dealing with chronic negative thinking is a hard one to manage. Are you seeing a Therapist? Finding a good Therapist to me is just as important for your wellbeing as seeing a Pdoc for medications treatment.

If you make X negative thought turn around and think of a positive. Easier said than done sometimes...

One positive you could use.. I have that beautiful condo in Turkey I can go to.

At one point the only positive that I could come up with is,, " at least my dog is always happy to see me" Kinda sad maybe..... but that is what I clung to like the last life raft when the Titanic went down.

When was the last time you just did something nice for yourself. Favorite food ? A trip to see a Movie? When I am down and struggling I buy a new nail polish! Yeah maybe sounds silly, But its enjoyable for me to find some wild color.. its the little things in life that really are more important that we give them credit for.

And sometimes.... Sometimes its okay to sit back and say Okay my life is really sucking right now.. and just stop fighting and float, Just float sometimes the constant work trying to swim upstream is too much .. Float and give yourself time to rebuild your strength to fight another day.

I hope you are able to find ways to feel better

Do you have a therapist you can talk to about your trauma?

This. Small goals, accomplish things. Find a food dish you'd like to try and attempt to make it yourself. Find something broke and fix it. Pull some weeds, take on a little project. Something engaging. The more engaged you are on a physical task, the harder it is for your mind to wander into the deep end. Just gotta find a way to motivate yourself, that's the hardest part.

Sounds like we had a nervous breakdown at the same time. I agree about working with a therapist to address the trauma. I'm still in the process of getting through that and having a therapist experienced in trauma has been quite helpful.

Back in the day I used to think too much, and all of my thoughts were negative and anxiety ridden, but then at work I drew a sun on an index card and wrote STOP in the middle of it and whenever I found myself overthinking I'd look at the card and stop myself.

Sounds silly, but it really worked for me. I don't overthink things anymore now.

Also, when I'm having a rough time, I think about a place I used to go, a happy place, and kind of put myself in that place and go on auto pilot for awhile.

I have two therapists that I go to. Lately I've been talking about a lot of other things that I don't have time to talk about my nervous breakdown. It was really traumatic to me. I had delusions and hallucinations when I was really high driving on a freeway at 1 in the morning. I thought people were after me and thought people were trying to kill me.

Wondering about exactly same... It must be this condition, or it's the location

Someone might even envy how my life looks like without knowing all i go through inside. I think ~christina has a point there: What is real happiness? It just does't come right and now, as i expect it to apperar out of nothing just like hypomania...

Is "less happiness" more happiness in long term?

Maybe i'll try it next! (just figure out how)

Writing here seems to help a lot at least to get some ideas...

I know this sounds stupid but keeping a gratitude journal is supposed to help increase happiness after awhile. This is according to my therapist who claims there have been studies on the subject. Anyway you're supposed to write down five things you are grateful for every day.

I don't do this but someone in my group did and said it helped.