um.....take your meds.

If your asking for opinions.

Is Eric bipolar?

Yes, if you go of meds you might be ok for a while. But then when (rather than if) you get your next episode wait will you do? Stoppings meds often triggers mania and it's harder to get under control when that happens.

oh, but then I'm a stupid man.

You have to consider the side affects part of it. It can get pretty hairy going cold turkey off meds.

I know a few people who are med free and are more stable then I am. Its different person to person.

You need to make the decision yourself but be willing to go back onto the meds if you feel yourself spiraling out of control.

Its a tough decision, I wish you all the best with it!

So you would go off with strangers, going to who knows where? What if they hurt you for whatever money or property you have? What if you are sold into slavery? Ag workers are the most abused group of workers in the US. Change your living arrangements, but keep a house/apt and stay with an area where you have friends and family. BPers need that support. Your friend Eric might be well meaning, but he is giving you bad advice. Stay on your meds. Nobody who is not a BPer should be telling you to go off the meds that make a good life possible. Keep in touch so we can know you are okay?

Sounds like a recipe for disaster if you ask me.....

Haha. i came across quite a few stupid men and made the generalization that all men are stupid. Sorry. Eric isn't bipolar. I read something about treating your triggers rather than treating your title. And also making lifestyle changes. AAAand there's this stupid Youtube video that has got me hooked on their ideals. They say that one going through a manic/psychotic episode should ride it out and you'll end up on the other side. silly? Do you just continue to be mentally ill and get worse? UGH I'm so stubborn.

If meds are the problem, find meds that work better. There are lots of choices and dosages. Listen to curious fish--he knows what he is talking about.

thanks madame chaos.

deerma- it's not really a worker thing. it's like work for room and board. they are rainbow people.... they are all about peace and love. that sounds like an okay place to be. maybe

I would be leery of a group of farmers traveling anywhere. Sounds like migrant work and I don't think the conditions have historically been good. What do your parents think of you going off like this. Won't they be worried? I would be sick if one of my children went off to do something like this.

Basically the evidence is that it gets worse. Unmedicatated it seems each manic episode (and possibly hypomanic episode) gets worse and more frequesnt. It's as if you burn a pathway in your brain that makes it easier to trip the switch. This is possibly why psychiatrists fuss over mania while doing less for depression.

I think I read that something like 20% of BPs go up a level, ie BP2 to BP1.

You are young so you might seriously regret this in future.

I haven't told my mom anything about it. But she knows I want to go off my medication with a firey passion. That is actually my biggest fear in all of this. Telling my mom.

It sounds good, but these are people you don't really know. Every year thousands of women just disappear. Please don't be one of them. Can you find friends or family who would like a live in helper? Or maybe a resort area with nice scenery and new people. There has to be a safer way to get your dreams of a country life to come true.

curious- thank you for scaring me, i probably needed that.

deerma- for some reason I want to go where no one knows me at all.... no connections. I guess I don't think ahead very well.... but I seem to go blind into things often.

It is not so much that it is wrong to want to go off to new adventures, it is just that you need to make plans to do in a way that keeps you safe. Get stable on your meds, THEN go for the change. There are many places to go and wonderful things to see, but you need to be in your right mind to really enjoy them. Your family will feel better about your moving out if you are doing well when you do it. Believe it or not, your mom is going to understand. She just wants the best for you. Moms are silly that way.

but if i travel somewhere... i would need to set up a doctor and a pharmacy to get meds and that means I would have to have health insurance and to be making money wherever I go. This is so restricting! Before I was diagnosed I wanted to live simply.... I wasn't for taking meds of any kind. I wanted the basics to survive. Now I am completely dependent... I hate it. I feel trapped.