Bipolar Disorder? Expect the Unexpected
Published: Sun, 03/07/10
Hi ,
How are you?
I hope you're fine.
I was looking at greeting cards
the other day, and I came across this
one that made me laugh out loud:
On the cover it says, "Open this
card to find your birthday money."
And then on the back it says,
"Gotcha!"
Because...
You can't open the card!
I thought it was so funny.
But it reminded me of the saying,
"Expect the unexpected."
See, like with the card, the way it
gets you is that you ASSUME
something (that turns out not to be
true).
Well, we do that in life, too.
And when it comes to bipolar disorder,
it can be dangerous for your loved
one.
For example, if you ASSUME that
they are stable, so they will never
have another bipolar episode...
That episode can come unexpectedly
and you won't be prepared for it.
First of all, no matter how long
your loved one has had bipolar
disorder, you still need to update
your knowledge of the disorder.
That's one of the biggest reasons
why I post the Bipolar News on
my website, and why I stress the
importance of information in my
courses/systems.
SUPPORTING AN ADULT WITH BIPOLAR DISORDER?
Visit:
http://www.bipolarsupporter.com/report11
SUPPORTING A CHILD/TEEN WITH BIPOLAR DISORDER?
Visit:
http://www.bipolarparenting.com
HAVE BIPOLAR DISORDER?
Visit:
http://www.survivebipolar.net
There is always new information
coming out on bipolar disorder.
You can't afford to fall behind.
So you need to stay informed.
That's one thing you can do.
Another thing you can do as far
as expecting the unexpected is
to have a plan in case your loved
one DOES go into an episode.
This plan should be something
you develop together, when they
are NOT in an episode.
You might want to come up with
a code word that they can say to
you when they are "feeling bipolar."
Then you can determine how you
will respond to it.
Here is one couple's plan:
Their key word is "decompensating."
If she uses this word, telling him
that she feels like she is decompensating,
he knows to put their plan into
effect.
The first thing he does is determine
how serious the situation is.
He asks her if she's feeling suicidal.
If she is, (especially if she has a plan
for it, how she is going to do it), he
calls her psychiatrist right away, and
they decide whether to put her in the
hospital because she is a threat to
herself.
If he believes it's a real threat, like
if she's got a plan and intends to carry
it out, he may take her directly to the
Emergency Room (for her own safety).
If she is not suicidal, he tries to
determine if she is in a full blown
bipolar episode, or just on the way
to one.
He can determine this by talking with
her and finding out how rational she
is.
If she is in a full blown episode, he
goes ahead and calls the psychiatrist
and the doctor either adjusts her
medication, or her husband takes her
to the Emergency Room.
Sometimes, if your loved one is only
on the way to an episode but not in
one right now, or at least not a full
blown episode, they can be controlled
by a temporary increase in the dose
of their medication, and you may not
necessarily have to take them to the
hospital.
This is the plan they have developed,
and you can copy it and/or make
one of your own.
But you still have to expect the
unexpected.
In other words, you may think that
your loved one is stable and
perfectly fine, but then they may
say their key word to you, and you
will have to put your plan into
action.
The point is to have a plan you
have worked out in advance, so
you know what to do.
Do you have a plan in place for
the unexpected episode?
How does yours work?
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Well, I have to go!
Your Friend,
Dave
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