Hi, welcome back to my little spot in this enormous online world! Thank you so much for visiting. I’m trying to find my flow a little better with writing and updating my blog and it means the world to me that you take time to read my words. Thank you from the bottom of my heart. If you’re someone who lives with bipolar disorder, or supports someone living with it, then you know that finding the right medication for bipolar disorder can be really tricky and time-consuming. Some people get lucky and find the right combo right away but many of us begin a journey of misunderstood side effects and disappointment in meds not working right, over and over.
Bipolar Medication Fears
There are so many bipolar medication myths and bipolar medication fears that it can be really intimidating to start. When my journey first began, I was put on Sertraline by itself. While it did work for a period of time, it didn’t take long to see that it wasn’t doing what it was meant to. And therefore the bipolar medication journey began.
I have tried a number of medications and each time I had to try a new one I was met with a deep sense of failure. As if I had done something to make the medications not work right. But, I hadn’t.
I was raised in a home that criticized taking medications for issues that were unseen. Depression, high blood pressure, etc. The fix, my parents taught me was easy, “do more, eat less”. Oh, I was sad? I wasn’t doing enough cardio then. My feelings too dark? I need to run more.
But, if you live with bipolar disorder then you know this just isn’t how it works. I have gone on to learn so much in my adult years after spending so much time reparenting myself. (Read this article about reparenting – What Is Reparenting and How Does It Work?) I’ve been working hard to teach myself that I am worthy, important and my feelings matter.
There are many bipolar disorder medication benefits once you find the right fit. My life was saved by finding the right meds. Though the journey to finding them was strenuous and disheartening, it is still worth it to now be stable to a long period of time.
I struggled a lot at the beginning of my bipolar medication journey. I felt like needing medications meant I had done something wrong and the medications were attempting to correct it. Now I can see that I needed help and the bipolar medications made that help possible to obtain. (Impulsive Spending)
Taking medication isn’t giving up. It’s doing the thing that is good for you. (Read more about Managing Bipolar Medication) It’s putting your health and wellness first and actively taking care of it. I saw medication as giving up because of the dialogue I heard from my parents my entire life. My mom especially, bragged a lot about not being on any medications as if that made her superior to others. It was a weird dynamic to try to make myself let go of but had I not, I’d probably not be here anymore. Because living with bipolar disorder, I need medication to remain stable and be able to live a good, happy life. It’s a tool for me much like daily walks, getting sunshine, journaling, and taking my bipolar medication.
I’ve worked hard to convince myself that taking medication isn’t giving up, and in case you struggle with the same recurring thoughts, I want you to remind yourself of that too. (More articles on bipolar disorder.)
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