Not being a psychiatrist, I can only imagine how difficult it must be to diagnose a condition that’s as much of a chameleon as bipolar disorder. In fact, I was surprised when mine gave me a provisional BP diagnosis at our first appointment back in March of 2012. He’s pretty conservative in this area, asContinue reading “DX: Bipolar Disorder NOS”
Author Archives: bpnurse
Oh, Happy Day!
After six weeks of job-hunting, sweating over applications and resumes, and not getting even a nibble, the miracle of networking came through: this afternoon, one of my best friends in nursing (who happens to be the director of nurses at the long-term care home where I worked years ago) discovered that she needed a part-timeContinue reading “Oh, Happy Day!”
Stupid People Tricks: The Bipolar Edition
Here’s how kook BPNurse shows everyone she’s a kook: She goes to an appointment in a big building, gets turned around in there but doesn’t realize it, goes out to her car and can’t find it…..then panics and calls the police to report it stolen. It was hilarious when my mother did the same thingContinue reading “Stupid People Tricks: The Bipolar Edition”
Quo Vadis?
What do you mean, “what’s that mean?” OK, fine—I thought the Latin sounded more elegant than “where are you going, and why are you in that handbasket?” As the saying goes: an ounce of pretension is worth a pound of manure. Deal with it. Anyway, that is the question I am having to ask myselfContinue reading “Quo Vadis?”
Silver Linings Playbook
Why is it that you always have to see a movie more than once to catch its more subtle nuances and flesh out the characters? I loved Silver Linings Playbook the first time I saw it. There were a few cringe-worthy scenes in which the bipolar lead would go off on a loud, profane, andContinue reading “Silver Linings Playbook”
Driving While Bipolar
I got pulled over awhile back for driving under the influence of Zyprexa. Actually, what the Oregon State Trooper noticed was my huge gaping yawn and erratic weaving within my own lane as I was passing him on the freeway about half a mile from where I worked. I was still yawning uncontrollably, with bothContinue reading “Driving While Bipolar”
Normal? What Is This “Normal” You Speak Of?
Actually, it looks an awful lot like……..me. At least for the time being. It seems a bit odd to be discussing bipolar disorder when I’ve never felt less bipolar in my life. But I think I love this newfound serenity even more than I do my hypomanias. This is what it must be like toContinue reading “Normal? What Is This “Normal” You Speak Of?”
Strange Brew
Looking down at my handful of sanity tonight, I am once again amazed by the different colors and shapes of the various medications in my palm, and I wonder at the technology and the brilliant minds that brought them into existence. Here is a dark blue capsule; it’s the antipsychotic, which for some reason costsContinue reading “Strange Brew”
Stuff about Nothing
OK, so I talk a lot about bipolar disorder and what it’s like to live with it, but I don’t ALWAYS talk about bipolar. Sometimes I will hold forth on politics or religion (you know, the topics our parents taught us never to discuss in public), and other times I just yammer about anything thatContinue reading “Stuff about Nothing”
How I Got Here
You know, no child wakes up in the morning thinking, “Gee, I wanna be a psych patient when I grow up.” For one thing, they don’t understand it, no should they be expected to; mental illness is hard enough to explain to adults (especially those who don’t have it). For another, kids with issues don’tContinue reading “How I Got Here”
bpnurse 