I recently resigned my position as a middle school assistant principal and have returned being a math tutor. So, I have mornings free and the opportunity to restructure my routine. Every day I play some music, exercise, clean one area of the house, and try to learn something new.
My mind is still a black hole waiting to be filled with knowledge. I get curious, and I really want to learn. I am an educator and also want to share the cool things I find. So, I decided to restructure this blog so that I can express my train of thought in case others are interested in following it.
I recently got a twitter account, mostly because my son said that I could keep up with the news that way. He's right! I also found a great website, Healthy Place, which is a forum for all kinds of mental health issues. There are videos, blogs, articles and forums. Yesterday I watched several videos of an interview with Julie Fast. She's an author and expert on bipolar disorder (because she has it). She writes a column for bp magazine, so I had heard of her. Anyway, here's my train of thought:
Here's Julie's introductory video, in which she tells the story of her diagnosis and the realization that she needed a "comprehensive health plan." One of my pet peeves is that some people think taking medication solves the problem or even act as if medication is some kind of crutch. Believe me, Julie is absolutely right to say that each person has to work every day to manage the illness. She talks about health cards, and I don't know what they are, so I go to look them up.
So, I found a website about the health cards, and here's a description from the site:
"What has made the Health Cards System so popular and so effective is that it treats all
the various symptoms and mood swings of bipolar disorder, not just
depression and mania. Symptoms like anxiety, irritation, anger,
relationship problems, attention problems, mixed episodes, psychosis,
paranoia, obsessive behavior, suicidal thoughts, etc., are all uniquely
addressed in the system."
Now, I'm off to order some for myself because it's very difficult to describe how I feel each day, yet it's exceedingly important to be aware those feelings.
I've learned something new and shared it, so this is a good day.
Blessings!
Kathy
