Putting Stigma to Shame
The hardest thing about Second Stage Healing is believing that you are better on a morning when you wake up feeling like a pile of garbage. (That was yesterday. Today I am feeling fine, thank you!) Psychiatric patients or those who have decided to opt out being one, know that every little thing can be attributed to ‘your mood disorder’ once you have been labelled with a disorder. It has taken me better than half of my 16 years of ...
Waking Up Haunted?
Every once-in-awhile I wake up haunted by the things I used to do or say when I was really sick with bipolar. Does that happen to you too? Waking up remembering might be haunting, but it is one of the most beautiful parts about true Second Stage Healing. Heck, I remember times when I was heavily medicated and unable to wake up at all. I remember the days when I had to take a drug to get to sleep ...
A Happy Family Valentine
Today is Valentine’s Day. I stayed up late last night to decorate a surprise and woke early to put on a breakfast for my husband and children. The excited chatter at the table turned to singing – literally. My children spontaneously broke out in a happy lilting version of a children’s song that I taught them as babies. “As I have loved you… Love one another…” I laughed at nineteen-year-old James, and three sisters; Samantha, Melanie and Meagan, all singing ...
Bipolar, Panic and Anxiety…What is the Difference?
Take a minute to look at the DSM-IV – the manual that your physician used to determine the criteria for your diagnosis. Psychiatric diagnoses are complicated things. That’s why many of our diagnoses have changed over the years. Mine changed from depression to BipolarI, to BipolarI with rapid cycles, to a final and extra comforting label of BipolarI with rapid cycles and schizophrenic tendencies. Did you know that I was so sick – even while diligently following my specialist’s order ...
To Honor My Mother
What good can come of a suicide? None. Even so, I wrote this article in honor of my mother and all of the good we have tried to create in the wake of her terrible death. Did you know Debbie? She was a dedicated mother and a loving wife. She was the kind who sang her heart out in the kitchen, worked in group homes for lost and lonely teens, volunteered in schools, and every once in a while, started up a little ...
Save My Marriage!
Not everyone will cheer you on when you decide to move from medications to a normal healthy life. Sometimes our closest friends are the greatest skeptics. Fact is, if you have been diagnosed with bipolar, it is because you have done something that scared the living daylights out of your family. Whatever you did before is tough to forget. What you did makes them question your judgement now, especially if it was your idea to transition from medications to the ...
Can you really die of embarrassment?
When you use micronutrient formulations like EMPowerplus to balance your mood, you’ll discover that there is no magic pill effect. No sedation, no warm fuzzy feelings in your face or chest. (There are also no side effects worth mentioning either.) After days or weeks or months, once the old medications are safely eliminated, you are left with only yourself, a predictable mood, and some crystal clear memories of where you have been and what you did during the course of ...
Get Smart About Your Health
Forrest Gump’s momma always said, “Stupid is as stupid does.” Okay, she’s better known for “life is like a box of chocolates…” but we’ll save that one for another blog. I woke up this morning thinking about how “Stupid” is only as stupid as what Stupid does and realized the same goes for “Healthy”. Healthy is what healthy does. Or Crazy is… Can I go there? I know, I know… It wasn’t a choice the first time unhealthy came knocking. ...
Ready…Set…Heal!
Ready…Set…Heal! So, I’m wondering about this notion of speed healing. Where did anyone get the idea that you can be sick and then sicker for years; medicated and then even more medicated for far too long and then drop it all in a week? “Drop the drugs and the habits and the hurts…Right Now!” yeah. right. I get fast-food mentality, the magic pill philosophy of sedatives and uppers and downers and SSRIs … but that expectation for instant sedation simply cannot apply to a groundbreaking, micronutrient ...
Recording A Promise of Hope
When I sold the rights of publishing to HarperCollins Canada (I lived in Canada until three years ago,) I begged them to produce an audio book so that my story could reach everyone – even people who are as sick as I used to be. When I was super depressed I couldn’t read. Just before the book was published in 2007, I got a call saying they planned to produce the audio book. I asked if I could read it. I wasn’t trying ...
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