January is usually a very difficult month for me.... too much gray and not enough sun. I don't like the cold but i love having the snow. It really brightens things up. I got a SAD light and have just started using it. My doctor said that even the cheap lights are effective. They just need to have 10,000 LUX to work.
I have used the therapy light for 3 days and I don't know if it is the placebo effect or the real thing but I feel better today than I usually do in January and a little more motivated to get a few things done. You are supposed to start out using the light for 15 minutes and then try 30 to 45 minutes but I have cheated and used it for 45 minutes every day. My psychiatrist said that the light could bring on mania so you need to monitor how you are doing and if you are having trouble sleeping to back off. I love the fact that it's gray outside but I don't seem to mind.
I usually get a little depressed in the winter too. And my shrinkie dink has decreased my depression meds a bit. Uh oh. Evidently people on more than 40 mg of Celexa have been having heart murmers or something. So far I'm still doing good though. The light is a good idea. We definately need that sunlight. : ) Hope everyone is well! Have a good day! - T.
I have started taking vitamin B12 supplements. If you are deficient you can feel tired all the time. I don't have any energy and I always blame it on the psychotropics but maybe i'm low on B12. It's best if you get bloodwork done to see what you need but since this vitamin is water soluble It shouldn't do me any harm if I really don't need it. I am hoping to have more energy in a few weeks. We will see!
Anyone make any New Year's resolutions? Anyone read any good books lately? Rent any good movies? I need to have some things to fill in my down time to make January more interesting!
I've ready several good books lately. Back in the "no-meds" era of my life I couldn't read books. Couldn't focus, couldn't sit still long enough, mind racing too much. Manic girl syndrome. lol. I've been reading books by Jodi Piccoult. She's a good author. There's one about a boy with Asbergers that I enjoyed a lot. It's called House rules. I also like Handle with Care about a little girl with a condition that causes her bones to break easily. Also Nineteen Minutes was good about bullying. Some good bipolar books I've read in the past are: the Up and Down Life by Paul E. jones, and one called Madness by Marya Hornbeck, and also one called Manic by Terri Cheney. My favorite was Madness. Has anyone else read any really good bipolar books? I saw the Marilyn movie the other day. I like it. But it wasn't fantastic. I want to see the one with Dolly Pardon and Queen Latifa. There's an unlikely match. lol. THE WEATHER TODAY IS AWESOME!!
I looked up books by Jodi Piccoult online and reserved two of them from the library. They look like really good books and had 4 out of 5 star ratings! After I read these I think I will try some of the bipolar books. Thanks so much for the suggestions. I love Dolly Parton. Is her movie out yet? I think that combo with Queen Latifa would be great entertainment.
This is Sandy . . . T.'s sister. I came to the group in the beginning. She invited me to the blog. Just checkin it out. By the . . . happiness makes me sad.
I plan to post every day and that way I will be able to chat with anyone who posts. I look forward to talking with everyone! As I have mentioned before, I am using the SAD light every morning but I think I may be using it for too long on too high a setting. Yesterday I was a little jittery and the light can make you manic and you need to monitor your use. The light I have I paid $69 and it has a high, medium and low light setting and a timer that you can set for 15, 30 or 45 minutes or you can just leave it on indefinitely. I have been leaving it on for a long extended time at high setting. Today I decided to skip the light. The sun is out and I am just sitting in a sunny room enjoying natural light. Tomorrow I will use the light again and set it for 15 minutes on high. I do believe that I feel more energetic and upbeat overall using this light. I bought it on Amazon. I take Buspar for anxiety and had to take a second dose yesterday. I haven't had to do that in quite awhile. Overall, though, I still had a good day.
I forgot... I had another question that has nothing to do with depression or bipolar :) Does anyone know anything about chiahuahuas? I don't even know if I spelled it right. I played with one last week that had the sweetest personality that I am thinking it might be a good breed of dog for me to get to keep me company. I bought a standard poodle puppy last Oct and kept it for8 weeks but it was so big and so rambunctious I just couldn't manage it. It was a really nice dog but I took it back to the breeder and she plans to just keep her because the puppy is such a great dog. I felt like such a failure but she went from 15 to 32 pounds in no time and being the playful puppy that she was she kept taking things off of counters and was teething on my end table tops. I read several books on how to train your dog but I have only had toy dogs and I wasn't very good with a big breed. I've always thought that chihuahuas were not very friendly but the one I was with last week was great and didn't even seem to shed much.
I don't know anything about dogs. I am a cat person. Are those the "Taco Bell" dogs? Speaking of Taco Bell . . . YUUUUUUUUUUMMMMMMMM. lol. I love the 7 layer burritos and the taco salads. Soooooo good!
Yes, I am thinking about a Taco Bell dog. I love those cinnamon thingies they make. I would go there more often but I am a coffee aholic and they don't serve coffee. Coffee would go great with the cinnamon thingies!
My in-laws, Tom's parent's, have a chihuahua (I had to look up how to spell the word, it's a tricky one). The dog has been good company for Tom's Dad since his Dad is getting Alzheimer's. I would like to see the Dolly Parton, Queen Latifah movie, I like Dolly Parton and I like Queen Latifah in Last Holiday. Taco Bell sounds good only I'm not able to eat the food like I use to, I have been mostly eating at Subway or Steak-N-Shake but mostly Subway. Are the cinnamon items called Churros?
Donna I'm glad you joined us! : ) stick with it. It gets less confusing as you go. Does everyone want to go to the movie the 22nd or 29th? I have had more energy lately and have been in a happier mood and have been wanting to talk to people more and get outside and go do stuff. I am wondering if it is because I'm taking less depression med now or because of the nice weather or because I ran out of my anxiety med. I actually got some house work done! Amazing. lol. I've been wanting to socialize more and not be such a hermit. I'm gonna ask my doctor if I can stop the one a day anxiety med and only use it if I have a panic attack. I might not need it any more. Hopefully taking less depression med and not taking any anxiety med will cause me to loose some weight! Plus I've been walking on my treadmil. : )
We are supposed to have a meeting for the group on the 22nd but we could have a social day instead or we could meet the 22nd and go to the movie on the 29th. What do you think? I had been doing the treadmill but I started having arch pain in one foot on Jan1 and tried to just exercise through the pain but it was getting worse. I am giving it a rest for a few days. I would love to lose 10 pounds. I will never be skinny but I want to feel more comfortable in my clothes. After Christmas and all the cookies my clothes are snug. I had to start taking more of the Risperdal and Seroquel and they both cause weight gain. I have gained about 10 pounds this past 6 months and really want to get it off. I wish I knew what to do for the arch pain. My foot feels best when I am barefoot so I definitely don't need anything that creates more of an arch!
I started reading House Rules and I love it. T recommended it and I noticed after I had checked it out at the library that it was one of the books in a display of books that the librarians had recommended as good reads. Does anyone have one of the e readers... Kindle, Nook, etc? I would like to get one but don't know which would be best... Any suggestions?
http://depressionandbipolarsupport.blogspot.com/2012/01/zumba-fitness.html? This address is where you go if you hit the words " Newer Post" that I saw at the bottom of this page. Some of us are posting on that page and some of us are posting on this page. HELP How do I get us all going to the same page? I need advice from someone who knows about b!
Yes. There are two going. Everyone should just always use the link you emailed to us, click on that and scroll down to read the posts and click inside the text box to type a message and then select Google and hit "publish", you can follow the directions to open a google account. No one should hit "new posts." I don't think. Land don't click on the rumba message. Stay on the main page.
The only thing is we could end up doing a lot of scrolling the more we post. I don't know much about this as I've never blogged before this. Karynda has a blog. Call her Steph. Maybe she can look at our blog and help??? Is there something we should do each month so we're not scrolling thru months and months of posts??? We will get all the kinks worked out. It's trial and error.
Oh ... In answer to your question Steph ... I know someone who has the Nook Color and she loves it! She said you can download library books but on the Kindle you can't.
I just watched the Zumba exercises and it reminds me of African Folk Dance and Belly Dancing, If I could move like that I wouldn't have to worry about my weight so much, only I like my sweets and junk food too much.
January is usually a very difficult month for me.... too much gray and not enough sun. I don't like the cold but i love having the snow. It really brightens things up. I got a SAD light and have just started using it. My doctor said that even the cheap lights are effective. They just need to have 10,000 LUX to work.
ReplyDeleteI have used the therapy light for 3 days and I don't know if it is the placebo effect or the real thing but I feel better today than I usually do in January and a little more motivated to get a few things done. You are supposed to start out using the light for 15 minutes and then try 30 to 45 minutes but I have cheated and used it for 45 minutes every day. My psychiatrist said that the light could bring on mania so you need to monitor how you are doing and if you are having trouble sleeping to back off.
ReplyDeleteI love the fact that it's gray outside but I don't seem to mind.
I usually get a little depressed in the winter too. And my shrinkie dink has decreased my depression meds a bit. Uh oh. Evidently people on more than 40 mg of Celexa have been having heart murmers or something. So far I'm still doing good though. The light is a good idea. We definately need that sunlight. : )
ReplyDeleteHope everyone is well! Have a good day! - T.
Hey Steph, it's Sarah! :)
ReplyDeleteI have started taking vitamin B12 supplements. If you are deficient you can feel tired all the time. I don't have any energy and I always blame it on the psychotropics but maybe i'm low on B12. It's best if you get bloodwork done to see what you need but since this vitamin is water soluble It shouldn't do me any harm if I really don't need it. I am hoping to have more energy in a few weeks. We will see!
ReplyDeleteHi Sarah and T. I'm glad to see your posts. I was hoping I wasn't just talking to myself.LOL
ReplyDeleteAnyone make any New Year's resolutions? Anyone read any good books lately? Rent any good movies? I need to have some things to fill in my down time to make January more interesting!
ReplyDeleteI've ready several good books lately. Back in the "no-meds" era of my life I couldn't read books. Couldn't focus, couldn't sit still long enough, mind racing too much. Manic girl syndrome. lol. I've been reading books by Jodi Piccoult. She's a good author. There's one about a boy with Asbergers that I enjoyed a lot. It's called House rules. I also like Handle with Care about a little girl with a condition that causes her bones to break easily. Also Nineteen Minutes was good about bullying. Some good bipolar books I've read in the past are: the Up and Down Life by Paul E. jones, and one called Madness by Marya Hornbeck, and also one called Manic by Terri Cheney. My favorite was Madness. Has anyone else read any really good bipolar books? I saw the Marilyn movie the other day. I like it. But it wasn't fantastic. I want to see the one with Dolly Pardon and Queen Latifa. There's an unlikely match. lol. THE WEATHER TODAY IS AWESOME!!
ReplyDeleteI looked up books by Jodi Piccoult online and reserved two of them from the library. They look like really good books and had 4 out of 5 star ratings! After I read these I think I will try some of the bipolar books. Thanks so much for the suggestions.
ReplyDeleteI love Dolly Parton. Is her movie out yet? I think that combo with Queen Latifa would be great entertainment.
The movie is called Joyful Noise and it hits theaters January 13th. Wanna go see it anyone?
ReplyDeleteI want to see it!
ReplyDeleteI don't want to go the weekend it opens. Too many people. Maybe a couple weeks after?
ReplyDeleteThis is Sandy . . . T.'s sister. I came to the group in the beginning. She invited me to the blog. Just checkin it out. By the . . . happiness makes me sad.
ReplyDeleteAlso from Sandy . . . I meant to say by the way . . .
ReplyDeleteI remember you Sandy. So glad to hear from you. How are you doing?
ReplyDeleteI'm good Steph. I'm trying and trying to get added on so I can post under my name. This is a test . . .
ReplyDeleteI DID IT!!!!! I can post often. I only have computer access when I go to my mom's. Hello everone.
ReplyDeleteI meant to say I CANT POST OFTEN. lol. Only when I visit my mom.
ReplyDeleteI plan to post every day and that way I will be able to chat with anyone who posts. I look forward to talking with everyone!
ReplyDeleteAs I have mentioned before, I am using the SAD light every morning but I think I may be using it for too long on too high a setting. Yesterday I was a little jittery and the light can make you manic and you need to monitor your use. The light I have I paid $69 and it has a high, medium and low light setting and a timer that you can set for 15, 30 or 45 minutes or you can just leave it on indefinitely. I have been leaving it on for a long extended time at high setting. Today I decided to skip the light. The sun is out and I am just sitting in a sunny room enjoying natural light. Tomorrow I will use the light again and set it for 15 minutes on high. I do believe that I feel more energetic and upbeat overall using this light. I bought it on Amazon.
I take Buspar for anxiety and had to take a second dose yesterday. I haven't had to do that in quite awhile. Overall, though, I still had a good day.
I forgot... I had another question that has nothing to do with depression or bipolar :)
ReplyDeleteDoes anyone know anything about chiahuahuas? I don't even know if I spelled it right. I played with one last week that had the sweetest personality that I am thinking it might be a good breed of dog for me to get to keep me company. I bought a standard poodle puppy last Oct and kept it for8 weeks but it was so big and so rambunctious I just couldn't manage it. It was a really nice dog but I took it back to the breeder and she plans to just keep her because the puppy is such a great dog. I felt like such a failure but she went from 15 to 32 pounds in no time and being the playful puppy that she was she kept taking things off of counters and was teething on my end table tops. I read several books on how to train your dog but I have only had toy dogs and I wasn't very good with a big breed.
I've always thought that chihuahuas were not very friendly but the one I was with last week was great and didn't even seem to shed much.
I don't know anything about dogs. I am a cat person. Are those the "Taco Bell" dogs? Speaking of Taco Bell . . . YUUUUUUUUUUMMMMMMMM. lol. I love the 7 layer burritos and the taco salads. Soooooo good!
ReplyDeleteYes, I am thinking about a Taco Bell dog. I love those cinnamon thingies they make. I would go there more often but I am a coffee aholic and they don't serve coffee. Coffee would go great with the cinnamon thingies!
ReplyDeleteMy in-laws, Tom's parent's, have a chihuahua (I had to look up how to spell the word, it's a tricky one). The dog has been good company for Tom's Dad since his Dad is getting Alzheimer's.
ReplyDeleteI would like to see the Dolly Parton, Queen Latifah movie, I like Dolly Parton and I like Queen Latifah in Last Holiday. Taco Bell sounds good only I'm not able to eat the food like I use to, I have been mostly eating at Subway or Steak-N-Shake but mostly Subway.
Are the cinnamon items called Churros?
Cora helped me with this. I think I like e-mail
ReplyDeletebetter, less confusing.
Donna I'm glad you joined us! : ) stick with it. It gets less confusing as you go. Does everyone want to go to the movie the 22nd or 29th? I have had more energy lately and have been in a happier mood and have been wanting to talk to people more and get outside and go do stuff. I am wondering if it is because I'm taking less depression med now or because of the nice weather or because I ran out of my anxiety med. I actually got some house work done! Amazing. lol. I've been wanting to socialize more and not be such a hermit. I'm gonna ask my doctor if I can stop the one a day anxiety med and only use it if I have a panic attack. I might not need it any more. Hopefully taking less depression med and not taking any anxiety med will cause me to loose some weight! Plus I've been walking on my treadmil. : )
ReplyDeleteWe are supposed to have a meeting for the group on the 22nd but we could have a social day instead or we could meet the 22nd and go to the movie on the 29th. What do you think?
ReplyDeleteI had been doing the treadmill but I started having arch pain in one foot on Jan1 and tried to just exercise through the pain but it was getting worse. I am giving it a rest for a few days. I would love to lose 10 pounds. I will never be skinny but I want to feel more comfortable in my clothes. After Christmas and all the cookies my clothes are snug. I had to start taking more of the Risperdal and Seroquel and they both cause weight gain. I have gained about 10 pounds this past 6 months and really want to get it off. I wish I knew what to do for the arch pain. My foot feels best when I am barefoot so I definitely don't need anything that creates more of an arch!
I started reading House Rules and I love it. T recommended it and I noticed after I had checked it out at the library that it was one of the books in a display of books that the librarians had recommended as good reads.
ReplyDeleteDoes anyone have one of the e readers... Kindle, Nook, etc? I would like to get one but don't know which would be best... Any suggestions?
http://depressionandbipolarsupport.blogspot.com/2012/01/zumba-fitness.html?
ReplyDeleteThis address is where you go if you hit the words " Newer Post" that I saw at the bottom of this page. Some of us are posting on that page and some of us are posting on this page. HELP How do I get us all going to the same page? I need advice from someone who knows about b!
I think I have 2 separate blogs going...
ReplyDeleteYes. There are two going. Everyone should just always use the link you emailed to us, click on that and scroll down to read the posts and click inside the text box to type a message and then select Google and hit "publish", you can follow the directions to open a google account. No one should hit "new posts." I don't think. Land don't click on the rumba message. Stay on the main page.
ReplyDeleteThe only thing is we could end up doing a lot of scrolling the more we post. I don't know much about this as I've never blogged before this. Karynda has a blog. Call her Steph. Maybe she can look at our blog and help??? Is there something we should do each month so we're not scrolling thru months and months of posts??? We will get all the kinks worked out. It's trial and error.
ReplyDeleteOh ... In answer to your question Steph ... I know someone who has the Nook Color and she loves it! She said you can download library books but on the Kindle you can't.
ReplyDeleteI just watched the Zumba exercises and it reminds me of African Folk Dance and Belly Dancing, If I could move like that I wouldn't have to worry about my weight so much, only I like my sweets and junk food too much.
ReplyDelete