Coming back from an episode of my bipolar depression is hard. Hard enough that there’s always a risk of me getting overwhelmed and triggering a retreat back into more depression. I feel pressure to catch up on everything that got neglected while I was less functional, but if I try to do too much it won’t end well.
Instead, I have to do little things, deliberately small actions, for at least a day or two. Someone recovering from knee surgery who’s just been cleared for exercise wouldn’t dash out and run ten miles…and I can’t dive back into my highest level of performance. (Not to mention that my highest level of performance tends to have at least a sprinkle of hypomania involved, but that’s another story.)
Today, a blog post. A recovery meeting. Drinking more water, and eating better. And not much else. No marketing efforts for my poor book, no attempts at major exercise, no cleaning, no trying to write new things. Ugh. But I know it’s the best way to work it. Tomorrow, a little more.
Lori Lynne Armstrong 