Fitness & Physical Health
This is an area that is particularly difficult to write about.
It is difficult for a few reasons:
- How on earth can we exercise regularly when our energy1 fluctuates all the time?
- What kind of ‘exercise’ is best for us?
- What does ‘fitness’ actually mean in Bi-Polar Land?
- Which aspects of our physical health are the most important ones?
- What about our diet?
- What about keeping an eye on our OTHER potential medical problems?
Let us have a look at those questions in turn.
The first thing we are told about exercising is that it should be done regularly. Unfortunately in Bi-Polar Land there are days when we could run a marathon and days when getting out of bed and having a shower feels like climbing Mount Everest. There are days when we feel like we have been drinking rocket fuel and days when we feel like our body is made of concrete. As a result, regularity goes out of the window and we end up feeling demotivated which of course leads to our abandoning any exercise regime we might have been trying to follow.
To make matters worse, many of us Bi-Polar Landers put on a lot of weight when on our medications. This means that any movement is made more difficult and our natural level of fitness declines. In such circumstances it isn’t easy to avoid falling into the limiting and depressing mental trap of thinking of ourselves as fat and lazy…
So, having taken all that into consideration, the best kind of ’exercise’ for us is a plan that includes fluctuations and looks upon ANY effort that day as a victory. Also, one of the best pieces of information I have found in this respect is to focus on avoiding bad habits because it is those overtime that create fitness decline and decreased physical health. For example, do not use your hands when getting up from a chair/armchair, avoid looking at your feet and walk straight while holding your stomach in, etc. This form of exercise is something that can be worked with almost every day.
The concept of fitness is an interesting one because it is usually constructed totally outside of illness or disability. How do you keep fit when in a wheelchair or when suffering from a chronic illness? I believe it is important to take ownership of the concept of fitness in a way that makes it entirely relevant in Bi-Polar Land - i.e. meaning being well enough to function in our everyday life. Who cares about running a marathon when it is so hard to get out of bed? So how about focusing on the gestures that are necessary for us to feel alive? We can’t get out of bed… focus on our breathing and stretch our muscles the best way we can. At the other end of the scale, we are so agitated that we cannot sit still for a minute… focus on gentle stretching exercises to warm up our muscles for whatever we feel like doing afterwards so that we avoid unnecessary injury.
The most important aspects of our physical wellbeing are those that avoid adding physical illnesses to our mental health problems. The last thing any Bi-Polar Lander needs is high blood pressure or liver disease or whatever else can be added to our chronic landscape. In this regard, it is worth remembering that medication can add considerable physical discomfort (vomiting, nausea, headaches, muscle stiffness, etc) to our existing suffering which is why so many people stop taking medication altogether - which is not a good move.
I could not continue to write about physical well-being without mentioning our diet. As is the case for EVERYBODY, whether they are affected by mental illness or not, diet is hugely important. We all know that a balanced diet is key to keeping our body functioning at its best but what does ‘balanced diet’ mean in Bi-Polar Land? On the one hand it means pretty much what it means for everybody else whether vegetarian or meat eater: plenty of fresh vegetables, fruit, roughage, low salt, low fat and low sugar, all that while avoiding refined foods. All well and good until we introduce three familiar culprits in Bi-Polar Land:
- Low energy (depressive episode)
- High energy (manic episode)
- Medication
It is totally unrealistic to expect anybody who can barely get out of bed to cook a balanced nutritious meal. When at the bottom of the energy scale (depressive episode) we grab whatever happens to be at hand…
When manic, some people stop eating altogether while others never stop eating…
Medication is known to make bipolar patients put on weight - and I don’t mean a couple of pounds, I mean a couple of stones! Part of the problem is that many bi-polar medications create CRAVINGS, the likes of which even pregnant women never experience. So picture the scene: you are exhausted in a way that feels like paralysis and you are constantly craving carbs or sweets or salt. I guarantee that you will not last more than a couple of days without giving in just so that you can have a bit of peace and quiet…Having said all that it must also be made very clear that changing your diet will NOT change your BPD.
One last important aspect of our physical health is taking care of ourselves and getting regular check-ups to ensure that we ARE physically well. Unfortunately, many of us spend so much time in a hospital/health care environment that the last thing we want to do is have anything to do with more doctors. Ideally I would like to see more physical health tests regularly available to us Bi-Polar Landers as part of our wellness programme.