Questions Bipolar Version 3

Yes. My BF(!) Also someone from the forums.

Do you use public transit?

There is no public transit here. Too rural. I wish there was.

Do you bite your nails?

no.

I keep imagining what they might taste like and that puts me off enough not to do it.

question: do you give second chances easily

No. Once a fault, only The Superior Power can forgive.

What's your addiction. Mine is peanut butter now.

I have an issue with cakes and pastries. I try to limit them, but I crave them so much that I eat some every day anyway. I try to "lighten" them by using sugar substitutes (at least to a degree), a bit less fat, and more whole grain flours, etc. I love to bake, so this is a bit of a challenge. About 15 years ago, I had been abusing alcohol. I don't anymore.

What bad habit have you broken in the past, at least for a while?

throwing my clothes on the floor at the end of the day

I actually got myself a new laundry basket and that's where the clothes go now.

question:

do you have any certificates?. if you do, what are they for

no I don't.

not even from school- as I didn't make it that far even.

first thought when you were diagnosed with bipolar?

My first thought was basically that I wasn't interested in the diagnosis or receiving a new medication for it. That psychiatrist called it "manic depression". This was about 15/16 years ago. I was clearly very hypomanic at the time. Honestly, I didn't know what manic depression or bipolar disorder was at the time. He knew I wouldn't return, and since I didn't accept the new prescription, he just gave me a pamphlet describing the illness. I forget when I finally looked at the pamphlet, but kind of recall thinking it didn't fit me. I had very little insight into my illness at the time. The next time I saw him was about one year later after hell really broke loose. I was hospitalized for the first time the next day.

What major hobby did you have when you were younger that you don't have today (or rarely do anything with nowadays)?

I was really into knitting baby hats for a charity for a long time then I moved here and lost the motivation somehow. I haven't knitted anything in years now.

Does your insurance cover all of your meds?

No. They refused to cover Viagra and Cialis. Voltaren also.
I buy them overseas now. 10 cents on the dollar.

Best pianist.

I can't name a pianist at all.

If you had to choose only one would it be your therapist or pdoc (asssuming pdoc would increase time spent with you)?

therapist.
what asspect of your life do you think has been affected the most by BP

School/work. I dropped out of college because I was wasting money and failing classes and now I have trouble working. I've worked 15 days this entire year and I know I should apply for disability but maybe there's something out there I can handle.

What do you hope to get out of treatment?

I don't know really.

I think I'm a bit beyond pure stability and a life, I suppose just the best I can get and the most affective.

question:
do you tell the time in military time (2100 hours etc), or do you tell the time using 6 PM, 7 PM, etc

I don't use military time. I've never been in the military and its use is not common where I am from in the US. I'd say 1:30 pm or 7 pm.

I think military time is more used in my husband's country in Europe than it is in the US, at least where we live, but he conformed to our local way of saying times. He has, however, tried to set our scale to kilograms and our indoor/outdoor thermometer to Celcius. I eventually changed them back to pounds and Fahrenheit. I do find that using grams for baking ingredients is superior to cups and ounces. I'm happy to conform to that. We may be moving to Europe some day. I'll need to conform. I have basic understanding of the metric system weights and how cold/hot things are in Celcius.

Does travel often bring about bipolar symptoms for you?

Travel improves my mood. I'm more attentive out of my comfort zone.
Specially if it's a place I like. Like the Caribbean, where I was born.

Do you play any instrument?.

no.

I had the option of studdying piano and drums as a kid, but didn't take either of them seriously

that said, I would really like to play the violin. it's beautiful

favorite school subject

Modern Studies (Politics) studied The UK, America (some), China (some), The NHS system (health care system), The difference between Scotland and England in all areas. Visited The Scottish Parliament way back when it opened well a few tears later. Unfortunately didn't get to meet the great Donald Dewar out 1st ever 1st Minister. He died before I got to meet him. It set me up for life as it taught us about the voting system too

Question: Worst subject at school?

math.



what do you miss most about childhood

Taking ballet. Yes, I suppose I could take an adult course in my 40s, but it wouldn't be the same. I miss my dream of being a prima ballerina. I also experienced the idealism of youth up until 14 years old.

What was your favorite age, and why?

8.

last year of inosence because the whole mental health stuff really started getting noticed the following year and things went downhill

what have you done recently for others?

I'm calling a friend who's down for a very powerful reason.
Not like my stupid depression. It was nothing big. Like he's facing. Just many many little things.
Every day. Like he did with me during three long years. Payback time.

Favorite outfit.

Pyjamas

Do you volunteer?

no.

if you were writing a book about your life, what would it be called?

I actually have started writing a draft memoir. I have a nice chunk writen. My first idea for a title was something like "Bird Dancer - A story of yada yada yada", but I found that the title "Bird Dancer" was already taken. I have some ideas for alternatives, but would rather not share them right now. Although bipolar disorder has shaped my life to a significant degree, my memoir is not strictly about the disorder. There have been many significant happenings/stories in my life that had nothing to do with the disorder.

What was the best day you had in the last seven days, and what made it better than the others?