Bipolar disorder- how do i know what i want to do with my life?!


Question: Bipolar disorder- how do i know what i want to do with my life.?
when i change my thoughts so frequently.? medicine did not work for me and im scared to go on the older anti depressants. I have schizo-affective bipolar disorder rapid cycling with depersonalization anxiety and panic disorder.

i am getting rady for college and frequently change what i want to do, daily, hourly, and im scared im not going to know what i realy want to do with my life.

What do you think i should do.?

And yes, i have been diagnosed, hospitalized, counseling, meds, all that stuff. treated for over 12 years. Im 19 years oldHealth Question & Answer


Answers:
I am so sorry you have to deal with all this stuff so young in life. I had bipolar disorder at your age, but didn't get a diagnosis until I was much older, so I didn't have those worries in college, I just did it. But I bet I was as sick as you at that age, and I did manage to finish my degree, only it took longer - I had to drop out of classes once in awhile. You might consider taking a lighter course load if you think that will help - take the minimum to be full-time instead of a larger load, and don't take too many harder classes at once. Anyway, I had to really suck it up to get thru classes when I had depressions, and in those days, it was before the Internet, so I had no idea that it was depression. But I did it, and you can too! Don't let your diagnosis defeat you!

when choosing careers, you may want to gravitate towards careers that are less stressful and do not require rotating shifts (you should keep a regular sleep-wake schedule).

And I did personally end up with a bad scenario - I am disabled by the bipolar disorder because I never did find meds to help me. But I still have a great life and it is turning out that I am gifted at art, so I am oil painting and will begin selling my work next year. And all that college helped because I have a geology degree and a lot of my paintings will have some really nice rock formations :-) So even if things don't work out the way you expect, hey, that is true for most people. Keep plugging away, and keep good relationships with others (the key!) and you will have a nice life in spite of your illness.Health Question & Answer

You need to find a good psychiatrist who really understands pharmacology and spend the time to tinker with the drugs until you find the right combination. For me it took about a year and it was a really tough year but it was worth it. I have been stable ever sense and I have a good career for the past 11 years. I experienced rapid cycling and mixed episodes during the year it took to get the medication right but with time, patience, and a good doc it can work out.Health Question & Answer

The older medications like Trazodone are not like the dinosaur MAOI's. I went through about the same thing you did. I had to find the right combo of medications that work for me. Cymbalta, Lamictal, Trazodone work for me as well as weekly counseling. I am currently a Med school student. I have faith in you buddy. You will make it. :]Health Question & Answer

please write me to my e-mail through profile.i am willing to help you if i canHealth Question & Answer

Well you detailed what you perceive to be your limitations, but I didn't hear you talk about your interests, your passions, what you naturally gravitate towards in terms of activities. I understand that it's difficult to look at positives when you feel overwhelmed with the challenges of coping with those issues, but you can find a good fit. You said you are "getting ready for college", and I'm not what that involves for you. Do you have a school picked out that you've been accepted to.? Seriously, having worked with individuals managing Bipolar and Schizophrenia, I can't say I've witnessed a lot of success stories with people that weren't agreeable to meds. You didn't mention what your concerns were with taking them, but that's probably something you're going to want to revisit. I've done counseling in colleges and I know how difficult it is to manage all the stresses with coursework and social life....plus having to manage major mental illness. Why not make it as easy on yourself as possible and at least get the thought processes cleared up enough so you can focus on your studies. And I'd definitely hookup with career services and the counseling center as well.Health Question & Answer



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