Is it Harder to Recover from Travels When We’re Bipolar?

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Mon, April 23, 2007

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We flew from New York to California for ten days to visit family, and while it was a good trip (every day sunny and warm), I seem to be having a lot of trouble getting my life back on track after returning. Maybe it didn’t help that we got home at 2:30 a.m., or that traveling by plane these...

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Polarimbi

4/23/07 8:12pm

I was diagnosed with bipolar disorder only a couple of years ago, and it has illuminated so much of what I experienced prior to my diagnosis, meds, and awareness. I used to go to a lot of research conferences and felt so out of sorts upon arrival and overwhelmed upon my return. I used to wonder how everyone else dealt with it. Now I understand that both the conferences were stressful and that any change in time zone can trigger depression or mania. So now whenever I travel, I am gentle with myself and deliberately do less than more! Thanks for sharing and increasing the awareness.

Lynne Taetzsch

4/24/07 8:47am

Thanks for your input on this topic, Polarimbi. Keeping the pressure off ourselves, and doing less, as you suggest, is the key to surviving travel well.

Lynne

Anonymous

4/24/07 5:13pm

Absolutely it affects us more. I went to Hawaii last year going through many time changes and long trip with no sleep. Was hypomanic the entire time in Hawaii. It took a few weeks to settle back down coming home as well. I have OCD as well and usually it is OK, when I travel ANYWHERE I obsess about every little detail before I go like "is everything packed", "are the animals going to be ok" and on and on. Once I get there I am fine. Pat

Lynne Taetzsch

4/26/07 11:27am

Hi Pat,

I can identify with your obsessive worry about everything being OK before a trip. I make lists and check them off, but still lie awake wondering what I've forgotten!

Lynne

Is it Harder to Recover from Travels When We’re Bipolar?

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