‘Living with Bipolar’ group therapy in Johannesburg

The practical aspects were great.  Mood charting has become a way of life and it helps me to keep my 4 pillars standing – Sleep, Meds, Exercise & Pleasurable activities

I thought I knew about my disease and its management, now I know I need to continue learning and Module 1 was the best place to start, the basics.  The module teaches you to become aware of your triggers and behaviours and how to best manage them when you face manic and depressive episodes.    It’s all about taking control yourself and you can only do that with knowledge and awareness.

I felt that sitting down and mapping out my entire history and back round  using the mood chart that went back 10 years gave me huge insight into my personal journey with my disorder. It allowed me to identify the major triggers in my life that have either triggered off depressive or manic events. We also  identify in the course what  our personal  day to day triggers are, how these triggers impact on our thoughts and in turn on our emotions. This knowledge gave me a plan of action and a list of ideas for tackling situations, events or thinking patterns that impact negatively on me on a day to day basis to this day!

The thing that stuck with me the most throughout the course is acceptance. Living with Bipolar is not a death sentence, and as soon as you accept that this is who you are, life gets a little better. I am grateful for having the opportunity to have been part of this course, it has opened my eyes and made me realise that I am not alone.

 

The course is great, it is set out in a way that is easy to manage, it is easy to grasp and is incredibly insightful. The group is small and the environment which is provided is very relaxed it is always amazing to work within a group as it is considerably different to individual therapy and in my opinion is hugely beneficial. After every session I felt lifted and confident. I want to thank Dr Miric, her team and my group members for giving me a gift, the gift of knowledge and understanding when before I had so little. THANK YOU ALL.

The course has helped me to become aware of my thinking process and how it affects my mood. I have also learned that I can regulate my mood daily by implementing stay well strategies. The biggest thing for me was to learn about the ten cognitive distortions and experience how these error ways of thinking affects my mood.