The Path of Least Resistance

~~ Philippians 4:13 (NKJV) ~~  I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. 

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by Carley Cooper

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How often have you wondered over the years why it seems that you didn’t get an easy path like others do?  Everyone has bumps in their path that they have to climb over, get around, or sometimes even blast out of the way.  For me, my biggest obstacle is Bipolar Disorder.  It is something that I can’t get away from.  It’s there staring me in the face daily.  I can’t take a vacation from it.  Whether I’m feeling good or not; I’m still bipolar.  It took me many years to get the proper diagnosis.  I finally know what’s wrong with me.  I finally have a good medical team; and support from other sources.  I have found though, that it’s all limited.  Meds stop working after a while, the best counseling or therapy can’t prevent episodes from happening, friends and loved ones get tired of the roller coaster and walk away.  I’ve learned in my life that often other people just can’t take it anymore and push me away permanently.  It’s another obstacle that I have to live with.  I’m broken, and others can only offer so much support before they run out of energy themselves. 

I have always felt that if I could only help my friends and family understand it more than maybe they would have more tools to work with.  Maybe they wouldn’t walk away so quickly.  Maybe you have felt the same way, so I’ve compiled a list of resources that will help you to better understand this beast that we’re fighting.  If you a sufferer than this should give you some insight into your symptoms, and possibly give you something extra to talk to your doctors about.  I learned things about myself from some of these things that I wasn’t aware of before.  I learned about symptoms that I didn’t  know were symptoms.  If you’re someone who is living with a loved one who is suffering and you want or need to understand more this should  give you some insight as well. 

 

The Basic’s off Bipolar Disorder (BPD):

• There are 2 types:

Bipolar 1 – More severe; often known by behaviour that will put the sufferer in danger.  For example, during a mania period s/he may believe they can fly, and attempt to jump  off a roof. 

Bipolar 2 – Less severe; sufferers do not usually put themselves in danger. 

• Extreme mood swings beyond that of a normal healthy person.  These mood swings go from extreme depression to a manic high and back again.  The time limit in between mood changes vary from person to person. 

• A depressive or a mania period is commonly referred to as an episode.  Some will have an episode that can last as long as years.  Others can have episodes that change in a matter of half an hour, and then back again.  These more frequent changing episodes are called ‘Rapid Cycling’. 

• Severe changes in energy for most people accompany the changes in mood swings.  This can mean little to no energy that is needed to live life and care for one self.  It could also mean extreme energy highs that don’t allow the sufferer to stop and rest. 

• Characteristics of a Manic Episode:

- Extreme irritability or distractibility

- Excessive high or euphoric feelings

- Sustained periods of impulsive, unusual or bizarre behaviour; often accompanied by risk taking.  (Which could possibly allow the sufferer to unknowingly put themselves in danger.)

- Increased energy and activity

- Rapid talking – the sufferer will talk fast and for prolonged periods, sometimes leaving the listener unable to understand what they’re talking about.

- Rapid thinking – often called racing thoughts.  Thoughts come at a rapid speed and usually about random subjects that are unrelated to each other.

- Hyper sexuality – often with the need to have sex several times per day.

- Provocative or obnoxious behaviour

- Agitation

- Decreased sleep

- Unrealistic beliefs in one’s on abilities

- Poor judgement

- Poor concentration

- Loss of appetite – sometimes forgetting to eat for, as long as, days.

- Addictions and Substance abuse

- Denial of a problem
- Often people are afraid to follow the path of happiness because they do not know if what they are feeling is really happiness or a mania episode. 

- In full-blown psychotic episodes paranoia, hallucinations (including sound, smell, and visual) and delusions are also possible.

• Characteristics of a Depressive Episode:

- Persistent, sad, anxious or empty mood

- Feeling guilty or worthless

- Hopeless or pessimistic feelings

- Loss of pleasure in usual activities

- Decreased energy

- Loss of sex drive

- Loss of memory or concentration

- Irritability or restlessness

- Sleep disturbances or increased sleeping

- Loss of or increase in appetite

- Persistent thoughts of death

• BPD can result in:

- Inability to function – which also varies in intensity from person to person.

- Damaged relationships – BPD sufferers have a difficult time keeping and maintaining relationships and friendships. 

- Bad work performance

- Suicide

  

More information can be found at:

• Mood Disorders Canada
• CTV’s W-Five documentary on depression; called ‘Fighting the Dragon’ (first aired in 2002.  This article also includes links to the video.)
• Canadian Mental Health Association
• Mental Health America
• Everyday Health
• International Bipolar Foundation (This site has a lot of helpful information.  This link is to their resources page, which has a lot of links to other help, including international links divided by country.)
• WebMD
• Thrive with Bipolar Disorder
• teamThrive  (Thrive with Bipolar Disorder’s Facebook page.  Lots of information and support!)
• Thrive With Bipolar Disorder: Support for Our Loved Ones (teamThrive’s Facebook ‘Community of Support and Education for those effected by loved ones with bipolar disorder’.)  
• Robin Mohilner’s blog (from Thrive with Bipolar Disorder)

Video Resources: 

Here is a list of videos that I have found to be helpful and informative.  Though there are many videos you could watch; these are those that have touched me; the ones I could relate to the most.  Most of these are a maximum of 12 minutes long.  A couple of the documentaries listed that are longer, I’ve noted the length of time.  Each of these videos contributes some important information to understanding the overall picture of Bipolar Disorder.  I suggest that over time, you watch all of them.

BIPOLAR DISORDER ISSUES

An Overall Look at Bipolar Disorder

• Basics of Bipolar Disorder
• Bipolar Overview (from AnswersTV.com)
• Bipolar Symptoms (from Med Watch)
• How To Recognize the Symptoms Of Bipolar Disorder

From teamThrive with Bipolar Disorder

• What Is Bipolar Disorder?...And Keep It Simple
• Stand Against Stigma
• Happiness vs. Mania: How to Know the Difference

Living with Bipolar Disorder

• Living with Bipolar Disorder – Part 1
• Living with Bipolar Disorder– Part 2

Bipolar Disorder Documentary

Flight From Darkness (51 min)

Bipolar State of Being Videos  (This is a video blog of a woman living with BPD.  I find her video’s wonderful as I can relate to so much of what she goes through.  I’ve chosen these as the once that I can relate to the most, but she’s posted many others.)

• Things I do when I'm psychotic...
• Things I do when I'm manic...
• Rapid cycling & sensory overload in bipolar  (Note: She’s in a mania state here and you can see the difference in this woman from her other videos.  I can relate to this so well.)
• The day after my manic vid...
• How relationships have affected my bipolar
• Paranoid delusions in bipolar disorder
• Things I do when I'm manic...
• Hyper sexuality in bipolar mania
• My husband shares his thoughts on bipolar disorder

   

Documentary: Stephen Fry Story

• The Secret Life of the Manic Depressive – Part 1 (11 min.)
• The Secret Life of the Manic Depressive – Part 2 (58 min.)

  

OTHER MENTAL HEALTH ISSUES

Documentary on Mental Illness

• Linda: A Documentary on Mental Illness – Part 1
• Linda: A Documentary on Mental Illness – Part 2

Social Anxiety Documentary: Afraid of People  (57 min.) - (Social Anxiety has been a very big part of my life for many years.)

Schizophrenia: A Recovery (26 min.) - (Though this is not BPD, it can give you a glimpse into the world of mental illness.  There is hope though, as this very brave young man shows.  My hat is off to this guy!)

Strictly for the non-sufferers who need to understand this, just let me give you this advice from the perspective of a suffer.  This is what we need most:

• start by always having patience.  Don’t ever forget that the person you’re looking at, is suffering even when it doesn’t necessarily appear so.  Please be patient, caring, considerate, compassionate, and above all don’t judge.  Basically, love them purely.  I promise you that there is no greater therapy, comfort, advice, medication or support that you can give. 
• Next, love them enough to want to inform yourself.  I know from experience that it hurts when I get brushed off as though I were a pesky mosquito.  To have someone love me enough to want to educate themselves for me, would show me a world that I have rarely seen before. 
• Next, understand that when mistakes are made, relationships are damaged, harsh words are spoken, impulsive decisions are made; it’s all part of the disease.  This is not who your loved one is naturally; or highly unlikely.
• Pray, constantly on their behalf.  Often times your loved one is not capable of knowing the best choice to make.  You can help by praying for this. 
• Stigma – it’s real, it stare’s us in the face daily.  Do your part to kill it.  Help to inform others. 
• Rejecting the sufferer, if you love them at all, should be an absolute last resort! 

I hope these lists help you in some way; that your struggles may become easier, if not disappear completely.  For myself, well I haven’t always been the one to chose the path of least resistance in this journey that is my life.  As a matter of fact, even when I do have a choice, often I chose the more difficult path.  Some would say this is... well, crazy.  I’ve certainly been accused of worse.  Of course, those are the paths where I have options and choices.  Mental health issues, in any format, is always the more difficult path; and it is not by choice that we who are suffering follow this course.  The difficulty level is escalated by medication side effects, that are as long and varied as people who are taking them; and the stigma in the world today regarding mental illness.  If I told someone that I had Cancer, Diabetes, AIDS, Crones Disease, or any of hundreds of other health problems; people would not judge me or be afraid.  The first mention of mental illness means I have often lost a potential friendship before it even got started, damaged current ones, or have been rejected by a (potential) dating partner. 

However, I have learned that I am an over-comer.  It has taken me a long time, but I’ve come to see that there is strength, pride in my accomplishments, and a bigger lesson to be learned by accepting a challenge.  My current obstacles have  left me feeling very tired; mentally, physically, emotionally and spiritually.  I would love to have a vacation from it now and then, but I can’t.  The best I can have is a quick pit stop.  More often than not I feel alone, isolated and rejected; but I never give up hope.  My hope comes from my faith in Jesus.  I am grateful for Him.  My heart is troubled for those who are sufferers and not believers.  As much as I go through on a daily basis, I know Jesus gives me hope.  Not only for my salvation, but as a child of God I know that there is a very real possibility of me being cured one day (if it is in His will).  It is a huge advantage over nonbelievers.  I also know that there is a very real possibility that my issues could in fact very well be in part, if not all, from spiritual warfare.  The ‘symptoms’ of my struggles also fit into that category, but that’s a whole other blog post.  God is in the miracle business.  I am His child, and He loves me.  There was a time when I lived very successfully without medication for about four years.  I only went back on medication when my life was filled with extreme stress (an abusive situation and having to face a possibility of being homeless).  My faith in Jesus gives me the hope that one day I will be medication free again; and it will last forever this time.  I will be able to live a healthy, productive life without rejection or stigma.  You see, I know that “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me” (Philippians 4:13 (NKJV)).   

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~~ Dear God ~~  Thank You for the path that You have chosen for me, and the obstacles that You place in front of me.  Help me to overcome each one in a way that will make You proud of me, and will help me to help others the most.  In Jesus name, AMEN.

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