Hi there!
I hate taking medication.
Every morning, I pull out my colorful pillbox (ad, but also the one I use), and a part of me fantasizes about destroying it. I imagine starting a fire in the burn pit in my backyard and dousing the box with gasoline. One strike of the match, and I would watch it melt into a pool of black goo.
My smile would last for days.
Then I remind myself why I take the meds.
There was a time, before I received my bipolar diagnosis, where medication was not part of my everyday life. Those were often dark days.
“Perseverance is the hard work you do after you get tired of doing the hard work you already did.”
- Newt Gingrich
Scott Ninneman also publishes the free All Things Bipolar Newsletter (off Substack) The Sunday email features the newest content about bipolar life.
Facing the Dark Times
When I was manic, I would go days without closing my eyes.
I would run from task to task, showing up for every social event, and work 80 or more hours a week.
Then things would turn dark.
I would spend days in bed. At times, I nailed blankets over the windows so no light could enter my home. Constant noise crowded my head. The hallucinations were so real I struggled to remember which world was reality.
Taking medication hasn’t made every day rainbows and puppy dog tails, but my life is so much better since I found a treatment plan to keep me stable. I live a full life, work four days a week, and volunteer in my community every week. I take care of my aging parents, manage my blog, and post new content in this Positivity Club and on Medium.
All in all, things are pretty good.
Doing What You Must
Living life successfully with mental illness often involves doing things you don’t want to do.
You eat your vegetables even when you would rather have cheesecake for dinner. You exercise, even when the thought of binge watching The Good Doctor (ad) is much more appealing. Most days, you get up and go to work, although your body longs to spend the day in bed.
The things we despise doing improve our lives, so as adults, we learn to do them.
Remembering how the task improves your life makes it easier to do it.
For today, think about the things you fight doing but that make your life better. Focus on the benefits and you’ll find it easier to get the tough things done.
How do you do the tough things? Please share your tips in the comments.
Pull Out Your Pencils
Use these writing prompts to help you explore the power of doing the tough things.
Journal Prompt: Think of a task you dread doing. How does making the effort to do what’s needed improve your life? What does that lesson teach you?
Creative Writing Prompt: You wake up and you’re suddenly 10 years old again, but you’ll only be that age for 24 hours. Write a story about the day and what you would do.
Until next time, keep fighting.
Scott Ninneman
Additional Reading:
Red Pill or Blue Pill: Would You Take One to Change Your Life Forever?
The Signs My Parents Missed Before My Bipolar Disorder Diagnosis
Disclaimer:
This email may contain affiliate links. If you make a purchase through one of these links, I may receive a small commission at no additional cost to you.
The creative writing prompt sounds like a role reversal version of the movie "Big".
I have a motto: Play the tape all the way to the end.
That is how I picture the consequences of my choices. Sometimes I'll be facing a dietary choice. Chocolate ice cream or some healthy protein. I play the tape in my head, seeing the scale (I'm trying to lose weight in a safe and healthy manner) go either up or down.
I visualize my disappointment in myself when the scale shows my weight is going up. Then I think about my pleasure (like this morning!) of stepping on the scale and seeing some lower numbers.
Play the tape all the way to the end when you are making decisions: overdrink alcohol, blackouts and hangovers. Be rude to the store clerk, shame and embarrassment follow.
Didn't show up for work, you know the consequences of that are not good. The day at the beach is not worth it.
Playing the tape now: linger in bed or take the dog out for her walk that contributes to my weight loss.