Is your medication not working (or not working well)?

Is your medication not working (or not working well)? | November 2023 Newsletter

Published: Thu, 11/30/23

Natasha Tracy's Newsletter

November 2023 Edition

Welcome to my new readers! It's great to have you.

I believe that 99.9% of people with bipolar disorder need medication to live their best lives. However, that doesn't mean medication is a simple or easy road. In fact, many times, medication doesn't work or doesn't work as well as we want. This is a major topic this month.

In this edition, you'll find:

A short discussion on the complexities of being on medication for bipolar disorder
Articles you may have missed, including one about the success of the rollout of 988
An Instagram image and quote about the doctor-patient relationship
An November quote about the flavor of November

What to Do When Your Medication Isn't Working

What Do You Do When Medication Doesn't Work?

I have been on psychotropic medication for 25 years, and I can tell you that medication has been a problem for many of those years. There have been times when medication didn't work or when it didn't work well more often than I care to recall. I'm definitely treatment-resistant, as are many other people with bipolar disorder.

If you want to learn more about medication not working and treatment-resistant bipolar disorder, read this.

You might also want to check out:

New Treatments for Bipolar Depression — Options for Treatment-Resistance — This piece, written last year, outlines treatment options you might not have considered.
What Keeps a Person Going When Medication Doesn't Work? — I keep going when treatment doesn't work and so do most of us. Here's why we need to keep doing it.
Fatigue and Bipolar Disorder — Symptoms, Treatment — Fatigue is a major problem for many with bipolar disorder. Read about what fatigue is like and what you can do about it.
Fear of Bipolar Medication Treatment Changes — Treatment changes can result in great things. They can also result in suffering. Fear of treatment changes is completely reasonable.
Bipolar Treatment Fatigue — I've been on bipolar treatment after treatment after treatment. It's exhausting being on this (un)merry-go-round.

What You May Have Missed

Here are some new articles you might have missed from the Bipolar Burble and Breaking Bipolar blogs:

How Successful Has the 988 Suicide Crisis Lifeline Rollout Been in 2023? — Most of us know that you can now call 9-8-8 to get mental health help. This functionality was rolled out last year. But how do people feel about the Lifeline?
Do Antidepressants Increase Suicidality? Does the Black Box Warning Help or Harm People — Antidepressants were given a dire warning (black box warning) 20 years ago about the possibility of them causing suicidality. However, current data suggests our concern was overblown, and the black box warning itself may have inadvertently increased suicides overall.
Here's What I Do When I Can't Think — So often, bipolar prevents me from really thinking. Here's what I do instead.
I 'Suffer' from Bipolar Disorder, and It's Okay to Say It — This is something else we're not supposed to say. We're supposed to say we "experience" bipolar disorder. Well, I suffer from it and I'm not changing that verbiage to make other people feel better.
Rumination in Bipolar Disorder Is Dangerous — Here's What to Do Instead — Rumination — or spiraling negative thoughts — can lead to a dangerous place. Here's what you can do instead.

The Archives

Insta-Instagram

November 13, 2023

"It can be hard to see someone in a position of power as just a regular, fallible person. But that's what doctors are: regular, fallible experts — not gods.

This means that not everything they do is right or best. Sometimes, you may disagree, and that's okay.

It's important to respect their expertise, but it's also important to realize they're not perfect. This means that if you do disagree, you need to have an open conversation to better understand their train of thought. You may find that they are taking things into consideration that you were not aware of. Or you may find that you make a valid counterpoint. Balance and respect is key.

Finally, if your doctor expects you to treat them like a god, find a new one if at all possible. If they don't see their own fallibility, that's a problem."

I create (and comment on) a lot of interesting work on Instagram, in addition to Facebook, X, YouTube, and Threads. I'm posting interesting quotes, images, and quirky things from my life. I hope you'll join me there.

November's Final Words

That's it for now, folks; I'll catch up with you next month. Until then, please look into getting a flu shot and an updated COVID shot, too. I did. It's the best way you can protect your health this winter.

I'd like to leave you with a tasty quote about November:

“In November, the smell of food is different. It is an orange smell. A squash and pumpkin smell. It tastes like cinnamon and can fill up a house in the morning, can pull everyone from bed in a fog. Food is better in November than any other time of the year.”

— Cynthia Ryland, "In November"

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