How Bipolar Disorder Can Impact Your Life

According to the National Alliance on Mental Illness, “Sixty-one percent of individuals with bipolar illness also have a substance abuse disorder.”

The Partnership for Drug-Free Kids states “Teens with bipolar disorder are at increased risk of substance use disorder as they get older, a study by researchers at Massachusetts General Hospital has found.

Of the 105 young people with bipolar disorder in the study, 34 percent also had a substance use disorder. Of the 98 teens without bipolar disorder, only 4 percent had a substance use disorder, HealthDay reports.

After five years, researchers followed up with 68 of the bipolar patients and 81 of those without the disorder. Almost half of those with bipolar disorder also had a substance use disorder, compared with 26 percent of those without bipolar disorder.”

Substance use can definitely create problems for families. Coupled with mental health issues, trying to find solutions can feel even more challenging.

That’s why I’m thrilled to share my interview with Beth Gadwa! Beth is a bipolar life coach and works with individuals in consultation with a licensed therapist and/or psychiatrist.

Please briefly introduce yourself for the readers who don’t know you.

Hi, my name is Beth and I am a bipolar life coach. Most of my previous career has been spent in technology, specifically web development and interaction design/usability. Over the last ten years, I built up a full-service interactive agency known as yesexactly.com, which I sold in 2017.

After that, I worked with a couple of different startups, but all the jobs were remote. I really missed working with people! I thought about applying to jobs at larger companies, but I kept coming back to this idea of bipolar life coaching. Not many people have the background for it, and I felt it was important.

A young woman at a local support group come up to me afterward and ask what I had done to manage the disorder effectively for so many years. I don’t think I was able to give her a great answer off the top of my head. But it got me thinking that there really is a role for peers to mentor others going through the same experiences.

Support groups are great but there tends to be a lot of churn and you don’t really get to form a lasting relationship. Bipolar illness has a high fatality rate ( around 15% lifetime risk of suicide ) and frankly, I suspect a lot of the reason for that is stigma and isolation.

In my free time, I enjoy hiking, running, cooking and baking, as well as reading and drawing comics. I love Portland, Oregon. I’ve been here two years and wish I had moved here sooner! My partner still lives in Massachusetts, which gives us a great excuse to take trips together.

Bipolar disorder causes mood swings and changes in behavior for the person experiencing it. It is distinct from unipolar depression, in that there are “highs” as well as “lows.” In Bipolar Type I (my diagnosis), the highs (mania) can be dangerous if not treated with medication.

In Bipolar Type II, the highs are relatively muted while the depressive episodes are more serious in their effects.

With treatment, the recovery rate is 80%. Approximately 4% of the U.S. population will experience bipolar disorder at some point in their lives.

I was traveling by myself in Costa Rica when I started experiencing a sense of mystical euphoria. It was all tied up with Star Wars and this sense of transcending a cosmic duality. Very cosmic! I bought a mountain bike for $400 USD and rode 30 km by myself to the ocean.

Soon after, my host family and language program realized that something was not right and I was admitted to the local hospital. My sister came and accompanied me on the plane flight back to the U.S.

I’ve been living with bipolar disorder for more than 18 years. In one sense, bipolar disorder affects every day of my life, since I take medication daily. I would compare a bad manic episode, for me, to the flu.

It is about as disabling. But these happen rarely. I am lucky in that I bounce back quickly. Some people take much more time to recover.  I do think stigma is a real barrier, particularly for high-functioning individuals with this disability.

Alcohol and drugs can be a way of self-medicating. In many cases, they have the advantage over prescription drugs in that they generate a sense of community and belonging with one’s peers. This can be as powerful as the effects of the substances themselves.

I am not an expert on the bipolar diagnosis in children, but I think it’s important that they are exposed to a wide range of activities and form positive, constructive friendships that do not revolve around alcohol or drugs. Your bipolar child is likely to be creative, with high energy. Embrace these traits and help them find their outlet.

Also, it’s important to note that cannabis can have unpredictable effects on people with a bipolar diagnosis. I know several bipolar people who swear by weed. In my own experience, it was linked to two hospitalizations.

With legalization, it is common to regard cannabis as “safe” and not really a controlled substance, but it can be extremely potent, particularly if your brain chemistry is not neurotypical. I would advise extreme caution, particularly with Sativa strains.

I think stigma is much more severe and pervasive than most people realize. For instance, bipolar disorder kills about as many people as breast cancer, but it only gets about one-eighth of the funding. This translates into different health outcomes, which unfortunately can serve to further reinforce stigma.

Unfortunately, I have experienced stigma in my own life. I have two pieces of pieces of advice for anyone who wishes to support friends and family with a bipolar diagnosis:

First, don’t become defensive if the bipolar person brings up stigma. Most of us are familiar with the idea that we all carry some internalized racism. Stigma is similar. Stigma is not somebody else’s problem. It is something we all carry with us (self-included).

Second, don’t bring up somebody’s diagnosis in an argument, or use it to score verbal points. Unless you are in the situation where you actually need to dial 911 for an ambulance, calling somebody manic isn’t an appropriate response to the situation. When you are angry, your own judgment is clouded. Using these words in anger can leave lasting scars.