Bipolar Questions Version 5

Ah, well, I used to run a busy skin cancer unit, so,... But I do enjoy it with sunscreen, though. If that counts.

What is a typical breakfast for you?

I must confess to liking sweet breakfasts. It's always some kind of sweet carb (from oatmeal to cake, baguette with jam, pancake/crepe/waffle, yogurt with fruit or granola). I do like savory breakfast foods, but not for breakfast. More for lunch, or no earlier than 10 to 10:30 am. That's when I eat eggs, breakfast meats, etc. If I eat only low sugar dry cereal with milk at breakfast, I tend to get hungry again one to two hours later. This is all because of my Seroquel XR, I think. Before meds, I could live on just a cup of coffee with milk (no sugar) through lunchtime.

Q: What food(s) do you have a hard time limiting or giving up?

Baked sweets. I cannot pace myself. If it’s there, I’ll eat it till it’s gone.

How much weight have you gained since the lockdown?

I have not got a scale at present, but I have lost quite a lot of weight over the last two years due to both becoming about 95% vegan and riding my bike a lot. Not at all intentional. I just accidentally wore a shirt the other day that I never, ever could have even put on two years ago. It seemed just a tad smallish. So, I guess I am maybe 180 or so. Super light for me.

What is your favorite berry of all?

Raspberry!! (But not with a fork and knife, lol. Or maybe yes. As long as I get to eat raspberries!!)

What is your favorite pie?

That is a hard one to decide on. Key lime pie (homemade with real key limes) is absolutely wonderful, but so is sour cherry pie, and coconut custard pie. I haven't had coconut custard pie in well over a decade, because my husband doesn't like it. Boo! Luckily, he does like key lime pie. Pie was extremely popular in my family. Every holiday we had several different pies for dessert, and you'd see our plates filled with small slices of more than one or two types. Crazy for pie! My Czech husband barely ate pie before coming to the US. It's not common in Czech baking.

Q: Which type of bipolar episode has been the most severe for you? What made it most severe?

Unrelenting psychosis, for sure. Losing concatct with reality is very difficult for me.

Most helpful psych med of all time, overall?

clozapine

What do you eat for breakfast?

Not enough. I do not eat enough.But, usually, maybe a banana or two. Occasionally, oatmeal. Sometimes, a few eggs. Or other fruit.

Is there some place on earth that you have never seen but would still like to? Where is that?

Patagonia in Argentina.

Q: What was your favorite journey, to date? Need not be literal travel, but could be.

Probably a trip across Europe, from Greece to Ireland and everywhere in between, right after college. 3 months with a Eurail pass. We were poor, but it was probably better than any of the extremely expensive trips I have taken. Which I find very instructive about what matters in life, to me, at least. Greece was just magical. There was a ferry ride overnight from Brindisi. It was summer and warm. We all put out our sleeping bags on the huge top deck and slept under the stars, probably more than a hundred just random young travelers from everywhere. Never forget that night. Magic.

Do you like seafood very much?

Yes, I like most seafood except lobster.

What is your favorite junk food?

chocolate anything
Have you ever kept in touch with a therapist after your sessions were done?

Not a therapist, but a counselor from group that quit. He offers to give me rides to appointments when for whatever reason I can't drive.
Do you have a song stuck in your head?

Nope and I try very hard to not let that happen because a song stuck in my head often leads to psychosis for me. Weird I know.

Did you have problems in school that you now know were related to bipolar?

Yes. I almost failed 10th grade because I missed so many days skipping school because of a depression. In early 11th grade, I had a rather traumatic thing happen at school, surely related to my bipolar disorder. [At the time, I wrongly thought I had schizophrenia.] I had to go to a teen therapist, but that lasted only two or three sessions (long story). Then my guidance counselor recommended my parents send me to a private school, which they did. I liked it there, but was still not completely well. I became hyper religious (found God/converted to Catholicism) and rebellious at the same time. I often had after school and weekend suspension, because I verbally fought with teachers a lot. Nevertheless, I did well, grade-wise. In 12th grade, I was the main American student representative during a cultural trip to China PRC in 1989 - - a very significant year. The Tiananmen Square Incident, in Chinese history, happened two weeks after I departed from Beijing. I believe I was a bit hypomanic during the trip. I had to give solo speeches, in both English and my small bit of Chinese, and a dance performance to groups of 50 to 100.

I was mostly fine at college (some occasional drinking issues), until my junior year. That year, I became depressed and cut my course load down to the minimum, and did somewhat poorly, despite. In my senior year, I was able to easily take 21 credits per semester and get good grades. I believe I was a bit manic most of that year, turning mixed through some of it. I was referred to a university psychiatrist, who stupidly prescribed Prozac. I stole my best friend's boyfriend and it became a sex fest. I lost about 12 lbs quickly, getting down to 117 lbs, which is quite underweight for me.

Q: Which years were your most stable years, beyond childhood?

2017-2018, almost no significant episodes

Do you think of your therapist's office as a special safe place?

I do. I feel very comfortable with my therapist, and she has a generally pleasant office. I actually feel that my psychiatrist's office is even safer. I have a real affection for him, and he truly cares about my wellness. His office is no more pleasant-looking than my therapist's, but I have grown accustomed to many things there, and when he's changed anything, it has been noticed. His office is closer to my home in an even nicer environment than my therapist's.

Q: What have you learned as a result of the pandemic that relates to your bipolar disorder?

Yes. ''help me thru the night'' by Joe Walsh

I have no question

my question is:

what is 1 thing (or more if you want to name them) thing you want to accomplish before the year is out

Get 2 books off to publisher.

Do you like poetry at all?

Absolutely! I read a lot of poetry in my youth. I still read a bit, though now I usually read ones from blogs, rather than published ones.I've even tried my hand at writing some poetry, though I'm quite a novice.

Q: What have you learned as a result of the pandemic that relates to your bipolar disorder?

That "normal" people would haev a really, really hard time being one of us for more than a couple of hours. They are all freaking about this isolation, but most of us are isolated all the time. Anyway...

What is your favorite bird?

I don't really like birds much, but I guess penguins. They are cool because the males take care of the babies.

Do you prefer cats or dogs?

I like both a lot. Cats are underrated.

Favorite movie of all time?