Category: bipolar

TG Issues 3

by Midnight Demon, posted in bipolar, chronic physical pain, mood disorders, suicidality, transgender

Fortunately, I had therapy today. My therapist was able to get to her office today, but there won’t be therapy tomorrow because they canceled school again. I know out west got hit harder than we did, where she lives. Just sucks but at least I got to talk to her a little bit today.

I told her about the strange dream I had this morning. In the dream, I went to my friend Chris’s wake. I went there with a mutual friend. He went off being a social butterfly that he was and I was left to my own devices. There was a guy I recognized from way back and so we chatted. He asked me my name and when I told him, he looked at me up and down with disgust. I awoke from the dream feeling full of self-loathing. I couldn’t stand to be my own skin. My therapist calls it gender dysphoria. I don’t care what it is called. I hate myself, no, I loathe myself way too much, to the point where I just want to kill myself. We didn’t discuss that part. I thought it was self-explanatory. She should know by now that anything to do with self-loathing is going to bring up suicidal thoughts.

Then we discussed my paper that I am working on submitting for a contest. I think it sounds too depressing, so I added a few sentences about hope. It read okay in my mind but I am still having my doubts. Top prize for this is $1500, though I really would love just to win it for the sake of having my writing mean something. Once the winners are announced, I will post my piece.

But the writing got me self-doubting and it really hurts me to think that is what my life is. I am stuck in the wrong body and it is hurtful. Then towards the end of session, my therapist tells me that she called the LGBTQ clinic inquiring about whether suicidality will hinder transition and if private therapy will have to cease. None of these conditions are true. I just need my PCP to recommend them to their primary care place for evaluation. They are willing to work *with* me on the transition. I couldn’t talk about it anymore as I was drowning in sorrow and relief. This could happen this year and all I have to do is put one foot in front of the other.

I woke up from the self-loathing dream around 0630 and couldn’t go back to sleep. I went to the bathroom and then when I came back to my room, I got really nauseous. I thought I was going to throw up so I took my Zofran (anti-nausea pill). I couldn’t sit up so I laid back down and fell asleep. I didn’t wake up till around 11 or so. By then I was really hungry so made eggs and bacon. Now I am feeling sick to my stomach again and I am really tired.

No mail has come yet. I hope it comes soon and my prescription is in it. I need my pain meds or I am going to run out. I haven’t been in too much pain today but then I have been resting for most of the day.

I haven’t showered yet. I think I might do that later tonight, if I don’t get sick. I keep thinking about the TG issues and the self-loathing. I really, really, loathe myself. I find myself despicable. I just am not a good person and I should die. But my therapist would miss me so I can’t kill myself as much as I want to. I’m going to go to sleep after I take some Ativan. I hope I am in a better mood when I wake up.

Something in the Water

by Midnight Demon, posted in bipolar, Bipolar Disorder, chronic physical pain, depression

Something in the Water

I have been obsessed with this song since hearing it on the radio a few times the other day. I wish YouTube had a repeat function because it would save me from hitting play again and again. The choreography in this video is pretty neat as well. I find it to be a very uplifting song.

Went to PT. She did ultrasound on my ankle and then wrapped it in an ace bandage to see if that helped, but not before doing a few stretching/strengthening exercises. One of the exercises I have no idea if I am moving my ankle or not. My proprioception is so off. She noticed that when I did it, my toes began shaking. She said that was because my ankle is weak. Well, duh! Tell me something I don’t friggin know. I asked if that was the reason why the bottom of my foot did the same thing when I did the stand on one foot exercise. She said most likely. Great. I am going to give this run another 4 weeks to see if I have any improvement, even though I feel pretty hopeless about it. I just think that if my ankle was going to get better, I would have seen improvements by now. But then, I really have just been a lump on a log, not doing anything to help my pain except being in inactive. I told her that doing stairs or any activity is going to bring me pain. We’ll see in 4 weeks if I am better. She didn’t bring up aqua therapy and I am not going for it. It’s too bloody cold out to be wet.

I have a new problem that occurred today. I think my buttock is getting weak. I had a sneeze attack today while going up the stairs and by the time I got to my room, I felt like my butt couldn’t hold me up while standing. Sitting, I am fine, though it feels more like I am sitting on a pillow than a group of muscles. It just feels different to me and I am worried that a disc has herniated again. I am not having any of the other red flags of CES, so I am not petrified. I am hoping it is just because I am tired because I did a lot of walking today. After PT I went to Starbucks for my coffee and a bite to eat. I am not in pain but then I don’t know if my butt is numb or not. I can still feel it when I run my hand up and down but I don’t know if the muscles on the inside are getting numb. It always worries me because I know I have a disc that is touching my nerve root. So sneezing is going to bring me some difficulty. I don’t stifle the sneeze because that isn’t good for you.

I had a hard time waking up today. It was a good thing my app that reminds me to take my meds woke me up or I would have slept the day away and missed my PT appointment. I just could not wake up. I know part of the reason is that I went to bed late. I had gone to bed around 2300, only to wake up around 0130. I then played my game until my pain meds kicked in, which was at least two hours later. But I just did not want to get up. I really just wanted to stay in bed and sleep. I really have not had a day that I have done that. I have been doing some timed missions on my game so it has been occupying more space in my head. I should have requested some stuff before leaving the house, but I didn’t have time. I didn’t even have time to shower today. I will maybe later, if my hip/butt doesn’t hurt me. I need to go to my father’s tomorrow for his weekly pill box filling. So I can’t be “smelling”.

Shout out to LPS who reconnected to my blog via other bloggers. Love that people read my blog. I just hope that people find it useful. Otherwise, I am wasting my time.

Sun Downing

by Midnight Demon, posted in bipolar, chronic physical pain, depression, mood disorders, suicidality

Had a rough time last night. Thoughts were so hopeless and I was filled with despair. I tried tweeting my thoughts but I couldn’t form words to my pain. It was agonizing not being able to express myself. I wanted to read something about suicide that would help me realize that life was worth living but I was paralyzed with fear that if I read something negative, it might push me over the edge on I was on. I was trying to find “suicidal mind” to ease my psychache but I had no idea where to look. Today I know where to look and after I write this blog, I am searching for it. I think it is in my Psychache binder folder. I hope so anyways. If I don’t find it, I will buy another copy when I get paid in two weeks. I texted my therapist to call me if she has a chance. I need her calming voice that things are going to be okay.

I don’t know how things went south. I think it was the sun downing experience I get when I am deeply depressed. My mood gets worse when the sun sets, but unfortunately, the sun had already set when my mood shifted. Usually after 8 pm (2000), my mood goes south, more so this time of the year than at any other time. It usually starts the end of September and ends any where the middle of February to the middle of March. It is when my suicidal thoughts are at their worst. There has been documentation about this in bipolar people. Kay Redfield Jamison’s book, Night falls Fast, I think states that is the worst time of year for bipolars to commit suicide. If it isn’t that book, it is the book “Touched with Fire”. Both are very good books and I think are in my Useful Books page.

Right now I am starting to feel sad. I have been listening to a variety of music on my phone to get me out of this funk I am in but it’s not helping me. They say when you are depressed you analyze lyrics more than words to the song. Or something like that. And I have been doing that. If I could have YouTube on repeat for Carrie Underwood’s song “Something in the Water”, I would. I find this song uplifting. It’s on my music to buy list, which is getting longer each month. I hate not being able to buy music when I want to. When I was working, this wasn’t a problem but being on a fixed income, you learn to budget. And you allow certain funds to go towards entertainment. Usually I get a few songs a month but Carrie just came out with her first Greatest Hits CD and I want it! It has all my favorite Carrie songs, and a few I don’t know. The new song, Something in the water is on this CD collection. I just can’t decide if I want the physical CD or the MP3 version. I have a few weeks to think about it. Until then, YouTube is playing my song, even if I have to hit play a few times.

My little niece called me to pick her up but after my doctor’s appointment today, I need to rest my ankle. I have to pick her up tomorrow and if I do too much today, I will be toast. My ankle is starting to throb so I really shouldn’t tax it. She will just have to wait until her mother picks her up when she gets out of work. I feel bad and it only worsens my depression because I can’t do things like I used to. It still amazes me that I was able to work 2 jobs while in horrible pain and now can’t even work one. Course, I passed my breaking point when I had to wear an AFO. I just wished I had chosen the research job over the clinical job. Working 20 hours would have been a severe pay cut but at least I still would have a job and maybe be able to finish school finally.

Throbbing is moving into my foot. I fucking hate when that happens. I won’t be able to go down the stairs, or up, over the next few hours. Least until my pain medication kicks in. Doc I saw today has me on a new NSAID (non-steriodal anti-inflammatory drug) called Mobic (meloxicam). I need to start it tomorrow because I took my last dose of another NSAID last night and you can’t take the two together. I hope it works better than what I am taking now. I hope it helps my arthritis in my hands and that it doesn’t cause GI upset. I left a message with the doc as to when is best to take it. I usually take all my meds at night but I don’t know if that is best or not for this new med. I just hope it helps me and doesn’t cause me any side effects.

UO VS OSU Ducks vs Buckeyes

by Midnight Demon, posted in bipolar, blogging, depression

UO VS OSU Ducks vs Buckeyes

It’s college football night and my team, OSU is playing Oregon. So far the consensus is going for the ducks (UO) to win. We’ll see. I haven’t decided if I am going to watch it or just play by ear with Twitter. I am wicked cold right now, and am in double layers to stay warm, even though the heat kicked on about an hour ago. My room takes forever to heat because our heating system sucks. It only has two setting, freezing cold or blazing hot. I would like the cold, normally, but it is causing me to have cramps in my feet and I don’t like that!

I skipped my PT appointment today. I had to go to my father’s and there was no way I was going to do both. My foot is killing me because it cramped up on me, twice. I have been waiting for my therapist to text me with a time but it doesn’t look likely at this point. I am still feeling like a useless pile of shit but the feeling isn’t as big as an abyss. Yesterday was horrible but today is more manageable. I have noticed that when I am like this, it seems like forever to write a blog. I just am not too focused on writing because I don’t really know what to say. But then it is hard to think when your foot is throbbing really bad. And you are very cold and want nothing more to do with a laptop. You just want to get under the covers and sleep. I made that mistake last night. I went to bed at 1830 and then woke up around 0045. I then stayed up till I think 0400. It really did me in for today because I just wanted to sleep all day. I really just wanted to go to my appt and then go to the Square to cash my check and have coffee. But that was spoiled when my sister told me to go to my father’s to give him something. It was kind of good that I did go over there as they changed one of his medications so I had to make the change in his box. I didn’t stay too long. I just did what I had to do then high tailed out of there.

I waited for the bus at the station and there were junkies there. One woman looked so stoned she couldn’t stay standing up for too long. She kept bending over like she was going to fall over. I was hoping that she didn’t get on the bus I needed to get on. And she didn’t.

Don’t know if I mentioned this before, but I lost 11 followers on Twitter the other night during the Pats game. I think it was because either a) I was swearing too much or b) the bunch of new followers I got were bots. Or it could be that I didn’t follow back some of the people. I don’t follow back unless I know the person and we actually converse. I should have gave a warning that I was watching a game but neglected to do so. If I watch the OSU game tonight, I might be swearing if the game doesn’t go towards OSU. I was swearing a lot on Saturday because the Pats were playing like shit the first half. I get really animated in these games and I take it out on social media.

BUCKEYES WON!! National CHAMPIONS!! I am so damn happy!! And my favorite player, Zeke Elliot, got MVP of the game. I watched the last half (quarters 3&4). There were some moments I wanted to swear but I didn’t. And I loved the two interceptions the Buckeyes made to put them up over the Ducks. YAHOO!!