11 comments

(This article originally appeared in BP Magazine.) I’m no psychiatrist, but maybe I should be. A little more than 10 years ago, I got married, a big step for anyone. But marriage was a bigger ...

Laura Yeager commented on Laura Yeager's post Laura Yeager: “Tips for the Bipolar Marriage”

3 comments

What if there were a beauty contest for bipolar women? What would the talent part be like? Best tantrum? Best medicine swallow without water? Most money spent on one shopping trip? Most ...

Laura Yeager: Miss Bipolar USA

4 comments

I take an antianxiety med called Perphenazine. I’ve taken it for years. It works wonders, but the only problem with it is that one of its negative side effects is tardive dyskinesia. According to ...

Bipolar Illness and Tardive Dyskinesia

3 comments

When I first told my future husband that I had bipolar illness, we’d been dating about a month. I was a little worried about telling him because I thought he might “drop me.” I remember saying, “I ...

Laura Yeager commented on Laura Yeager's post My Husband: My First Line of Defense Against Bipolar Illness

1 comments

One of the worst things about being bipolar is accidentally dropping medicine on the floor. The reason this is such an awful experience is because I have a small child and I’m afraid he’s going to ...

Pills on the Floor

3 comments

When I first told my future husband that I had bipolar illness, we’d been dating about a month. I was a little worried about telling him because I thought he might “drop me.” I remember saying, “I ...

My Husband: My First Line of Defense Against Bipolar Illness

1 comments

Continuing my topic this week – activities other than ingesting meds that can help you deal with your bipolar illness – I’m now going to discuss journalizing and praying. I found journalizing ...

Laura Yeager: Activities for Reducing the Stress of Bipolar Illness: Part II

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Living with bipolar illness for many years, I’ve come to understand that the best way to deal with this illness, for me, is by ingesting medication. That said, there are other activities that ...

Activities for Reducing the Stress of Bipolar Illness, Part I

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The answer is no. Life is too hard with my disease to bring in another person with the same disease. “Wouldn’t there be advantages to living with a bipolar man?” you ask. Yes. You ...

Laura Yeager: Would I Marry a Man With Bipolar Illness?

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Some days, I’m more inclined to talk about my illness than others. I guess this occurs if I haven’t been suffering too terribly from my disease. The illness is kind of on the back burner; my ...

Laura Yeager: Where Women Talk

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Continuing my topic this week - publishing your creative work on bipolar illness - I have two more publishing forums for you. The Bellevue Literary Review, published by Bellevue Hospital, is ...

Laura Yeager: Places to Publish Bipolar Literature, Part 2

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Writing about your problems can really help you overcome difficulty. I’m certain that many of you out there reading this Empowher.com blog write in journals or, perhaps, write poetry or short ...

Laura Yeager: Places to Publish Bipolar Literature, Part 1

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After I wrote my recent column about QVC and sleeplessness, an anonymous person left me a very pithy comment. The person said something to the effect of “Won’t watching QVC promote ...

Clarification to QVC Column

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Last week, I suffered from extreme irritability, which is often a part of my bipolar illness. I felt absolutely miserable, and I knew I was perfectly awful to be around. I yelled at my husband and ...

Can You Die From Irritability?

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As you may know, I used to take lithium to manage my bipolar illness. In the summer of 2008, my doctor switched me to Depakote due to some bladder complications. Well, let me tell you, I love ...

Laura Yeager commented on Laura Yeager's post Bipolar and Why I Love Depakote!

2 comments

If you don’t know about bp Magazine, you’re really missing out on a great resource for understanding bipolar illness. bp Magazine is a magazine focused completely around bipolar disorder. It ...

Laura Yeager commented on Laura Yeager's post bp (bipolar) Magazine

11 comments

As you may know, I used to take lithium to manage my bipolar illness. In the summer of 2008, my doctor switched me to Depakote due to some bladder complications. Well, let me tell you, I love ...

Bipolar and Why I Love Depakote!

2 comments

If you don’t know about bp Magazine, you’re really missing out on a great resource for understanding bipolar illness. bp Magazine is a magazine focused completely around bipolar disorder. It ...

bp (bipolar) Magazine

1 comments

I hear through the bipolar grapevine that outrageous overspending is a symptom of mania. Manic people have been known to go out and spend thousands and sometimes millions of dollars they might ...

Laura Yeager: Overspending and Bipolar Illness

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Hypersexuality is the increased need for sexual gratification and is often a symptom of mania. I’m glad I don’t experience this. I have other problems when I’m manic such as paranoia and ...

Laura Yeager: Hypersexuality and Bipolar Illness

1 comments

If you have bipolar illness, one of the things you’re probably very familiar with is insomnia. When one is manic, one often has trouble sleeping. There’s nothing worse than lying there all ...

QVC -- A Great Cure for Insomnia When You're Bipolar

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If I ever forget to take my medication at night, I have what I call a “medicine dream.” This is a dream about medicine that somehow wakes me up so that I can take my meds. “Uncanny!” you say. ...

Bipolar Medicine Dreams

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Something I’ve considered over the years is if I had it to do all over again, would I want to do it with bipolar illness in my life? And I know you’re not going to believe this, but the answer ...

The Big Question: Would I Want My Bipolar Illness in My Life?

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Age. Sex. Nationality. These were just some of the barriers I had to contend with when seeing a former psychiatrist. He was an older man in his sixties who was from India. I was a ...

The Great Divide and Finding the Right Psychiatrist

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When I look in the mirror, I am constantly reminded that I have bipolar illness. You see, I’m 50 pounds overweight. I credit taking lithium for putting on the pounds. But recently, I joined ...

Laura Yeager commented on Laura Yeager's post Losing the Bipolar Weight

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As a person with bipolar disorder, I am aware that certain things can trigger my mania. One of these things is being around an extremely manic person. For instance, at support groups, where ...

Contact Mania Buzz

2 comments

When I look in the mirror, I am constantly reminded that I have bipolar illness. You see, I’m 50 pounds overweight. I credit taking lithium for putting on the pounds. But recently, I joined ...

Losing the Bipolar Weight

56 comments

There exists what I’d like to call the PHFBP, or the professional, high-functioning bipolar patient. When looking at the PHFBP, it would appear that he faces few problems. He is compliant in ...

Laura Yeager commented on Laura Yeager's post “The Professional, High-Functioning Bipolar Patient”

3 comments

One of the things I really miss since I came down with bipolar illness is getting rip roaring drunk. I can’t do that any more. I’m not allowed to drink a lot on the medicines I’m taking. Not ...

Booze and Bipolar Medication

1 comments

For years, I blamed people for my bipolar illness. I thought it was people’s fault that I got sick. This blame made me bitter toward people. But recently, I’ve given up on blaming people for ...

Let Go of the Blame

4 comments

(This originally appeared in BP Magazine.) 1. Set up a routine. Take your meds at the same time(s) every day. I take mine before I brush my teeth at night. Taking them at the same time ...

Laura Yeager commented on Laura Yeager's post Laura Yeager: Tips for Taking Your Bipolar Meds

4 comments

(This originally appeared in BP Magazine.) 1. Set up a routine. Take your meds at the same time(s) every day. I take mine before I brush my teeth at night. Taking them at the same time ...

Laura Yeager commented on Laura Yeager's post Laura Yeager: Tips for Taking Your Bipolar Meds

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(This originally appeared in BP Magazine.) I always knew I wanted to be a writer. When I was eight, I used to sit alone in my room and keep records. Prison records, dental records, medical ...

Laura Yeager: A Bipolar Writer Comes Home

4 comments

(This originally appeared in BP Magazine.) 1. Set up a routine. Take your meds at the same time(s) every day. I take mine before I brush my teeth at night. Taking them at the same time ...

Laura Yeager: Tips for Taking Your Bipolar Meds

4 comments

Grand total: I’ve lost two friends due to my illness. The first is my friend Mary, who was with me in New York when I had the nervous breakdown. Mary saw the whole thing. And in a nutshell, I ...

Laura Yeager commented on Laura Yeager's post Losing Friends Due to Your Bipolar Illness

56 comments

There exists what I’d like to call the PHFBP, or the professional, high-functioning bipolar patient. When looking at the PHFBP, it would appear that he faces few problems. He is compliant in ...

Laura Yeager commented on Laura Yeager's post “The Professional, High-Functioning Bipolar Patient”

56 comments

There exists what I’d like to call the PHFBP, or the professional, high-functioning bipolar patient. When looking at the PHFBP, it would appear that he faces few problems. He is compliant in ...

Laura Yeager commented on Laura Yeager's post “The Professional, High-Functioning Bipolar Patient”

56 comments

There exists what I’d like to call the PHFBP, or the professional, high-functioning bipolar patient. When looking at the PHFBP, it would appear that he faces few problems. He is compliant in ...

Laura Yeager commented on Laura Yeager's post “The Professional, High-Functioning Bipolar Patient”

56 comments

There exists what I’d like to call the PHFBP, or the professional, high-functioning bipolar patient. When looking at the PHFBP, it would appear that he faces few problems. He is compliant in ...

Laura Yeager commented on Laura Yeager's post “The Professional, High-Functioning Bipolar Patient”

56 comments

There exists what I’d like to call the PHFBP, or the professional, high-functioning bipolar patient. When looking at the PHFBP, it would appear that he faces few problems. He is compliant in ...

Laura Yeager commented on Laura Yeager's post “The Professional, High-Functioning Bipolar Patient”

56 comments

There exists what I’d like to call the PHFBP, or the professional, high-functioning bipolar patient. When looking at the PHFBP, it would appear that he faces few problems. He is compliant in ...

Laura Yeager commented on Laura Yeager's post “The Professional, High-Functioning Bipolar Patient”

56 comments

There exists what I’d like to call the PHFBP, or the professional, high-functioning bipolar patient. When looking at the PHFBP, it would appear that he faces few problems. He is compliant in ...

Laura Yeager commented on Laura Yeager's post “The Professional, High-Functioning Bipolar Patient”

56 comments

There exists what I’d like to call the PHFBP, or the professional, high-functioning bipolar patient. When looking at the PHFBP, it would appear that he faces few problems. He is compliant in ...

“The Professional, High-Functioning Bipolar Patient”

0 comments

I can think of several things that are much worse than having mental illness. 1. Having no personality 2. Being spiteful and/or hateful 3. Having an inoperable brain tumor 4. Losing your ...

Mental Illness is Not the End of the World

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I’ve used prayer to help me deal with my bipolar illness. It helps. I’ve prayed nightly for strength and clarity. I’m a Catholic, and I try to go to mass regularly. I offer up my communion ...

The Magic Scarf

2 comments

I took lithium for 17 years, and I must admit, it kept me relatively stable, but there were a lot of negative side effects to the drug. For one, since I started taking it, to the time I got off ...

My Love/Hate Relationship With Lithium

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There are many books out there about bipolar illness written by psychiatrists and psychologists–the so-called experts. These are great books to read for general information about the illness. ...

Laura Yeager: "Personal Accounts of Bipolar Illness"

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I’ve said previously that I don’t like bipolar support groups. The reasons why are as follows: 1. Most of the people at these groups are very sick. 2. Sicker than I am. 3. They ...

Laura Yeager: "Bipolarl Illness Support Groups"

11 comments

(This article originally appeared in BP Magazine.) I’m no psychiatrist, but maybe I should be. A little more than 10 years ago, I got married, a big step for anyone. But marriage was a bigger ...

Laura Yeager: “Tips for the Bipolar Marriage”

0 comments

(This article originally appeared in BP Magazine.) Everybody thinks relief from severe mood swings is a wonderful thing. It is, but sometimes, remission does have its drawbacks. People can ...

Laura Yeager: "Missing My Mania"