Self-Management

With any condition that goes in a cycle, half the battle of managing it is monitoring where you are in the cycle at any time.

To cope, it’s sometimes useful to think about bipolar disorder in the same way that you might think about asthma or diabetes. You need to take certain daily measures – of your breathing capacity or blood sugar – and then take these into account in what you do for that day.

Similarly, with bipolar disorder, you can monitor your mood and your thoughts. This helps you to spot changes in mood that might come before a relapse. It’s still possible that a relapse may happen, but you can plan for this.

It’s important to have a trusted friend or carer. You can make an agreement that whenever they spot the warning signs of a relapse they will warn you, and you can both take certain pre-agreed steps.

These could be taking a couple of days’ rest, reviewing whether you’ve taken on too much lately and shedding some of it, or seeing a community mental health team member.

If the worst happens, it may help if you’ve already agreed with the mental health team and/or your carer about what will happen.

Make a crisis planning list. Briefly describe the kind of help you would like to receive if you have severe symptoms again.
Include:
• Your doctor’s name and contact information
• Contact information of your support group and other trusted friends/family members
• Other health problems and medications you take
• Allergies and medications you cannot take
• Your insurance or Medicaid information and the hospital where you prefer to be treated
• Things that might trigger an episode, such as life events, travel, physical illness or work stress
• Warning signs such as talking very fast, paranoia, lack of sleep, slowed down movement, excessive alcohol or drug use
• Things people can say that will help calm or reassure you
• Things people should do for you such as take away your car keys and lock up anything you could use to hurt yourself
• Things emergency staff can do for you, such as explain things, talk slowly, give you space, or write things down for you
• Reasons your life is worthwhile and your recovery is important

How can an advance directive or a medical power of attorney help me?

An advance directive and a medical power of attorney are written documents in which you give another person authority to make treatment decisions for you if you are too ill to make your own. It is best to consult a qualified attorney to help you put together an advance directive or medical power of attorney. These documents work differently in different states.

On this day..

• Post-Diagnosis - 2006