Bipolar and Depression Coaching

Mood disorders involve disturbances in a person inner mood -- or, in the terms of psychiatrists, their affect.

Bipolar disorder, also known as manic depression, is a type of affective disorder that involves the presence of one or more episodes of elevated moods -- called hypomania or mania -- and one or more episodes of depressive episodes, mixed episodes of depression and mania at the same time or rapid-cycling episodes of frequent shifts from mania to depression. Other symptoms can include delusions, hallucinations and anxiety. The relationship between melancholia and mania has long been observed, and is often associated in a positive way with energy, creativity, goal-striving and some positive achievements. It has also been associated with grandiosity, self-destructive and high-risk behaviors and other negative factors.

Major depressive disorder, or clinical depression, is characterized by a low mood, or affect, in combination with other negative elements, including, but not necessarily, low self-esteem, loss of interest or pleasure in normally enjoyable activities. Depression can also present with anxiety, agitation and, at times, hallucinations, delusions and paranoia. With bipolar and depression, individuals are at a higher risk for suicide and accidents.

When working with someone with bipolar or depression, I prefer to work closely with their psychiatrist -- and, if appropriate, their therapist -- to come up with a plan to help them avoid and otherwise navigate the emotional triggers that can lead to relapses. This process often involves implementing life changes and following up to make sure our plans are helpful and realistic. This can also involve helping individuals find a psychiatrist or psychologist who practices in a manner that will benefit them. I am a strong proponent of safety for my clients, but also being able to live fulfilling -- not just normal -- lives.

I also work with individuals who have had major manic or depressive episodes to help rebuild their lives, relearn and perform basic tasks that they are not in the habit of doing, on understanding the impact that their medications are having on them and finding other resources, ranging from yoga classes and free peer-run support groups to finding intensive outpatient programs and beds in the nation's best psychiatric hospitals.

A am a big fan of getting people with mood disorders, especially those with bipolar disorder, involved in peer-only support groups. My peer specialist work in this area began in 2005 when I started a support group in Centreville for those with bipolar disorder. As I recently wrote a person with bipolar who asked me about support groups:

"Starting a support group was a Hail Mary pass in an attempt to find others who I could relate to and who could relate to me without complex explanations and requests that they read Kay Redfield Jamison's "An Unquiet Mind" and "then we can talk." It worked and it turned out to be a blessing ...The Centreville group gave all of us there a chance to reach out to others and benefit from the experience of those who have been there.

It also helped me see how I could be a more active participant in my own treatment, I could gain ideas from others about treatment methods that might work when some weren't working for me, what side effects I might face in advance to trying a new treatment so I could include that in the equation about whether to start and a group that could help stay on top of me and motivate me, and serve as a check to me when it came to my mental health and me as a human being.

I also learned that this illness, for its benefits and weakness, did not define me -- that I am a person well beyond it with things to contribute and things to work on that do not have to do with my diagnosis (it also helped me understand how the illness impacted those things).  I also was able to help myself and help others, and, laugh again, hard and often, for the first time in a long time."

That organization, Depression Bipolar Support Alliance-Northern Virginia, has become an singular force in Northern Virginia mental health, starting support groups those with bipolar and those with depression in Woodbridge (in southern Prince William County), Centreville (in western Fairfax County), Ashburn (in eastern Loudoun County), and for family members and friends in Centreville and Fairfax, and for teens in Fairfax.

My personal experience with theses illnesses often can make a difference for clients trying to struggle with whether to address their illnesses and whether to comply with medical treatment.

For more information on bipolar disorder and more information on depression.

Feel free to contact me for a consultation.

I provide my services exclusively through Goose Creek Coaching. The practice can be reached at (703) 574-6271.