Bipolar disorder is a difficult, complicated illness. And like any illness, it can naturally spill over into your relationship. As couples therapist Julia Nowland noted, “Bipolar disorder can be an emotional roller-coaster ride for the couple, with many ups and downs that mimic the disorder itself.” But this doesn’t mean
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Shared by Margarita Tartakovsky, M.S., Contributing Blogger May 28, 2018
In addition to therapy, medication can be an invaluable treatment for clinical depression. It may alleviate symptoms and literally save lives. Which is why having an array of medications to choose from is vital. Recently, in the U.S., three antidepressants were approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to
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Shared by Margarita Tartakovsky, M.S., Contributing Blogger May 21, 2018
Today, in our society dependent is a dirty word. It’s a synonym for weak, helpless, clinging, incapable, immature and inferior. Literally. Because when you look up “dependent” in a thesaurus, those are the very words you’ll find. Naturally, we don’t want to be any of those things, so we see
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Shared by Margarita Tartakovsky, M.S., Contributing Blogger April 26, 2018
Anxiety is frustrating. You feel like a stranger inside your own body. You feel like there are mini explosions inside your head, inside your heart. Sometimes, you shake. Sometimes, you sweat. Sometimes, the sensations are hard to describe: You simply feel off or downright terrible. Your thoughts race each other
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Shared by Margarita Tartakovsky, M.S., Contributing Blogger April 19, 2018
When writer Elaina J. Martin was diagnosed with bipolar disorder, she felt “less than.” “I felt like other people were better than me, less damaged than I was.” In the first few years of her diagnosis, psychotherapist Colleen King, LMFT, worried she’d never be able to function at a higher
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Shared by Margarita Tartakovsky, M.S., Contributing Blogger April 8, 2018
It’s hard enough to navigate social media as an adult. Many of us start feeling envious of others’ lives and experience self-doubt. Even one image can lead us to question everything from our weight to our worth, from our career choices to our day-to-day routines. We know the images are
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Shared by Margarita Tartakovsky, M.S., Contributing Blogger April 6, 2018
In our society, we’re constantly striving to feel positive emotions—only positive emotions. Happiness. Joy. Gratitude. Calm. Peace. We see sadness as unhealthy and wrong, so when it arises, we feel unhealthy and wrong for experiencing it. We see sadness as unproductive. We just “don’t see the point” in feeling sad,
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Shared by Margarita Tartakovsky, M.S., Contributing Blogger April 4, 2018
Bipolar disorder is a difficult illness. It affects everything. In addition to affecting your mood, it affects your judgment, concentration, memory, energy and sleep. It affects your relationships. It affects your everyday. It can bring about a deep, sinking despair, or jolt you into a euphoric state where your brain
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Shared by Margarita Tartakovsky, M.S., Contributing Blogger March 22, 2018
Challenges provide growth opportunities—if we’re willing to see them as such and to face them. This is especially true for therapy. Yet we tend to assume that in order to be helpful, therapy must be a smooth process, without any hiccups or bumps. But it’s these very bumps, when handled
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Shared by Margarita Tartakovsky, M.S., Contributing Blogger February 28, 2018
Your daughter is terrified of making mistakes. She sees failure as the ultimate catastrophe. She avoids completing assignments and trying new things. She fears being embarrassed. She gives up easily. She spends extra time on homework and regularly rewrites her assignments. She doesn’t raise her hand in class because she’s
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Shared by Margarita Tartakovsky, M.S., Contributing Blogger February 25, 2018
Shared by Margarita Tartakovsky, M.S., Contributing Blogger May 28, 2018