Tips From Neal - Some Tips for Stabilizing Your Mood and Managing Bipolar Disorder
We’re excited to have our second of many Tips from Neal! Neal is a counselor from psych services who was kind enough to write up some tips and guides about mental health, support, and self-care which we’ll be sharing over the next few weeks.
Seek Consultation: If you are unsure if you have bipolar disorder, it is important to seek consultation from a professional to find out. Without effective treatment manic and depressive episodes can increase in intensity and duration.
Build a Daily Routine: Having a regular schedule can play a large role in stabilizing your mood. Set specific times for sleep, studying, eating, exercising, and socializing.
Refrain from Excessive Substance Use: Because the nature of substances is to alter your mood, the excessive use of substances can undermine your efforts to stabilize your mood.
Monitor your mood: Noticing and attending to minor shifts in moods and energy levels can prevent depressive and manic episodes from occurring. You can keep a daily mood journal or make it a regular practice to check-in with yourself.
Focus on Stress Reduction: High levels of stress can trigger manic and depressive episodes. It is important to notice stressors in your life and develop a strategy to manage your stress. Examples of stressors could be feeling overwhelmed by school work or having a conflict with a friend or family member. Ways to reduce may include taking time out of your day for physical exercise, grabbing coffee with a friend, doing an art activity, or writing in your journal.
Be Compassionate with Yourself: Having a compassionate attitude towards yourself and others can help in reducing stress and feelings of overwhelm. Moreover, even if you are working with a therapist, it can be a process in learning to reduce stress and manage difficult emotions. Compassion and reminding yourself that it is a process can be important during those times of frustration.
Focus on One Thing: When we have multiple obligations, we tend to multitask. This can be overwhelming for our mind and body. Try breaking things down into small steps and focusing on one thing at a time. If you are feeling overwhelmed, take 2 minutes out to take a deep breath and write down the one thing that you are going to focus on for the next hour.
Reach out for help: It can feel overwhelming and exhausting to do things in isolation. Talking to a house member, friend, academic advisor, professor, or counselor can be helpful in providing in a space for you express how you are doing and getting support.
Develop an Emergency Plan: Despite your best efforts you may relapse into a manic or depressive episode. In these instances when you may feel out of control, it important that people know how to best help you. In your emergency plan you may include what an emergency looks like for you, list of emergency contacts (family, friends, counselor), medication you are taking, and how to best support you. You could share this plan with your roommate, friend, family, or JA.
