Surviving and Thriving with Bipolar Disorder: Tips from a Survivor

Blanche Belljar

Blanche Belljar

About this ebook

This self-help book describes how I’ve managed to survive and thrive with bipolar disorder for over 30 years. It offers tips on how to pick a good psychiatrist, how to handle depression, anxiety and insomnia, and how to help a loved one who’s going through a manic episode. It shares with you the lessons I've learned, sometimes the hard way, over the years and also explores the “good crazy” side of being bipolar--and yes, there are some good sides, believe it or not. Many with this disorder are good artists, writers, and musicians. Many are also well-organized and have good sex lives. As the best psychiatrist I ever had told me, “You’re lucky. You’re in good company.” It’s all up to you--the person who has bipolar disorder--to decide if you’re lucky or not. To decide if your glass is half-full or half-empty. I sincerely hope my book will help you and your loved ones. It has received Five and Four Star Reviews.

Ratings and reviews

I've always felt like no one would ever understand what it felt like to have a disorder. I finally found an author who does thanks so much for your tips and writing this book, it's amazing!

Very informative.

About the author

For years, my family and friends have urged me to write books about my experiences with having bipolar disorder. “Maybe you can help other people who are going through the same thing,” they suggested. I was first diagnosed with this disorder in 1985, so it is like “an old friend” to me. I had put off writing about it for many reasons: it was too depressing; too weird; too embarrassing; and too strangely humorous. I finally started writing about it after my brother died. One of the most helpful coping mechanisms my brother ever taught me was to try to see the humor in some of the distressing things that have happened to us in our family. Ultimately, my books are about hope: you will get better after you are first diagnosed with bipolar disorder. My books are also about accepting your illness and how to cope with it; not just for yourself, but also if you have a loved one who is having a bad manic episode and you are trying to help them without going crazy yourself.