I have a cousin who is bi–polar and she is a grown woman and I think shes been thru the mill so to speak with lots of things that have bothered her/ mainly to do with her sickness. She takes her meds every day but she had a terrible diet. Chips; cottage cheese and a soda was her thing. She would sleep many hours past 8. Until one day she was at my house and watching me count Vitamin D and calcium plus keeping track of protein and calories I ate. (I am lowering my weight & cholesterol)-she told me she ate whatever she wanted but does what you are doing really work? I told her it works for me but I told her to talk to your doctor first if you plan any changes cause if you change your diet to fast you might have problems. My doctor started me on the right path but Ive read alot too about nutrition. I use to live on coffee and donuts once/ and get many headaches daily and had trouble sleeping–not anymore. I feel if a person eats a more balanced diet–it might make them feel better physically. Its done this to me. I cant cure someones bi-polar sickness and maybe all the diet information wont work on everybody but maybe it will only help a few? Or make someone more comfortable..

“If you have a severe form of bipolar, often accompanied with psychotic symptoms that have resulted in multiple hospitalizations and have a history of suicidal thoughts and behaviors, a combination of medication and psychotherapy is essential.”

Yes, I agree but this still begs the question, forever, for good, for all with Bipolar I. This was the case for me in the 1990s. After 10 years of Tx and no episodes can the other factors apply? History has changed, and I’m not sure it will repeat itself.

” Brains change. Over time, a brain may “grow out of bipolar” or at least become less vulnerable to severe mood swings. In addition, a person’s life may become less stressful over time – perhaps requiring less medicinal protection.

People who have “lighter” forms of bipolar disorder may find that they’re able to manage their symptoms without medications – for example, with psychotherapy, family therapy, lifestyle changes, nutrition, and/or other forms of therapy.”

Medication has given me the stability I needed to change over time. But it has made it difficult to make further lifestyle changes, to get good nutrition and to seek other ways of managing mood and mind. My attitude was, I’m taking meds, I’m not getting ill and I’m accomplishing a lot. But, I was getting physically and emotionally unhealthier.

Having stopped meds, I can now sleep without adjunct medication, my years long insomnia is gone, I have decided to shape a less stressful lifestyle and pay attention to staying well. I have gotten over my fear of the spiritual stuff that got mixed up in my mania in the past, separating the wheat from the chaffe and avoiding idiotic teachings and people.

I do worry that this is a risky path, but I also worry that staying on meds forever is a an even riskier path. I don’t feel 100% well physically and emotionally on meds, but it is an ill feeling that is so much milder than mania. Over the long-term I coped with being tired, not getting enough exercise, taking seroquel for sleep and then having that disturb my appetite screwing up my nutrition, going to doctors to try and get medication adjustments, working too much and feeling bad about the amount of sick days I need from an employer.

But, on the outside you would look at my CV, and say isn’t that wonderful what a mental patient can do with treatment. But that is to all not good enough for me, it is ‘well enough, getting by’. It is a path to cancer or heart disease.

They used to tell me that medication allows you to live a normal life, but they never asked me if that’s what I wanted. In this society that means for many people, digging an early grave from all the diseases related to stress in a world that expects from you only productivity, 50 weeks of work out of year of 52, 5 days of work out of a week of 7, 8 hours of work in a day, and then commuting, shopping, and all the bureaucracy – all you want to do is watch television at the end of that kind of day.

Having worked in international development, I can see that in North America, mental illness aside, we are miserable as compared to the poorest in the world, and that seems strange. Why would anyone, let alone me, want a normal life here?

Medication helps me live in that world which is many ways easier than the path I’m taking now because it is rewarded, conventional, comfortable and low-risk. But is that good for me? I’m an artist, a musician, a writer, a mystic, a bohemian. 10 years was necessary to stabilize the manias, but 10 years is enough! No more bipolar disorder, bipolar order now. This is my hypothesis.

I’m doing well so far off meds. Pray for me!

I have had very serious episodes of bipolar, in and out of hospitals, I was even on disability. But over the years, I am using less and less medication, and I am working again. I think that for many people, the meds are part of the problem. If you read the work of Robert Whitaker, most long term studies show that people do better OFF of psychiatric drugs long term. However, he does not look at mood stabilizers- he does look at antidepressants, antipsychotics, and benzodiazipines. Medicine may or may not be necessary for a really bad period- and I certainly have found it to be so- but I think that the evidence for long term use really isn’t there yet. Perhaps it is different for mood stabilizers. And certainly everyone is different. I think NAMI’s term of “Serious and Persistent” mental illness is a bad one. A very high proportion of people with bipolar and schizophrenia do get better- and some people will get worse, too. These things are not static.