I just had to chime in a little bit, I have been in a course through my therapist to recognize symptoms and I can do so pretty often, NOT all the time though, but can do, however.....I CAN"T stop the coming of the changes....no matter what....i've tried all the coping skills, all the postive thinking, all the yoga, all the meditation, drawing, music, journaling,etc.....but what are we to DO when we recognize them???I mean really I want to so badly thwart these rapid cycling moods and esp the mixed stages and can feel them coming but nothing seems to stop them....why is that???is it possible TO stop them??? I know recognizing is a BIG IMPORTANT Thing but does that stop the transitions that take place......perhaps i just am not comprehending, seems i do that a lot lately, or perhaps i just am not utilizing the right methods or something but i absolutely positively can NOT stop the mood swings even when i feel them internally or others like my so supportive husband recognizes them.....what is one to do then???your intense knowledge would soooooo help me out here.....the training DID help me recognize, but can't do a darn thing about it when they come full force, even when utilizing skills i've been taught and i do utilize them a lot.......is it possible that they aren't stoppable and that you are just trying to make us AWARE of the coming??? I am confused, but lately that's nothing new it seems....here i sit with a masters degree (and a 4.0 on it at that) and can't seem to get control of the rapid rapid changes that come at me, yet i try so very very hard.....
HELP if you know of anything i should be doing....or aren't doing....or anything.....your knowledge is needed.....
thanks for this post so much!! (PS meds are adjusted and i take religiously and have tried other kinds so know it isn't that i'm not on right meds for the ones i'm on DO help somewhat, just not sure anyting can completely stop this spiral back and forth, more like a whirlwind really)
ctrygirl
John, I enjoyed the "nuts and bolts" information of this post very much! If we are "high functioning", and most of us are, we (I) tend to throw everything we know into one big junk drawer. Then when I need a tool to fix something I'm digging and scrambling, frustrated to the point that I just dump out everything into the floor and sit and cry.
Okay, yes, that metaphor was to show that we have to remember what particular triggers come up and what to we have on hand to manage them. I have a very bad habit of wanting to watch late night TV, take my meds late, then get up early with my daughter for school. After a few days of this and I'm online shopping, talking on the phone, chain-smoking, and on-line shopping. Then CRAAASSSHHHH!!!!
Then it's on the couch for a few weeks with a pillow on my head giving death threats to anyone who bothers me. It all started with staying up an hour too late at night and taking meds too late.
I am an information junkie so I have dozens of books on mood disorders, including John's. Some are very technical, some are memoirs. I have underlined and commented on many passages with dates of reading. These are my favorite tools to help me identify triggers when I start ignoring that little voice in my head that I'm not sleeping enough, eating right, smoking too much, procrastinating paying the bills or housekeeping.
Angie
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Hi, Stardust. Very glad you got a lot out of this. Your email to me helped me tremendously. It really got me thinking, and when I started writing this I came up with things that hadn't even occurred to me, so this was a learning experience to me.
To all readers: Please be encouraged to write me, though because of my workload I can't guarantee a considered reply. But as you can see from Stardust, I do consider your input absolutely vital to what I do. I'm just an ivory tower scribbler otherwise. I only wish there were more of me to give you the attention you deserve.
You can post me publicly in my blog and Ask the Expert Patient Feature and you can also contact me privately by clicking the appropriate links on this site.