I was diagnosed with bipolar II three weeks ago. Now that I know I have it, it's so much easier to understand! Here are 5 things I've learned that help manage my symptoms:
1. If you're feeling blue, wear red. Today I am wearing a blue shirt and fuchsia shorts and hot pink fuzzy socks (not leaving the house like this!). I was feeling kind of down, so I put on bright colors! It helps! About 50% of my closet is black. It's fashionable, slimming, and works for most events. It also, however, has the tendency to pull your mood down and make you sad. So if you're feeling blue, wear red. Metaphorically, of course, if your color isn't red. ;-)
2. Sticky note your mirror. Write one thing that you like about yourself every day on a sticky note. Put the sticky notes around the edge of your mirror. You'll see them every day and they will make you feel a little better! And don't be too cynical when you see them--your smile is beautiful, you are a good person. Don't use these to pull yourself down!
3. Set small goals and make them. If you're in a downward spiral, it's hard to get out. But if you set a small goal and make it, it starts helping. Then do it again. I'm talking small goals: pick up a few dirty clothes, unload the dishwasher, write a letter to a friend, make the bed, etc. Small goals that matter. These will improve your mood. Again, this is something that you will be able to use against yourself: "Unloading the dishwasher is nothing; why would that make me feel better? I'm so much better than that." No! Don't do that! Just unload the dishwasher and then tell me you don't feel better.
4. Do not reward yourself with food--you are not a dog. This is a hard one. We are obsessed with rewarding ourselves with dinner out or a special dessert or a double-triple-mocha-frappucino-latte "because I deserve it." Here's the thing: you are not a dog. Dogs get rewarded with treats. People don't. So don't treat yourself like a dog. Rewarding yourself like a dog will never make you feel better. Sure, it will while you're eating or sitting in the drive-thru waiting for your coffee or something, but 20 minutes later, you'll have nothing but a stomachache and a sugar crash to show for it--and your mood will take a giant dive, making the rest of your day horrible.
5. Keep your friends close. Seriously. You need them. You need to talk to them about the fact that you have bipolar and you will not always treat them the way they should be treated, but you know that and you're doing your best to seek treatment. If you just treat your friends like crap and you don't talk to them and find treatment, it's on you if they leave. You need your friends, so make sure you treat them like friends.
Stay strong!
"Be the change you wish to see in the world." --Gandhi
Showing posts with label mood. Show all posts
Showing posts with label mood. Show all posts
Tuesday, September 10, 2013
Wednesday, May 22, 2013
Things You Shouldn't Say
This morning I woke up in an incredibly snarky mood. I was watching the news and had strong opinions about literally everything I was seeing: anchors' clothing choices, headline stories, commercials...everything. So I thought I would share. Some of you will think some of it is inappropriate, but hey, we all have days like this, and I'd rather put it out there than just let it simmer in my head all day.
1. Department of Justice. People are upset that the Obama administration has cracked down on "whistle-blowers." They're upset that his administration is not as "transparent" as he promised it would be. This morning on "Morning Joe" they killed about 7 minutes of air time discussing it. Why are they and we even pretending to "know" anything that's going on? There is no administration that can be "transparent." Obama said that to get elected and I don't think even he knew the extent to which he cannot be transparent. If you actually believed that he was going to share every possible terror threat with the country, you're insane.
In our age of endless instant information, of course there will be more whistle-blowers dealt with because there are more of them. I would rather have the administration keep certain things to themselves so that I'm not paranoid that our country is going to get blown up today than have to be given a daily briefing on which terrorist group wants to kill us all today.
People on both sides of the aisle are very upset about this, but come on. If the administration told us all everything that was going on for even a day, the same people who are currently upset would lose their minds about the administration over-sharing and making the citizens of our country freak out.
2. Tornado Victims Without Insurance. Yesterday I heard that a lot of the people who lived in the Oklahoma communities that got blown apart by the tornados didn't have insurance because they couldn't afford it. Of course we are all going to donate money and supplies to help them get their homes back even though they don't have insurance.
But the some of the same people who would have a cow if Obama didn't expedite federal help to these people who "chose" to not have insurance because they couldn't afford it are the same people who backed Hobby Lobby's fight against Obamacare so that their female employees don't get federally funded birth control. These are the same people who think that each person should be held accountable for their own health: "Why should we help them? They had the opportunity to be responsible and get a good job and purchase health insurance and they chose not to. Why are they my responsibility?" How are the tornado victims who don't have insurance any different? Why are you willing to help them, but not a 15-year-old girl who is a product of her environment, has not had the opportunity to be educated, and has no insurance?
3. TV Anchors Wearing Fluorescent Colors. This has been a long time coming. I actually have started making daily notes on anchors' outfits because there are the same mistakes being made over and over again. Today, I'm only going to focus on color: just because fluorescent is trendy doesn't mean it translates well on TV. And shouldn't our anchors be trendy on the upscale level, not the teenybopper level? Sixth graders are wearing neon. Professional adults are not.
Bright red, pink, orange, yellow, and lime green have got to get out of your wardrobe! 90% of the time, it washes you out because your complexion and the makeup you're wearing (well, not wearing) can't handle the intensity of the color you're wearing. Also, take 3 seconds and look at your background. If you wouldn't put hot pink in front of a bright red in your house, don't put it together on something that's in my house (the TV). It's very simple.
I really feel like my local news station is better at this than a lot of the national stations which shocks me, because the national stations have extensive stylists who are supposedly keeping our anchors looking good on TV. I would like to point out that I am not calling any particular station or stations out. Even my favorite anchors have had this neon transgression! But since I've started taking daily notes, I've been going to channels I don't normally go to and it's a recurring problem. Especially on the channels I don't watch! ;-)
So. The article on horrible commercials will be for tomorrow. It's written, but I don't want to overdo it! Venting just made me feel a tad better and I feel like I'm ready take on all of your comments that I'm sure you'll not hesitate to share! ;-)
"Be the change you wish to see in the world." --Gandhi
In our age of endless instant information, of course there will be more whistle-blowers dealt with because there are more of them. I would rather have the administration keep certain things to themselves so that I'm not paranoid that our country is going to get blown up today than have to be given a daily briefing on which terrorist group wants to kill us all today.
People on both sides of the aisle are very upset about this, but come on. If the administration told us all everything that was going on for even a day, the same people who are currently upset would lose their minds about the administration over-sharing and making the citizens of our country freak out.
2. Tornado Victims Without Insurance. Yesterday I heard that a lot of the people who lived in the Oklahoma communities that got blown apart by the tornados didn't have insurance because they couldn't afford it. Of course we are all going to donate money and supplies to help them get their homes back even though they don't have insurance.
But the some of the same people who would have a cow if Obama didn't expedite federal help to these people who "chose" to not have insurance because they couldn't afford it are the same people who backed Hobby Lobby's fight against Obamacare so that their female employees don't get federally funded birth control. These are the same people who think that each person should be held accountable for their own health: "Why should we help them? They had the opportunity to be responsible and get a good job and purchase health insurance and they chose not to. Why are they my responsibility?" How are the tornado victims who don't have insurance any different? Why are you willing to help them, but not a 15-year-old girl who is a product of her environment, has not had the opportunity to be educated, and has no insurance?
Bright red, pink, orange, yellow, and lime green have got to get out of your wardrobe! 90% of the time, it washes you out because your complexion and the makeup you're wearing (well, not wearing) can't handle the intensity of the color you're wearing. Also, take 3 seconds and look at your background. If you wouldn't put hot pink in front of a bright red in your house, don't put it together on something that's in my house (the TV). It's very simple.
I really feel like my local news station is better at this than a lot of the national stations which shocks me, because the national stations have extensive stylists who are supposedly keeping our anchors looking good on TV. I would like to point out that I am not calling any particular station or stations out. Even my favorite anchors have had this neon transgression! But since I've started taking daily notes, I've been going to channels I don't normally go to and it's a recurring problem. Especially on the channels I don't watch! ;-)
So. The article on horrible commercials will be for tomorrow. It's written, but I don't want to overdo it! Venting just made me feel a tad better and I feel like I'm ready take on all of your comments that I'm sure you'll not hesitate to share! ;-)
"Be the change you wish to see in the world." --Gandhi
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