TWENTY SIXTEEN - PART FOURTEEN - Living with Bi Polar

LIVING WITH BI POLAR DISORDER - PART ONE  hello Folks,  This may seem like I have gone off the beaten track, but I haven't.  It is all part of my story.

  22nd March 2016  I                  have been awake for                quite a few hours now.              First my mind was very            active when I awoke in            the early hours. I lay in            the dark pondering the              events of the previous day.


 I    felt so helpless, emotionally bruised and negative. I prayed and asked God to lead and guide me.

Then  I decided, (I believe God led me to do this)  to go onto "google"  and get more information on BPD , because that was where my new problem lay.

 I took some screen shots of some articles written by Jeanne Segal  Ph.d and also read the sample of her book  "Feeling  Loved."  I would have loved to buy the book but at this stage it is out of my reach.

The insight I gained in the past few hours has given me renewed hope. I have been given a better understanding of the problem (BPD) and know that with God's help I can go on.

Once again, "I can do all things through Christ Who strengthens me."  

Phillipians  4:13

It is now Good Friday, March 25th 2016, this is the 4th day of my new struggle.

First of all -  what is Bi Polar Disorder?  

BPD is another name for "manic depression"

Apparently when someone suffers from this condition, they have extreme mood swings. They have "manic" episodes and they have "depressive"  episodes.

During a "manic"  episode, they may impulsively give important goods away, quit their job,  charge up huge amounts on credit cards, and can feel rested after only two hours of sleep.

During a "depressive" episode, this same person may feel too tired to get out of bed, be filled with self-loathing or hopelessness over being unemployed and unable to support themselves.

Also they may act like robots , their speech is sometimes slurred and they look as if they will collapse at any moment.  They can also become very aggressive  and say nasty, cruel things to their nearest and dearest.

The causes are not yet completely understood, but often appears to be hereditary. The first episode usually occurs in the teens or early adulthood.

In my case I think I can trace it way back to my pregnancy - I fell pregnant with Ruth in September 1963, at this time, unbeknown to me I was about to go through one of the worst episodes of my life.  

I had never had an easy life. I wasn't born with the proverbial "silver spoon in my mouth," but this was so devastating that everything else that had happened to me in the  past paled into insignificance.


next post 19th June