wow, i hadn’t thought of that. thanks for the heads up.

can be resistant to meds; i don’t know about bipolar, tho’. take care of yourself, bloggo, and keep us posted, K?

:0)

ideally, yes. :) sometimes, however, this or that medication may stop working because everyone’s body chemistry changes. when that chemistry changes again (kind of like how you put on 1 lb. then lose it again the next day), then it may start working again. unlike putting on a pound here or there every couple of days, these chemical changes occur over months or even years. i mean, it changes every day, but it takes months or years of change before it can affect medication.

bipolar disorder can definitely get you disability, but it depends on how severe your case is. i have been in a depressive episode for the last couple of years and it gets a little better, and then it goes back down again.

also, depression isn’t always about emotions and feeling sad. for me, a lot of the time, it’s physical symptoms.

includes “severe and persistent” mental illness, of which bipolar disorder can easily qualify. It’s one of the two considered the more typical of that category (schizophrenia being the other).

Medication doesn’t always help, but others have covered answering that better than I could.

sharing this. i have (unipolar—??) depression myself and i would say i’m medium to high functioning if i’m in a decent environment. best of luck with all of your goals and dreams and again, keep us updated. :0) i too have to force myself to get up and do stuff lots of times. i can hardly imagine waking up wanting to get up and looking forward to the day ahead….sad, but true.

I appreciate the explination.

Bloggochicago,

I’ve read your entries with great interest. You’re a strong woman and you understand yourself and your experiences really well. I can see from your comments that you do know that the disability that is currently a part of your disorder (temporary, only, I imagine, until you get stable again) is not your fault and should not be a source of shame (try to not internalize the Western ideals of work as worth). You are functioning very highly at times and proving that you aren’t weak – it isn’t a matter of determination to go to a job. Give yourself the same compassion you would give to someone else in your circumstance. You would admire their courage and strength and you would tell them that it is OKAY to need time off, and only you can determine if you need that time off, not your doc or your friends/family or your 43 things mates. It sounds like you know you do, so don’t internalize the stigma. Do it, and feel fine about it.

When you’re feeling like you can work again, you will. If it dogs you down the line, you’ll deal with it, but don’t question that you deserve it. It’s not your fault that you can’t work right now. If you think you could function in a very flexible role somewhere until you’re doing better, that can help keep your self-esteem afloat if you’re inclined to internalize your inability to work as failure.

Good luck.

p.s. Not sure how it works where you are, but here your doc/counselor can only support or not support your application. They don’t actually decide if you get it or not. A lot of people get intimidated into not applying because they think they have to be supported by their mental health care provider.