Topic: bipolar

This Year, I’m Going To Stop Lying To My Therapist

For the first time in my non-collegiate adult life, I recently got health care. The first thing I did was book an appointment with a therapist. The second thing I did was request my college medical records, to confirm my timeline of medication and what my dosages were. But they included more information than I’d expected. Like notes from the doctor, which reminded me that when I was 20 years old and seeking medical help and drug therapy for my mental illness (I’m bipolar), I was also lying through my teeth. More »

Catherine Zeta-Jones Never Wanted To Be The ‘Poster Child’ For Bipolar Disorder

There is no doubt about whether or not bipolar disorder is highly stigmatized. There have been infinite episodes of television shows using bipolar as a cheap motive for character development, often making the person unstable, unreliable and malicious until he … More »

Bipolar Is Not The Destructive Mental Illness You Think…And My Life Proves It

Approximately 5.7 million Americans are living with bipolar disorder right now. Most people know this is a serious mental illness, but there is a lot that we still don’t understand. Like, what exactly is it? Who gets this? What causes it? And as with any mental illness, there are a lot of stigmas around bipolar disorder. So to help break those stigmas and set the record straight about this illness (and how someone can lead a perfectly productive and happy life), we talked with Linea Johnson, who has suffered from bipolar since she was a teenager. She and her mother, Cinda, have since co-authored Perfect Chaos: A Daughter’s Journey to Survive Bipolar, a Mother’s Struggle to Save Her. In her book, Linea writes, “There is no form of art capable of expressing this madness.” More »

Do 4% of Americans Really Have ‘Soft Bipolar’ Disorder?

I’ve been seeing an increasing number of stories and studies lately on ‘soft bipolar disorder,’ or bipolar II, which is—in the crudest terms—basically a less serious version of classic bipolar disorder, or bipolar I. According to a University of Texas survey, approximately nine million Americans, or 4% of the population, have this disease. More »

Dr. Drew’s Celebrity Addiction Needs Its Own Rehab

Dr. Drewâ��s Celebrity Addiction Needs Its Own Rehab

Vh1′s show Celebrity Rehab may attempt to help those suffering from addiction, but increasingly the show is making a mockery of its patients mental health. The most recent debacle? Real Housewife Michaele Salahi has been booted from Dr. Drew’s rehabilitation facility because she doesn’t exhibit any actual addictions. But that never stopped the show’s casting agents before. So it’s time for VH1’s hit show to get its own rehab. Or maybe the network just needs to drop it cold turkey. More »