One of the most painful aspects of living with bipolar is the way in which it can wreak havoc in our personal relationships. During mania we are more likely to make social faux pas from making promises in moments of grandeur we can’t keep to tearing people down during our unbridled rage. When we emergeContinue reading “Navigating Broken Relationships After a Manic Episode “
Tag Archives: bipolar
Happy Birth Day to Me
You can always count on a doula to remind a mother that her child’s birthday is her birth day too! Every year around my daughter’s birthday my doula friends remind me that as inspiring as it is to witness our little ones blossom, we need to acknowledge our own growth. Today is my birth day.Continue reading “Happy Birth Day to Me”
Myth of the Black Woman Superhero
Popular culture would like us to believe that Black women are invincible. We don’t need help. We don’t need to be handled with tender love and care. Despite whatever trauma or abuse comes our way, we are indestructible. This is why the Welfare Queen stereotype is still so pervasive. Black women should bear the fullContinue reading “Myth of the Black Woman Superhero”
Madness & Single Motherhood
I think people assume that those of us with a “severe” mental health diagnosis would be the ones in need of caretaking instead of the ones doing the primary caregiving. But here I find myself, almost three years postpartum, a single mom and a mad one at that. When I started my journey as aContinue reading “Madness & Single Motherhood”
Mad Love: Don’t Say You Can’t Live Without Me
When I was younger, I thought phrases like “I can’t live without you,” “You are my world,” and “You give me purpose” were romantic. Codependency was the central ingredient to what I thought was the most beautiful love story. Forbidden Love. Us Against The World. Your Ride or Die. These were all the chapter titlesContinue reading “Mad Love: Don’t Say You Can’t Live Without Me”
Meditations on Mad Love: Using Lessons from Polyamory as a Roadmap
I have been thinking a lot about love lately and the importance of unlearning certain cultural scripts about how love should be, including it being only between a man and a woman or monogamous. While we have witnessed great strides towards openness and equality in who and how we love, I am still challenged byContinue reading “Meditations on Mad Love: Using Lessons from Polyamory as a Roadmap”
Graduation SZN | Part 2 – The Tarot Edition
It’s truly remarkable how quickly one’s life can change in the span of a few days or weeks. If I had to pick a tarot card to sum up my life since my last Graduation SZN post in May, I would choose The Tower. The Tower card emerges when monumental life events disrupt our mundaneContinue reading “Graduation SZN | Part 2 – The Tarot Edition”
New Therapist, New Me
Not too long ago, I began contemplating whether I needed to continue going to therapy. After a harmful situation with a therapist where I lost trust in the process, I took a hiatus exploring peer support groups and other self-care activities to maintain my wellbeing. Homebound while postpartum in a global pandemic, I re-established myContinue reading “New Therapist, New Me”
Surviving COVID-19 and the Fear of Psychosis
Two years into the pandemic and I finally got sick with COVID-19. While being incapacitated in bed or on the couch was not fun, getting sick allowed me to face my worst fear. Out of all the things that could happen — respiratory problems, loss of taste and smell, or the chronic fatigue and persistingContinue reading “Surviving COVID-19 and the Fear of Psychosis”
Maintenance is Harder
I realized that I was in the maintenance phase of my recovery when the drama disappeared and life started slowing down. I would have off days like any regular human being, but I did not know how to cope with them. I was so used to dealing with distress that I felt like I couldContinue reading “Maintenance is Harder”
Nadia Naomi Mbonde 