Bipolar Treatment and Hospitalization

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After my diagnosis, I began to define myself by my bipolar. News of being “in remission” brought up fear, doubt, deep questions about identity, and confusion over what it means when my symptoms disappear … and then reappear. “You Are Not Your Illness.” Any doctor, clinician, therapist, and social worker worth their salt will at...

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Going to the hospital can be scary and disorienting, but it provides a safe place and the space you need for healing from a severe bipolar episode. Learn what to do before, during, and after inpatient care—as well as what the warning signs are for needing to take action. Whether for yourself or on behalf...

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Mental health hospitals are often misunderstood and misjudged—by society and by each of us individually. Thankfully, I’ve also discovered that “society” is not one person. Not everyone carries a negative bias about psychiatric care. Stigmatized Institutions I have found that there is plenty of stigma when it comes to the wider world’s perception of mental...

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During my hospitalization, I journaled faithfully through my depressions, mania, and hypomania. I remembered thoughts and experiences that had been buried or lost to time. Eventually, the truth came out and I made some big decisions to change my life for the better. Over 20 years ago, when I was hospitalized for a breakdown, I...

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Entering back into your regular life after a hospital discharge can be overwhelming. To make it less daunting, adjust your expectations and take it slow. I was recently hospitalized for a severe depressive bipolar episode. It was quite discouraging for me to say the least. I had been keeping track, and it had been two...

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When your child is admitted for psychiatric treatment it can be emotionally overwhelming. Follow these tips to stay positive and maintain your own health. Allow yourself to feel your emotions There will naturally be a flood of intense feelings about having your child in a psychiatric hospital, especially if this is the first time. As Julia Johnson...

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Going inpatient can be a rough ride or a tender mercy, no matter whose idea it is for us to be hospitalized. What I would like to talk about today is the issue of involuntarily hospitalization —of being confined for a psych evaluation. YOU know, when you go inpatient because someone ELSE thought it was...

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Hospitalization gets a bad rap, but sometimes it’s the place you need to be during a severe mood episode of mania or bipolar depression. The phrase “for your own good” is usually attached to something you know you’re not going to like — such as ending up in the hospital because of an episode of...

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January 1, 2017, DUBLIN, Ireland—People with bipolar disorder should no longer be unfairly excluded from organ transplantation, a new study concludes. Irish researchers said that people with serious psychiatric disorders have been excluded from organ transplantation programs in the past, despite the fact that there is little data to support exclusion based on a psychiatric...

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It can be hard to seek inpatient treatment when you feel like you’ve been burned in the past, but it’s worth it! I am not a patient patient. The second I’m hospitalized, I want out. While most of my many hospitalizations have been the result of a gastrointestinal tumor, a few have been psychiatric as...

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Part of being at your best means preparing for the worst. bp Magazine columnist, Melody Moezzi, discusses crisis plans—what they are and why you need one. Today I am talking about crisis plan: what they are, why you need one, what they are not. A crisis plan is not necessarily a legal document, so that’s...

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How can we stop perpetrating the stigma of psychiatric hospitals? A place to start: let’s talk about our experiences to redefine popular notions. With fall upon us, and Halloween right around the corner, one of my favorite pastimes is to watch scary movies and TV shows. I love revisiting old favorites like Psycho and new favorites...

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I have always attributed much of my stability to my psychiatrist––I know that if I were to ever relapse, he would guide me back towards stability. As I left my psychiatrist appointment, I truly recognized how integral Dr. Song has become to my wellness in managing bipolar disorder. We first met when I was admitted...

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It can be difficult to readjust to home life after a psychiatric hospitalization.   A while ago I was discharged from a psychiatric hospital. I was hospitalized for mania and psychosis. Of course it was a relief to go home, but it was also difficult re-adjusting to home life after 5 weeks in hospital. I...

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Psychiatric hospitalization is not how the movies portray it––it’s a place of healing, not a place of fear––and it is NOT a sign of weakness. I remember over two years ago my university psychologist suggested that I admit myself into hospital. I had been newly diagnosed with bipolar disorder. Before my initial assessment with my...

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Which mood state is worse for you: depression or mania/hypomania? How does bipolar depression affect you, and what helps most? FOR ME, THE DEPRESSION is debilitating. But for my family, the anger that comes with a hypomanic state is worse for them.  I am taking a combination of antidepressants that affect serotonin, dopamine and norepinephrine...

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I realized in the hospital that bipolar disorder isn’t about me. It’s about about sharing the burden and pain of bipolar disorder with other people like me. Several years ago, my self-esteem was severely low. I didn’t trust what to eat for breakfast much less what to pursue in my career, my romantic life, or...

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Explaining an impatient stay at a psychiatric hospitalization is incredibly difficult to talk about with anyone, let alone your children. I’ve been admitted twice. Once voluntary and the other time is a whole other story. During one visit to my psych I realized she wasn’t talking about the local hospital down the road. She was...

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Being hospitalized is nothing to be ashamed of, and in some cases it’s part of recovery There are two perspectives on involuntary hospitalization: one from the inside looking out, and one from the outside looking in. When a bipolar crisis happens, you will naturally see the event from your perspective. I experienced this a number...

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Choosing “normal” has been the hardest decision I have had to make. Choosing between the me I knew—the one with bipolar disorder—and the me I didn’t know—the stable person I had to create. By Elizabeth S.   My sister and I were at a film festival, enjoying our weekly dinner and movie night out. I...