Dealing with Extreme Anxiety

David went to his Dr. last week. He was suffering from extreme anxiety and lots of joint pain. It's a good thing he did; the Dr. said he was on the verge of a nervous breakdown caused by bipolar. He gave David a complete physical, including blood tests. We're still waiting for the results of those. He also put David on Zyprexa, with the approval of his pdoc. It's so great to have two doctors who work together and take David's illness seriously. All he has to do is call his Dr., and they fit him in almost immediately because they know he's high risk. I'm grateful for them.

The zyprexa is working well for David. It's taken the edge off the noise in his head that was driving him to distraction. He's also been able to get more sleep, which is always nice. His mood was miserably hard to deal with all week, but he's finally coming through the bad cycle. He gets combative, anxious, edgy, and paranoid during mania. I know he's finally coming out of it when he talks to me about what's been going on in his mind, and we can have long, healthy discussions about his illness, and how to better handle it.

I've been keeping a record of his moods since he started this new medicine. And trying to keep my own mood upbeat. Not always an easy thing. I'm still figuring out how to manage my reactions to David's mood cycles. Sometimes I do better than at other times. But one firm rule is to not argue with him when he's manic, and to give him space, while I do my own things. I also rely heavily on faith and prayer to get me through it.

It can be so draining to deal with, but even so, I feel that it's worth the effort. And next week promises to be better. We are expecting a new grandbaby to arrive, and Sailor Jeff and his wife will be coming home for good!