All I've been doing all day except for my forced exercise routine by parents is laying in bed staring at my wall. It's the only thing that really brings me enjoyment besides the occasional film I dig up. I've been out of highschool for about 2 years and I'm suppose to start making up classes in community college that I was pulled out of because of manic episodes. I am diagnosed bipolar and have ADD.
Is there anyway I can get out of this feeling of blah? I have a feeling it's the anti psychotics I've been taking but ever since I went off Wellbutrin which was what I was on before for ADD I've felt slower.
Get off meds. take up tai chi, meditation and martial arts instead. Being in shape and eating well will also make you feel good. Also, go get some fresh air. Go meet and socialize with new people. Youll start getting better.
>>2 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rN2VqFPNS8w
With that out of the way. OP, it could have something to do with the meds, but it also could have to do with your emotions/chemical levels settling. Your "slow" may be normal (or close) for other people most of the time.
If you really want to not feel "blah" (which I'm assuming is bland and without energy), then do just what you said you're supposed to: take college courses. Not just that, but do more research into the subjects than you'll be taught in your classes. Community colleges are terrible, in that while they cost less the educational value of the courses is often significantly lower than that of a four year university. I very much wish that I had the money and presence of mind to attend my current university for four years, rather than going tot eh community college I did. It has set me back in serious ways. (Also, look into the university you're going to transfer to after getting your associates degree and make sure what their requirements and recommended courses for freshmen and sophomores are so that you have the equivalent covered.)
Other than that, my suggestion is to get to know the professors that teach the classes you enjoy and see what you can learn about their work from them. It will help greatly in figuring out what you want to do in life, and get you some great experience for resumes and higher schooling.
tl;dr Do what you love. Find out by going to college. Work harder than your college requires.
Heres a few suggestions that might help :)
(sorry for the bad english :-/)
1.Create a schedule for yourself. Go to sleep/get up a set time, bathe at a set time, etc; don't expect the schedule to be developed immediately, set a reasonable goal for yourself. if you have no real schedule currently then it would be good to start setting small schedule goals like how much time you spend in the shower or how much time you spend on the internet. the schedule should become natural for you, don't force it it might take months or years for it to set in as habit for you.
2.Take up a hobby. I collect music, for instance, and I've begun studying how to play the cello, I also mountain bike, and ski- these hobbies are extremely important for people like us. if you don't have something that you actually enjoy, and that is positive to your health and mind, to focus your energy on you start to decay socially, mentally, and emotionally.
3.Begin to slowly decrease your medication(since obviously the meds are a big part of your problem), but make sure you make your intention clear to your doctor and he'll come up with a plan for you. i assume you don't know how much to decrease your meds by and you don't know how frequently you should decrease your dose so you'll need a doctors opinion in order to smoothly come off the meds without going into a psychosis or something (I assume that you'll have to take a lot of flak from your parents but put up with it because the medication doesn't fix the problem, infact in most cases it actually adds to it, you just don't realize it yet.
4.Seek out natural treatments that might help balance you out (I have a book that I use as reference for stuff like this, its called "Prescription for Nutritional Healing" by James F. Balch, and Phyllis A. Balch, I suggest you check it out), I take a dose of liquid vitamin b12 in the morning, noon, and night- it works as well if not better than lithium (which is the best conventional medicinal treatment for bipolar. although your pychiatrist probably didn't tell you about that right? :( the fucking psychs try to pawn off all kinds of experimental medications on bipolars... im not absolutely sure why they do that, i think its because they know that lithium works but they want to test out other drugs on their patients that might just POSSIBLY work better than lithium. but regardless, if your taking anything other than lithium for you bipolar then you've been had) without any kind of weird unnatural effects.
5.go out and LIVE LIFE! there is so much to do and see, if we all just sit around and do nothing all day then we accomplish NOTHING and another day is wasted... so many people like you sit around, without a real care or motivation to do anything, hoping that the meds they take will solve all their problems and that they'll be happy. thats the problem with so many people in this world, they act like everything can be done TOMMOROW, and that today doesn't matter, but the truth is that today is all there is and all there ever will be. all suffering and pleasure will end eventually- whats important is not what you FEEL in any given moment, but what you experience in life as a whole and what you gain from that experience. you can really actually do anything you set your mind to, dont hold yourself back because you feel like you can't do something. its not a matter of whether or not CAN do it, but rather whether or not your WILLING to do it. its all a matter of how much time and effort your willing to sacrifice to a given goal.
btw im >>4 and in case you were wondering: I'm bipolar as well... and schizophrenic... so I'm not pulling this out of the air, I know from personal experience that this will help, but its not going to be easy to change yourself, it takes alot of hard work and patience. Im sure that this wont change your life or anything, but I hope that at least some of what I wrote will inspire you to put forth the effort to change something about your life. you can take all the meds you like but your life will still be hell if you don't go out into the world and try to make yourself a better person
The bullshit college life thing that this society forces upon us just brings less meaning to our lives. It seems like if you are not in school, you are a loser. Having such a boring life is only your fault but don't go to school. Try going into something else. The life in the 60's begins rebirth due to the fact that school is just a horrible choice now-a-days. So many fuckers are getting degrees in America that its hard to even get into the field you want. I would suggest you do some community service, then try traveling (and don't fret about money because that's not always needed to travel), and, if you can, get out of the country. There are so many opportunities, with more or less dangers, out the world. Why stay here when you can get a job without a degree that you will love and be part of a different culture then your own. These mental problems you have won't be solved by any drugs because they are all bullshit. It seems the main thing now-a-days is to medicate America. You just need something new in your life. If you can, try volunteering for the peace corps or something. Do it without medication and it will be more fulfilling.
>>4 >>5 >>6 You guys need to do some research. Seriously.
Natural treatments are not a drug, and will not work like one. While it is true that b vitamin levels are sometimes low or significantly low in those with Bipolar disorder, simply increasing this may not solve the individual's issues. Folic acid and other concerns are also noted among those with bipolar disorder. One may resort to simple vitamin and acid supplements if drugs for BP are having serious adverse effects, but it is recommended to try clinical medication for at least a short period of time past the initial side effect upswing.
The reason that psycs still use other medications besides lithium is because of the negative side effects that is has (both immediate and long term {such as rendering the thyroid useless}), and because lithium is not to be given to certain patients. Not only that, but lithium is active for the Mania aspect of Bp far more than the depressive lows, and can lead to continual feelings of lack of energy, depression, etc. Furthermore, lithium simply does not benefit some clients. Finally, the dosage of lithium must be extremely carefully controlled both in medication given and through one's personal habits (including diet).
"Conclusions: These results suggest that olanzapine has superior efficacy to lithium in the acute treatment of patients with bipolar mania over a 4-week period. However, adverse events were experienced by a greater number of olanzapine patients than lithium patients."
Research like that above and on anti-convulstants like Carbamazepine (Tegretol) and divalproex sodium (Depakote) are also reasons to consider giving out new medications, because they have different side effects and more efficacy for different types of BP and for different clients. The medical community is always trying to reduce side effects.
Also, 6, it doesn't matter whether or not you go to a traditional college or a non-traditional college/institution of education (this includes apprenticeships), the experience you gain there is not only necessary for success in the world if you don't have some kind of awesome personal ability and training (I can't even think of One individual who has that kind of skill. Bill Gates got his fame by ripping others off/luck. Same for Steve Jobs.), but in incredibly personally enlightening.
I initially had a negative view of college, but I now wish that I had more opportunity to have gone to college and that I had been more aware of the kinds of experiences I have now. Perhaps (or probably) I simply wasn't mature enough for college at that point.
>>7 continued.
I want to emphasize that while medication certainly has incredible benefits, no credible psychologist would Ever tell you that it is sufficient. Behavioral change/cognitive working-out is Always a necessity for greatly successful outcomes.
Consider kids with ADHD that are high on the scale. With medication alone they had a ~70% reduction in hyperactive AND attention deficit scores. With cognitive-behavioral treatment alone they had a ~30% reduction in issues. Using traditional community support services alone, these children had a ~25% reduction in issues. When combining medical treatment with cognitive-behavioral therapy, children with ADHD had a ~95% reduction in attention deficit and hyperactivity.
Medications are still bullshit and are not to be trusted. Your pseudoscience will not help anyone coupe with their life.