Mood symptoms such as overspending, hypersexuality, anger attacks, and self-isolation hurt those around us. A simple apology is just the starting point of making things right.
Bipolar illness starts in the gene pool, but factors such as early trauma, limited social support, and how you cope with stress count, too.
By Jennifer Nelson
SoundOFF! Relative-ity
Psychiatric disorders have high “heritability.” Can you trace bipolar or other mental health conditions in your family tree?
bp readers respond
Clock work
Why shorter autumn days, the end of Daylight Saving Time, and interrupted sleep can trigger mood symptoms, and how to fight back with a solid daily routine.
It’s no secret that sleep and bipolar mood stability go hand-in-hand. Here’s what the experts recommend for balancing your body clock—especially in preparation for Daylight Saving Time.
Country musician Jason DeShaw combines his songs and his personal story to bring awareness of mental health challenges to audiences across Big Sky country.
Former international fashion model, makeup artist to celebs, author, and advocate—Jacqueline Cioffa has done it all. She reflects on her unconventional journey.
COLUMNS
Mind Over Mood: Principles to put into practice
Managing bipolar is much more than doctor and therapy appointments and medications. A comprehensive approach—sleeping soundly, eating nutritiously, and exercising regularly—is critical.
By Stephen Propst
Flight of Ideas: Across the porch
Depression can draw you away from the people and places you love most, sapping your will to do much of anything. Engage! (Even in quaratine.)
By Melody Moezzi
Polar Insights: The bipolar trickster
I learned long ago, when you have bipolar, you cannot tell everyone—and, much of the time, you cannot tell anyone. To keep the day going, I mask my struggles with a smile.
Antianxiety medications. Antipsychotics. Antidepressants. Mood stabilizers. Why so many meds? The advantages (and risks) of combining medications in managing a complex mood disorder.
By Melvin G. McInnis, MD, FRCPsych
On My Mind: Caregivers—An intro course for allies
An insider’s guide to how bipolar spikes and swings differ from everyday, garden-variety moods. Hint: Our episodic turbulence arises from misfires in the brain.
Country musician Jason DeShaw combines his songs and his personal story to bring awareness of mental health challenges to audiences across Big Sky country. Growing up in rural Montana, Jason DeShaw set his eyes on the prize of country music stardom. Inspired by legends like Waylon Jennings and Johnny Cash, he was writing songs, playing...
Selena Gomez is no stranger to navigating mental health challenges, from dealing with the emotional burden of lupus to her kidney transplant to bipolar’s depression and anxiety. She’s learned the power of self-care and having the right connections—and how to say “no.” On April 3, 2020, singer and actor Selena Gomez candidly revealed that she...
Mood symptoms such as overspending, hypersexuality, anger attacks, and self-isolation hurt those around us. A simple apology is just the starting point of making things right. When Our Actions during Bipolar Mood Episodes Harm Others Olivia S. of Colorado got up one morning to unexpectedly find two of her four grown children in her living...
Whether you live with bipolar or love someone who does, you can find comfort, wisdom, and strategies (maybe even a good laugh!) in these inspirational books. We can lose ourselves in the power of the written word, compelled by the raw emotions, deep insights, and humorous takes offered by others like us—people who share our...
Nice, this issue is great.
This issue looks great! I can’t wait until it gets here — I’ll be waiting by the mailbox!