Happy Memorial Day and Bipolar: Danger to Your Loved One
Published: Fri, 05/24/13
Hi ,
Happy Memorial Day if you are in the US!!
How are you doing today?
I hope you're doing ok.
I was just reading on a blog about a person with
Bipolar disorder who claims to be "just fine"
without their meds.
To tell you the truth, I find that hard to believe.
I believe it's the medication that makes you feel
"just fine" when you have bipolar disorder.
But I was also bothered by some of the responses
to this person as well.
They got some actual support for stopping their
medications!
That is so dangerous!
I would never tell someone who is truly diagnosed
with bipolar disorder (and not misdiagnosed) to go
off their medications.
Like I said, it's the medications that make you feel
better, but if you stop them, you'll go back to the way
you felt before!
I hope this person doesn't listen to the people advising
him to go off his medications, because that can be very
dangerous for him.
In my courses/systems, I talk about all the many excuses
that people with bipolar disorder use for going off their
medication, and "feeling fine without them" is certainly
one of them.
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Does your loved one do this?
Are you struggling with keeping them on their
medications?
Are they reading blogs like this one that tells you
it's ok to go off your medications without a
doctor's advice?
First of all, find out why they want to stop taking
their meds.
Are they experiencing side effects from their
medication?
Tell them that the usual side effects from bipolar
drugs can be dealt with.
For example, for dry mouth, just suck on some ice
cubes or hard, sugarless candy.
For nausea, eat something when you take your
medications, and/or drink something carbonated.
For lightheadedness (dizziness), stand up or sit down
slowly, and it will usually pass.
For drowsiness from medications that you're taking
during the day, you need to tell your doctor, as they
may have you take them at night (bedtime) instead,
and this will resolve the side effect.
If you have any side effects that are really bothering
you, you do need to check with your doctor.
The answer is probably easier than you think.
But most often, the answer will NOT be to go off
your medication.
Your doctor can help you get through the side effects,
but you have to tell him/her about them.
It may be that just a dosage change is all that is
required to make you feel better.
It could be that an additional drug can help stop the
side effects.
It could be that just changing when you take the
medication will solve the problem.
But it is never the right answer to just go off your
medication without working with your doctor on it.
NEVER.
It could be life-threatening if you do.
If you stop your medications without a doctor's
advice or tapering, it could cause you to go into a
bipolar episode, and you might commit suicide.
So you really need to report all side effects to your
doctor, and let him/her help you work things out,
rather than going off your medications on your own.
Most of the time, the solution is an easy one for the
doctor to work out for you.
But he/she isn't a mindreader.
They can't know what's going on with you if you
don't tell them.
And if you try to do things by yourself, you could
too easily complicate matters and make them worse.
You really do need to leave things to the professionals
in this case.
What do you think?
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Well, I have to go!
Your Friend,
Dave
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