This is part 2 of a 2-part episode. Here is a link to Part One if you missed it.  In this episode I interview Erin, a woman who was diagnosed with Bipolar 1 disorder 20 years ago after 5 years of cycling manic and depressive episodes. I split this episode into two parts because her story was so interesting and full of information that it ran almost two hours. The first half focuses mainly on Mania and the second half, which is posted here, focuses mainly on depression, diagnosis, and living with bipolar disorder long term.

What you will find if you scroll down on this page:

Quotes from this episode
Links to resources on bipolar disorder
Where to listen to this show
How to engage with me and help share these stories with new listeners!

Reasons you will enjoy this show:

If you have someone in your family who is diagnosed bipolar 1 and want to understand more about this disorder.
If you have concerns about some of your own cycling behavior or that of someone you are close to.
If you want to help remove the stigma from mental health disorders
If you are fascinated with what the human brain is capable of.
If you are writing a character who has bipolar 1 disorder.
If you love learning about experiences that are different than your own.

You can listen on on itunes

Or click on the play button at the top of this post. 

And don’t forget to leave me some stars and some comments! I will read your comments and try to do whatever I can to make my interviews better or keep doing whatever it is you love! Others will also read your comments to decide if they want to listen to my podcast so please share your experience, it is helpful all around.

And feel free to share this podcast on your blog, but please let people know where to find more: link them back to my site or my People On Paper on iTunes.

Resources on the topic of Mental Illness and Bipolar: 

NAMI The National Alliance on Mental Illness 

NAMI on Bipolar Disorder 

International Bipolar Foundation

Mayo Clinic Bipolar Disorder

Homelessness and Mental Illness

Quotes From This Episode:

"Depression feels like it’s this thing that just takes over and you do not have a choice, it’s just, it’s like a huge black cloud that just descends on you and just floors you."

"I would interact with people but I could barely get any words out, I just couldn’t figure out how to communicate with anybody, I didn’t want to."

"You can’t really reach someone when they’re manic. They’re not open to you telling them that there’s something wrong with them because they think that they’re better then ever. And they think you’re the one with the problem."

"Mania feels like you’re Tinkerbell or something, and being on lithium feels like you’re an elephant."

"Being manic feels like “I’m out of my body, I’m out of my head, I’m like, I’m a spirit or, I’m not even here. So being on lithium really just grounded me."

"You know you’ve got to work with your medication. You can’t just pop a pill and then be like, “yeah! I’m going to go have a wild life.” Because you can break through your medication."

"Too much stimulus and stimulation is not good for me.  So, I actually like to spend a lot of time alone. I work at home."

"I am extremely grateful that I am able to have the life that I have and that I have stability. And that I, like I said, I have access to healthcare and the support of family. I’m lucky."

"My experience in a lot of ways is about suffering. And I have also been the cause of suffering. So anytime you get into suffering, hopefully you can figure out how be compassionate in there."