I'm moving my blog

Please visit my blog as I'm moving it to Wordpress. It's still titled Quickenings: Memoirs of a Prodigal. Here is the link....http://jgpicazomemoirs.wordpress.com/

I've enjoyed using Blogger, but Wordpress seems a bit more user friendly and cleaner. I hope everyone will visit my new site and become a follower. Thanks again for reading my blogs and following.

Lupe Picazo

There is nothing you can do

There are two things I know from life; Bipolar and addiction. I’ve spent my complete life searching for recovery from my Bipolar and almost the latter half from addiction.

Bipolar and addiction are so intertwined that some doctors routinely test individuals for drug or alcohol abuse or addiction.

During a manic phase, people often live a more reckless lifestyle. Many, as I did, may self-medicate with drugs or alcohol or both.

I am glad to say that I am at a place of recovery in both. I’m at the point of continually working on my memoir. The following is a short poem from my journal dated Jan 10, 2003. I’ve included it in my memoir.

It is my voice of frustration and anger with not so much of having to deal with both physical and mental pain but instead of broken promises and failures from treatments.  

My Electroconvulsive Therapy

Some do no not believe in miracles. But I assure you I am a walking miracle.

As much as the thought of electricity being sent through your brain many times might cause most people to become a bit unease, that’s not the case for me. For months I purposely sought a second psychiatrist that performed electroconvulsive therapy (ECT). Maybe my body had become immune to the cocktail of medications I take twice a day. The tweaking had no positive affect.

My moods and behavior were as unpredictable as a two year olds. And the depression was getting the best of me. I was slipping away leaving behind a former shell of myself.

If you want to have a happy, healthy, and stable relationship, you have to treat bipolar disorder first.

Most people assume that bipolar is only about mania and depression. And to a large extent that’s true, but a holistic view understands that the disorder also includes a variety of symptoms in addition to mania and depression that also affect one’s thinking and behavior.

Things NOT to say to someone with bipolar

The other night I went to my local emergency room for blackouts and possible seizures. I went because I was in the midst of a blackout. I had already seen my neurologist and had an EEG and MRI that showed “red flags. So since I was home I figured I would make a trip to the ER.

I proceed with the intake process as normal being treated with respect and my condition with concern. But then came the moment when I had to list all the medications I was on and why. “Um, I’m bipolar.” It was if I had told them I had the plague or some kind of wife beater. The staff’s demeanor made a one-eighty turn.

If you have bipolar, someone has said at least one of these things to you. Probably more. If you know someone who has the illness, you may guilty yourself. Hearing them can be painful, infuriating, depressing - even destructive. Saying them, I assure you, is NOT going to be helpful.

Myths of Bipolar

Bipolar disorder is a serious and difficult illness that affects all facets of a person’s life: their education, work, relationships, health and finances, said Julie A. Fast, author of several bestselling books on bipolar disorder, including Loving Someone with Bipolar Disorder and Take Charge of Bipolar Disorder, and a coach who works with partners and families.

Fast was diagnosed with rapid-cycling bipolar disorder II at 31 years old in 1995, a time when very little was discussed regarding the diagnosis. Fortunately, knowledge and media coverage of bipolar disorder have improved dramatically over the years. “I’m astonished at how much more people know about the illness,” she said.

Looking back at my early childhood it is evident that I had bipolar, but it wasn’t until I was 24 that I was officially diagnosed and began my years of trial and error of medications.
Even TV shows are featuring more accurate portrayals of bipolar disorder. “In the past, people with bipolar disorder were practically frothing at the mouth,” Fast said. Today, writers and producers make it a point to get it right. Recently, Fast served as one of the advisors on the hit Showtime series “Homeland” and talked with Claire Danes about her character’s bipolar disorder.
While information has gotten much better, many misconceptions still exist and endure.
Below, you’ll find five persistent myths about bipolar disorder.