Some things on my mind today

1. How do you tell the difference between a genuine bipolar "I'm starting to mood cycle again so pls adjust my medication, kthx" and "I'm under a lot of stress and being an asshole about it, I need to suck it up and cope" ?

I've been suspecting the former, but the more I think about it, and the more I took in a prescription-strength dose of Sunshine, Fresh Air and Exercise today, I really think it may be the latter.

In which case, my 'prescription plan' is certainly helping. It never fails to amaze me how much more bearable everything seems when copious amounts of sunshine, fresh air and exercise are in the picture. It makes me wonder how much of human well being, nay, even human CULTURE, is due to endorphins. Just feeling your body MOVE, feeling the raw physical CAPABILITY in your sinews and blood and bones, it's pure magic, and it seems to me that nothing will acquaint you with yourself faster. I wonder how much of the total low self-esteem or "I gotta go FIND MYSELF" in the world is due to not enough time spent getting one's body up and moving. It is so easy to get lost in thoughts and worries... just being purely present in PHYSICAL EXERTION is such a relief!

Also, it's a great help in recognizing that a diagnosed disorder is no excuse for being an asshole. It's part of the social contract we humans forge that we all have to learn to cope with our baggage enough to be nice to one another in social situations. This includes not snapping at Spouse and Child when they talk at you at the same time. ;)


2. My blood test results came back. They were all right, but not what I was hoping for. I wanted to see my total serum cholesterol drop 45 points. It didn't. It did, however, drop 20 points. I need to remember that. It's an accomplishment, and I shouldn't beat myself up over it not being a HUGE accomplishment.

So after a brief period of whining, punctuated by the consumption of a few Easter candies, I decided I need to see this as not the end of the four months of lifestyle changes, but rather as the beginning of the next four months. I lost sixteen lbs. over the last four months and am capable of walking much greater distances without my feet blistering up.


3. If there are two slices of leftover pizza in the house, and you've already eaten one of them, the surest way NOT to eat the other is to get the hell out and take a long walk and reward self with black coffee. :) I call this the Perky Theorem of Pizza (Non-)Consumption.


4. Generation Rescue is jerks. Thanks to awesome Science-Based Medicine and to various awesome Sciencebloggers for handling the debunking. Gives me the will to live. And the energy. From not having to wade through all the GR garbage myself.