Bipolar nursing student

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Hello all,

I am a nursing student, and just within the last couple months was diagnosed as being bipolar. This last bit has been really rough for me, trying to deal with school, stabilizing, therapy... and mostly trying to figure our what the heck this all means in respect to my future. I haven't told anyone in my classes yet, and on numerous occasions i have heard other students speak of "crazies" with mental health issues, etc etc...and I AM SCARED!!!!!!!!! it seems that people are so quick to judge, and i have almost lost every ounce of self confidence that i ever had...

I am wondering if there are other nurses out there who have battled through all this, and how... i have to try and keep my had above the water but its really tough. Can i still be a good nurse? Will things get easier? how can I accept this reality... I am scared guys can anyone help??

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trust me you are not alone, in dealing with a mental health issue, ALOT of people deal with it. It's just up to you if you decide to share it with the world, some ppl do some ppl don't.

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Specializes in icu, er, transplant, case management, ps.

I began suffering from bipolar disorder, in 1965, during my junior year in nursing school. I took six months off from my program and then returned. Unfortunately I was not diagnosed as suffering from bipolar disorder until 1976 Initially, I never shared my diagnoses with any of my classmates. I suffered a very real fear of being on a locked ward because I was initially on one, for twenty-four hours, during my first episode. I shared my fear with my psych instructor who had two of my friends stay with me whenever we had to be on the locked unit. My program was extremely understanding and helpful.

Woody:balloons:

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Specializes in Med/Surg, Psych..

I know there are many stigmas about mental disorders in our society. Please dont let your diagnosis ruin your life. Having any mental disorders is just like having any other physical illness. With you taking your medications regularly, attending individual and group therapies you will do great. You just have to learn how to modify your lifestyle.

Good luck with all your adventures:)

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I can really say that i have been in your shoes and i know the medication process takes a awhile but keep your chin up do not be afraid to tell your instructors maybe they can give you some friendly advice. This diagnosis can work in your advantage because you to can sympathize with other patients that you im sure are going to deal with latter on in your career.

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Specializes in midwifery, NICU.

ann..I Do hope things work out for you babe, I really do.

Just, have reservations about how mentally ready people with Bipolar can be, to nurse others, when there are so many issues goin on for the person with the bipolar disorder. PLEASE, I do Not mean to judge, don't take it that way, but I feel that you need to get yourself in a better place before you can think about tackling others problems. Very Respectfully....Dee.

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Sillyann,

You seem to be in a WONDERFULLY gifted and amazing company of people. You have to decide you are going to be one of THESE people. One who stands out and makes a difference in the world. All of these people, and many more like them, are affected by bipolar disorder and other mental health issues and they THRIVE. They don't just get by, they excel, succeed, lead the pack they belong to, and ultimately they are difference makers. DECIDE to be one of them. DECIDE to fight for you place in this world with this disorder. Don't be someone who feels like you have to hide in the shadows or the dark closet with the boogy-monster, because you do not. Rise above what others "think" you may or may not be capable of. You can DO THIS, and you can be EXACTLY what you want to be in this world. Make the choice to believe in yourself and if you cannot believe in yourself right now, believe in those before you who chose and made it. I believe you can do it.

Florence Nightengale (mother of nursing)

nurse and health campaigner. BPW "Florence heard voices and experienced a number of severe depressive episodes in her teens and early 20s - symptoms consistent with the onset of bipolar disorder", Dr. Kathy Wisner, a professor of psychiatry at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. Article

Abraham Lincoln

The revered sixteenth President of the United States suffered from severe and incapacitating depressions that occasionally led to thoughts of suicide, as documented in numerous biographies by Carl Sandburg.

Virginia Woolf

The British novelist who wrote To the Lighthouse and Orlando experienced the mood swings of bipolar disorder characterized by feverish periods of writing and weeks immersed in gloom. Her story is discussed in The Dynamics of Creation by Anthony Storr.

Lionel Aldridge

A defensive end for Vince Lombardi's legendary Green Bay Packers of the 1960's, Aldridge played in two Super Bowls. In the 1970's, he suffered from schizophrenia and was homeless for two and a half years. Until his death in 1998, he gave inspirational talks on his battle against paranoid schizophrenia. His story is the story of numerous newspaper articles.

Eugene O'Neill

The famous playwright, author of Long Day's Journey Into Night and Ah, Wilderness!, suffered from clinical depression, as documented in Eugene O'Neill by Olivia E. Coolidge.

Ludwig van Beethoven

The brilliant composer experienced bipolar disorder, as documented in The Key to Genius: Manic Depression and the Creative Life by D. Jablow Hershman and Julian Lieb.

Gaetano Donizetti

The famous opera singer suffered from bipolar disorder, as documented in Donizetti and the World Opera in Italy, Paris and Vienna in the First Half of the Nineteenth Century by Herbert Weinstock.

Robert Schumann

The "inspired poet of human suffering" experienced bipolar disorder, as discussed in The Dynamics of Creation by Anthony Storr.

Leo Tolstoy

Author of War and Peace, Tolstoy revealed the extent of his own mental illness in the memoir Confession. His experiences is also discussed in The Dynamics of Creation by Anthony Storr and The Inner World of Mental Illness: A Series of First Person Accounts of What It Was Like by Bert Kaplan.

Vaslov Nijinsky

The dancer's battle with schizophrenia is documented in his autobiography, The Diary of Vaslov Nijinksy.

John Keats

The renowned poet's mental illness is documented in The Dynamics of Creation by Anthony Storr and The Broken Brain: The biological Revolution in Psychiatry by Nancy Andreasen, M.D.

Tennessee Williams

The playwright gave a personal account of his struggle with clinical depression in his own Memoirs. His experience is also documented in Five O'Clock Angel: Letters of Tennessee Williams to Maria St. Just, 1948-1982; The Kindness of Strangers: The Life of Tennessee Williams by Donald Spoto, and Tennessee: Cry of the Heart by Dotson.

Vincent Van Gogh

The celebrated artist's bipolar disorder is discussed in The Key to Genius: Manic Depression and the Creative Life by D. Jablow Hershman and Julian Lieb and Dear Theo, The Autobiography of Van Gogh.

Isaac Newton

The scientist's mental illness is discussed in The Dynamics of Creation by Anthony Storr and The Key to Genius: Manic Depression and the Creative Life by D. Jablow Hershman and Julian Lieb.

Ernest Hemingway

The Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist's suicidal depression is examined in the True Gen: An Intimate Portrait of Ernest Hemingway by Those Who Knew Him by Denis Brian.

Sylvia Plath

The poet and novelist ended her lifelong struggle with clinical depresion by taking own life, as reported in A Closer Look at Ariel: A Memory of Sylvia Plath by nancy Hunter-Steiner.

Michelangelo

The mental illness of one of the world's greatest artistic geniuses is discussed in The Dynamics of Creation by Anthony Storr.

Winston Churchill

"Had he been a stable and equable man, he could never have inspired the nation. In 1940, when all the odds were against Britain, a leader of sober judgment might well have concluded that we were finished," wrote Anthony Storr about Churchill's bipolar disorder in Churchill's Black Dog, Kafka's Mice, and Other Phenomena of the Human Mind.

Vivien Leigh

The Gone with the Wind star suffered from mental illness, as documented in Vivien Leigh: A Biography by Ann Edwards.

Jimmy Piersall

The baseball player for the Boston Red Sox who suffered from bipolar disorder detailed his experience in The Truth Hurts.

Patty Duke

The Academy Award-winning actress told of her bipolar disorder in her autobiography and made-for-TV move Call Me Anna and A Brilliant Madness: Living with Manic-Depressive Illness, co-authored by Gloria Hochman.

Charles Dickens

One of the greatest authors in the English language suffered from clinical depression, as documented in The Key to Genius: Manic Depression and the Creative Life by D. Jablow Hershman and Julian Lieb, and Charles Dickens: His Tragedy and Triumph by Edgar Johnson.

Richard Dreyfus

Actor, Diagnosed with bipolar disorder.

Carrie Fisher

Also known as "princess Leigha" actress and writer. "'I ended up being diagnosed as a bipolar II,' says Fisher."

Rep. Patrick Kennedy

has been open about mental health issues, including being diagnosed with bipolar disorder.

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Specializes in midwifery, NICU.

All of the above! Really, I respect the view, but see that help may be needed to get that Bipolar individual to a place where they can see what others needs are. I really dont wish to cause a fight, but, if you, as an individual, need help as you are Bipolar, then how can you function as a nurse? It's a question by the way, NOT a Judgement!

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ann..I Do hope things work out for you babe, I really do.

Just, have reservations about how mentally ready people with Bipolar can be, to nurse others, when there are so many issues goin on for the person with the bipolar disorder. PLEASE, I do Not mean to judge, don't take it that way, but I feel that you need to get yourself in a better place before you can think about tackling others problems. Very Respectfully....Dee.

Thankfully, I am lucky to have just enough common sense to know when, as a caregiver, I would be able to provide appropriate care to others.

As a student, I am simply beginning my journey in this career, but I am aware that it is a JOB, and that "tackling others problems" should never be anyones first priority in life, especially when one is in need of some self care, as I am at the current moment.

In starting this thread I was simply looking for a little moral encouragement and advice from those with experience in the field, perhaps those who may have/ are currently experiencing similar situations.

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Specializes in midwifery, NICU.

and I merely gave you my best of wishes, and hoped that you did not take on too much.

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Specializes in Med/Surg, Psych..
All of the above! Really, I respect the view, but see that help may be needed to get that Bipolar individual to a place where they can see what others needs are. I really dont wish to cause a fight, but, if you, as an individual, need help as you are Bipolar, then how can you function as a nurse? It's a question by the way, NOT a Judgement!

Its just like having any other illness. Many people suffer from diabetes, chronic pain or even depression and they still are living a fruitfull life. If they did not tell you that they suffer from those conditions, you and I will probably never know. They learn how to live around their illness and yet they are able to do their jobs productively.

She is diagnosed with bipolar. She will have good days and bad days, but with taking medications, therapies she will be able to take care of her patients.:)

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Specializes in midwifery, NICU.

OK..jump on me if you will. I just feel, being Bipolar is a bit different from being diabetic etc! I'm NOT..I repeat NOT getting on the Op's back, but stand by my question..how can you take care of others in a crisis, if you are having an episode?

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