Kanye West discusses bipolar diagnosis with Trump in 2018
Demi Lovato hasn’t shied away from talking about her mental health journey. No stranger to controversy and mental struggles, the singer speaks candidly about her inner demons in the hopes to remove the stigma of mental health and inspire others to be more open with how difficult life can be sometimes for some.
Demi explained: “When I was 18, I was diagnosed with bipolar disorder.
“I did a lot of opening up and talking about that back then, so it was a natural decision for me to come together with Be Vocal and decide to make a difference.”
When asked about her decision to back the Be Vocal campaign, Demi answered: “It’s impacted me by keeping me accountable for my mental health.
“Making sure that I’m taking care of myself, making sure I’m raising my voice for other people, and it’s having a positive impact on me.”
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What is bipolar?
Bipolar disorder, formerly called manic depression, is a mental health condition that causes extreme mood swings that include emotional highs and lows.
When you become depressed, you may feel sad or hopeless and lose interest or pleasure in most activities, said Mayo Clinic.
The health site continued: “When your mood shifts to mania or hypomania (less extreme than mania), you may feel euphoric, full of energy or unusually irritable.
“These mood swings can affect sleep, energy, activity, judgment, behaviour and the ability to think clearly.”
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What are the symptoms to look out for:
Hypomanic symptoms can include:
- Abnormally upbeat, jumpy or wired
- Increased activity, energy or agitation
- Exaggerated sense of well-being and self-confidence (euphoria)
- Decreased need for sleep
- Unusual talkativeness
- Racing thoughts
- Distractibility
- Poor decision-making — for example, going on buying sprees, taking sexual risks or making foolish investments
Depressive symptoms may include:
- Depressed mood, such as feeling sad, empty, hopeless or tearful
- Marked loss of interest or feeling no pleasure in all — or almost all — activities
- Significant weight loss when not dieting, weight gain, or decrease or increase in appetite (in children, failure to gain weight as expected can be a sign of depression)
- Either insomnia or sleeping too much
- Either restlessness or slowed behaviour
- Fatigue or loss of energy
- Feelings of worthlessness or excessive or inappropriate guilt
- Decreased ability to think or concentrate, or indecisiveness
- Thinking about, planning or attempting suicide
“People often throw the word bipolar around very often and in situations that don’t relate to bipolar disorder at all,” the singer said.
“So, there is a lot of negative stigma when it comes to discussing mental illness in America, and my goal with Be vocal is to change that.
“But for me, it’s something that represents something that I have, it doesn’t represent who I am.”
Although bipolar disorder is a lifelong condition, a person can manage your mood swings and other symptoms by following a treatment plan.
On how she tries to overcome this disorder, Demi explained: “I take it one day at a time and I do things for myself that make me feel good.
“So, if it’s working out, that makes me feel good, so I make sure I get in a good workout.
“If it’s taking care of myself where I see my therapist or I see my psychiatrist, I make sure that I do those things in order to maintain a healthy mind.”
The starlet makes a point to not just be open about honouring her boundaries, but also honouring her day-to-day struggles in hopes that she connects with others and their own battles.
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