My Dark Materials Guide

Eating clean to beat Bipolar (and lose fat)

2010-02-10T14:33:00.000+00:00

Just started getting interested in this. It seems to be very American which is a big shame as it is a very very good diet for people with Bipolar. Well, in fact it's a very good diet for anyone. Eating clean is the practice of eating whole, natural foods such as fruits, vegetables, lean proteins, and complex carbohydrates. It also means staying away from the crap junk food that most people eat these days 'because it's easyier'. These types of food include man-made sugar, bad fats (hydrogenated, trans-fat), preservatives, white bread, and any other ingredients that are unnecessary. I read somewhere that an easy way to remember if a food is 'clean' is: "if man made it, don't eat it."

A person that eats clean generally practices the following:
Eliminates refined sugar, cooks healthy meals, packs healthy meals to take to work during the day, makes healthy choices when dining out, drinks a lot of water, eats 5-6 small meals per day, eliminates alcohol (or significantly limits it) and always eats breakfast.

I'm really going to try making this change. It's not a diet, it's a way of life. A diet is something you put yourself through in order to lose a few pounds. These quick weight loss 'diets' don't teach you anything about eating healthily long term, especially if you are following something like the Slim Fast plan. What happens when you lose the weight? You'll start eating 'normally' again and pile on the pounds! Weight loss will happen naturally if necessary when you start eating healthy balanced meals.

I'll let you know how I get on...

What is Bipolar?

2010-02-10T13:37:00.001+00:00

Bipolar disorder used to be called ‘manic depression’. I think that's a horrible term for it. It's characterised by either feelings of severe depression or feeling high (or manic) which is like being extremely happy - often inappropriately so. You can also have mixed episodes which are awful - it's like being depressed and manic at the same time!

There are several 'types' of Bipolar:

Bipolar I where there has been at least one high (manic) episode, which has lasted for longer than one week, and severe depressive episodes as well. Having said that apparently some people only manic episodes.

Bipolar II where there has been more than one episode of severe depression, but only mild manic episodes – these are called hypomania.

Rapid cycling where more than four mood swings happen in a 12 month period.

Cyclothymia where mood swings are not as severe as those in full bipolar disorder, but can be longer. This is what Stephen Fry suffers with - I think.

My Girl

2010-02-10T13:21:00.001+00:00

She's a guiding light, a star. She's my rock, my branch to cling to. She's everything a girl should be, everything I'll ever need. She's all things to me and without her I would be nothing. She is my soul mate!

Contents of my head Intro

2010-02-10T13:16:00.003+00:00

Annie Lennox write these words in her song 'Why'...

This is the book I never read
These are the words I never said
This is the path I'll never tread
These are the dreams I'll dream instead
This is the joy that's seldom spread
These are the tears...
The tears we shed
This is the fear
This is the dread
These are the contents of my head

Sounds pretty much like one of my downswings. My bipolar is crippling right now and I certainly feel that the path I want to be on is on the other side of the street. Everything I want is out of reach. All the things that will help me are just dreams right now. My girl is the branch I cling to. Without her no doubt I would be in some gutter somewhere as one of my exes once predicted...

Feedback Wall

2010-02-09T17:55:00.001+00:00

Saw this at the Wellcome museum recently and thought I would use it as the words reminded me of a dream...I picked the ones that spoke to me

Please pick a word and write about it here

microscope Microscope
molecular
torture medieval torture
operation
curious
nude
bullet high speed bullets
roses
animal
steroid
silver
people
war
scientist famous scientists
shrunken
artificial
alcohol where did it come from?
bottles
apothecary old pharmacist paraphenalia
viruses
tattoo
eugenics what?
apocalypse definition
drugs Frank knows...
skeleton
vitamin
dream
smoke
head
truth dare you to click here
mutation
pain
nurture
life why are we here?
art
radical
lab
dead
medicine how's your bedside manner
blood cool
power
illness
prayer
woman
experiment do it yourself
fever
sex
memory
doctor
brain rainbow brain
wonder
end
plague back about 1665
pill
masterpiece
sleep take the sleep quiz
history
research
help
invisible
walking
attack
yellow look at the stars
unicorn
things
ancient
ceremony
emblematic
revolutionary Jesus was a revolutionary too
helix
maps
conceptual