Where to go from here...

Hi all - I am a 25 y/o newly married female and newly diagnosed with bipolar II. I was previously diagnosed cyclothymic at age 19, but shied away from any medical intervention because I believed I could control it. Fast forward six years, many sexual partners, dollars spent, hours not slept later - I hit my lowest low and knew I needed help.

I am immersed in talk therapy weekly, see a Psychiatrist every 6 weeks for medication check ins. I am currently on 50 mg Lamictal + 50 mg Pristiq. I have noticed I feel much better, my husband has made comments, as well.

My struggles come with accepting the western medicine (which I am taking, and will continue to take) and supplementing that with holistic and natural practices. I am attempting to educate myself, I have been reading since being "rediagnosed", started taking more vitamins, working on cutting out bad foods, getting into a regular cycle with sleep/wake, no caffeine, no alcohol, massage therapy, all of which were recommended. Is there any additional things you have tried that have made a difference? I know everyone is different, but I'm just looking for ideas or thoughts on the holistic side of things.

Also, I am interested in disclosure. Did you tell family? If so who? Why? How did it go? I am starting to wade into those waters and feel as though everyone thinks it's best they tell me why they think I'm NOT bipolar. Obviously, a lot of my struggles are behind closed doors. No one knows about my promiscuity, lack of sleep, or too much sleep, need to go, go, go, inability to turn my brain off, or on. No one, that is, except for my husband. I'm feeling hopeless as far as family support is concerned.

Any advice is appreciated!

Yeah, regular sleep is very important for maintaining stability, so it's good you're already getting regular sleep.

I actually think it's OK to have caffeine as long as you're not disrupting your sleep/wake cycle with it. (e.g., Don't take caffeine late at night if you know it's going to make you stay up the whole night.) Plenty of people with BP drink coffee and soda, and some also have energy drinks or tea. Caffeine isn't a strong enough stimulant to induce a (hypo)manic episode. Like... 1, 2, or 3 cups of coffee in the span of 1 hr isn't going to make you full-blown manic. And it's debatable if caffeine "fuels" (hypo)manic states.

Assuming alcohol won't induce a life-threatening reaction with your meds, I think a little alcohol is OK too, but not in excess. Alcohol is a depressant. Just drink it sparingly and don't use it to self medicate; then you're all set to go. (For example, if you're at a dinner event or a wedding, it's okay to drink a glass of champagne. Just don't do it everyday.)

As far as disclosure goes, nope, never told my family. They found out on their own (well, my dad figured out I'm on meds). I'm 25 too, but not married.

But anyway, I'm sorry to hear that people are trying to "diagnose" you by telling you what you have and don't have. I'm private about my life as well, and most people don't see my struggles either.

Nobody know what you struggle from but you. They do not live in your shoes or in your head..so forget them. Mindfulness practices. Learning to stay grounded and in the moment is the best I can suggest. I have been dxd with BorderlinePD and have always held a "possible differential dx of BP2"...the two can present similarly. BP2 may respond well to medications..BP2 not so much, but medications are not meant to be "cure alls" more to help get us to a place to treat our cognitive distortions and behavioural issues. Individual therapy, self help books online forums are all good.. but personally DBT group therapy helped me leaps and bounds! It is a combination of Mindfulness practices and CBT therapy techiques.and it is taught almost like a course with a work book and homework etc..I found it refreshing..since prior group therapy attempts I often felt like I was being shamed for my behaviours rather than constructively taught better habits. Hope this helps some!

I think caffeine can be as problematic as any other substance for some of us. I stopped it cold turkey almost 10 years ago because I was using it to get manic and it worked quite well for that for me in large enough quantities. Eventually I had to admit (I think my pdoc asked me how much I was consuming) that I was way overdoing it and causing bad problems and ruining my job and life. So I stopped. Monster headaches for a bit and then a reminder that I might need APs (as I did then) but APs tend to hate me and so I was very hard to stabilize after I did such a good job de-stabilizing myself with the caffeine.

I'm sure it's not true for everyone but it can be.

You may want to check Dbsa thru Nami. They have weekly support groups. Your husband can go too.
Mine went first few meetings to help me get settled in.
I don't tell new people I meet. Or clients I work with, but that's a personal decision.

Thank you for your response and your encouragement. I am going to continue to "lie low", work what I know, educate myself and the rest will follow.

As for alcohol, I become a terrible pain in the *** when I drink. Both meds I am on have alcohol warnings, so out of caution, I am avoiding. Caffeine is okay - I drink Spark, which is a product by Advocare. It has 70 mg caffeine. I drink it every AM to boost my immune system and keep me regular. That's about it because any more than that reeeeally kicks up my mania (hence, I am awake at 1:34am, no sleep in sight - thanks to NYE caffeine overdose).

Thank you! I have checked previously. No support groups in my area, which I am surprised and upset by.

Thank you. I appreciate your wisdom and insight. I would love to find a good group.

Telling family and friends is something to take cautiously, and with much forethought. Remember it is a one-way street. Once you tell someone, you can never in-tell them, and some will hold it against you.

There are a lot of people out there who equate someone who is bipolar with someone who is bipolar and "off their meds." The media likes to make tremendously sensational stories of people who have done sensational and/or terrible things, using bipolar as the "why." As such, most of society has a predisposition toward a negative reaction to anyone who deals with bipolar.

My family knows, my very close friends know, but nobody else knows the things I struggle with. I don't disclose at work or in any other public forum, mainly because it's none of their business. Granted, I'm relatively "high-functioning" and can appear normal in most social situations.