Self-managing your health care means enhancing existing treatment to better deal with your bipolar disorder. Dr. John F. Greden offers these five tips to participate in your own wellness:
#1 Keep track of how you are doing
You can create a chart or graph on paper to monitor your daily moods, but many smartphone apps now make this task easier. Some also keep track of exercise, weight, alcohol intake, and other variables. Pick out the ones that list elements that are most important to you.
#2 Join a support group
Peer support groups allow individuals and families to learn from others in their situation how to best monitor and manage symptoms. Advice coming from “teammates” with lived experience is sometimes easier to absorb. But such encouragement should be evidence-based, so checking in with clinicians should be routine.
#3 Exercise
Beneficial changes occur in the brain following regular exercise. Exercise improves neurotrophins, a family of proteins that promote brain functioning. (Neurotrophins are among the most exciting new developments being explored by neuroscientists.) Make sure to talk with your doctor about beginning an exercise program if you’re not physically active.
#4 Eat well
Certain foods can have a negative effect on mood and even small changes to improve your diet can improve the way you feel. Limit junk food, fast food and reduce or eliminate stimulants like caffeine. When in doubt seek advice from a nutritionist or dietitian.
#5 Develop positive self-talk patterns
Thoughts influence moods. Recognize the role that your negative thoughts play in causing you stress and the settings in which that tends to occur. Then “cut those thoughts off at the pass” as soon as they start to form. Knowledge is power. Knowledge heals. And self-knowledge plus action introduces one of the most effective players—you—in your recovery.
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