Helping yourself

Most people don't understand what bipolar is or what having it means. The people who do are generally the people who have it or a family member of someone who does. They are the people who care the most. Having bipolar disorder is a challenge, especially for teenagers. The teen years are hard enough without problems, and then when you add in things like bipolar disorder, social anxiety, and depression it becomes an even harder challenge. Bipolar disorder affects people differently. Two people with bipolar disorder can have completely different symptoms and some are more severe than others. For example, both me and my brother have bipolar disorder, but it affects us differently. Some things that don't bother me set him off, and vice versa. I have more anxiety problems than him, and he has more irritation problems than me. Everyone is different, but learning and understanding what bipolar disorder is and how it affects you personally is a good way to understand what you can do to help yourself. If you know what bothers you and sets you off then you can try to find a way to deal with it. For example, when I'm upset over something I listen to music to help me calm down. If you have social anxiety, or don't do well in large groups of people you might find that leaving the room and finding a quiet place to wind down will help you deal. Or if you tend to get angry a lot maybe what works for you is to stop and count to ten, or go do something else entirely. Everyone reacts to things differently the key is to find out what helps you personally.