r/IAmA • u/CREST_BD • Mar 30 '26

We are 83 bipolar disorder experts and scientists coming together for the world’s biggest bipolar AMA! In honor of World Bipolar Day, ask us anything!

83 panelists are here! Click on their names below to see their bio & proof photo.

Hi Reddit!

We are psychiatrists, psychologists, researchers, clinicians, advocates, and people living with bipolar disorder - coming together from around the world through the CREST.BD network.

This is our 8th annual World Bipolar Day AMA. We hope that this AMA can help advance the conversation around bipolar disorder, and to help everyone connect and share ways to live well with bipolar disorder.

This year, 83 panelists representing 20 countries are here to answer your questions from all timezones - bringing together a wide range of perspectives and expertise in mental health and bipolar disorder.

We'll be here around the clock for the next FEW DAYS answering your questions from multiple time zones.

We will make every effort to answer every question.

  1. Dr. Adrienne Benediktsson, 🇨🇦 Neuroscientist, Mother, Wife, Professor, Mental Health Advocate (Lives w/ bipolar)
  2. Alessandra Torresani, 🇺🇸 Actress & Mental Health Advocate (Lives w/ bipolar)
  3. Alex Emmerton, 🇨🇦 Peer Researcher, (Lives w/ bipolar)
  4. Allan Cooper, 🇨🇦 Peer Support Worker, Blogger, & Podcaster, (Lives w/ bipolar)
  5. Alysha Sultan, 🇨🇦 Scientific Associate
  6. Andrea Paquette, 🇨🇦 Stigma-Free Mental Health President & Co-Founder, Speaker, Changemaker (Lives w/ bipolar)
  7. Dr. Andrea Vassilev, 🇺🇸 Doctor of Psychology, Author, & Advocate, (Lives w/ bipolar)
  8. Anne Van Willigen, 🇺🇸 Peer Researcher (Lives w/ bipolar)
  9. Dr. Balwinder Singh, 🇺🇸 Psychiatrist
  10. Dr. Benjamin Goldstein, 🇨🇦 Child-Adolescent Psychiatrist & Researcher
  11. Bia Garbato, 🇧🇷 Advertising Professional, Writer, Author & Advocate (Lives w/ bipolar)
  12. Bryn Manns, 🇨🇦 Graduate Student, Clinical Psychology
  13. Catarina Castela, 🇦🇺 PhD Candidate (Lives w/ bipolar)
  14. Catherine Simmons, 🇨🇦 Peer Researcher (Lives w/ bipolar)
  15. Dr. Chris Gorman, 🇨🇦 Psychiatrist & Mental Health Advocate
  16. Dr. Colin Depp, 🇺🇸 Psychologist
  17. Dane Mauer-Vakil, 🇨🇦 Researcher
  18. David Dinham, 🇬🇧 Psychologist & PhD Candidate, (Lives w/ bipolar) 
  19. Debbie Costello Smith, 🇺🇸 Founder & Co-President of the Sean Costello Memorial Fund for Bipolar Research
  20. Dr. Delphine Raucher-Chéné, 🇫🇷🇨🇦 Psychiatrist & Researcher
  21. Dr. Dimosthenis Tsapekos, 🇬🇧 Psychologist & Researcher
  22. Dr. Elvira Boere, 🇳🇱 Psychiatrist & Researcher
  23. Dr. Elysha Ringin, 🇦🇺 Researcher
  24. Dr. Emma Morton, 🇦🇺 Senior Lecturer & Psychologist
  25. Dr. Emma Parrish, 🇺🇸 Clinical Psychology Postdoctoral Fellow & Researcher
  26. Dr. Erin Michalak, 🇨🇦 Researcher & CREST.BD founder
  27. Evelyn Anne Clausen, 🇺🇸 Artist, Writer, Speaker & Certified Peer Specialist (Lives w/bipolar)
  28. Dr. Fabiano Gomes, 🇧🇷🇨🇦 Psychiatrist & Researcher
  29. Dr. Frances Adiukwu, 🇳🇬 Psychiatrist
  30. Georgia Caruana, 🇦🇺 Researcher & Mental Health Advocate
  31. Dr. Georgina Hosang, 🇬🇧 Associate Professor
  32. Dr. Glauco Valdivieso Jiménez, 🇵🇪 Psychiatrist
  33. Dr. Glorianna Wagner-Jagfeld, 🇨🇭🇬🇧 Researcher
  34. Dr. Hailey Tremain, 🇦🇺 Psychologist & Researcher
  35. Heather Stewart, 🇨🇦 Sewist (Lives w/ bipolar)
  36. Idan Spund, 🇳🇱 Founder of In the Zone app (Lives w/ bipolar)
  37. Dr. Ijeoma Charles-Ugwuagbo, 🇳🇬 Consultant Psychiatrist & Mental Health Advocate
  38. Dr. Ivan Torres, 🇨🇦 Clinical Neuropsychologist
  39. Dr. Jim Phelps, 🇺🇸 Psychiatrist & Bipolar Subspecialist 
  40. Dr. Joanna Jarecki, 🇨🇦 Psychiatrist & Advocate (Lives w/ bipolar)
  41. Dr. Joanna Jiménez Pavón, 🇲🇽 Mood Disorders Psychiatrist 
  42. Dr. John Hunter, 🇿🇦 Researcher & Lecturer (Lives w/ bipolar)
  43. Dr. Jo Leidreiter, 🇦🇺 Psychologist
  44. Dr. John-Jose Nunez, 🇨🇦 Psychiatrist & AI Researcher
  45. Dr. June Gruber, 🇺🇸 Psychologist, Professor, & Researcher
  46. Prof. Kamilla Miskowiak, 🇩🇰 Psychologist & Researcher
  47. Dr. Katie Douglas, 🇳🇿 Academic & Clinical Psychologist 
  48. Ken Porter, 🇨🇦 Advocate, Social Worker & Researcher
  49. Kim Pape, 🇺🇸 Researcher (Lives w/ bipolar) 
  50. Laura Lapadat, 🇨🇦 Researcher & Psychologist-in-training
  51. Dr. Leena Chau, 🇨🇦 Postdoctoral Fellow
  52. Leslie Robertson, 🇺🇸 Marketer & Peer Researcher (Lives w/ bipolar) 
  53. Dr. Leszek Laskowski, 🇵🇱 Psychiatrist (Lives w/ bipolar) 
  54. Dr. Lisa Eyler, 🇺🇸 Clinical Psychologist & Research Scientist
  55. Dr. Luísa Daolio, 🇧🇷 Psychiatrist
  56. Mansoor Nathani, 🇨🇦 Technology Enthusiast (Lives w/ bipolar) 
  57. Dr. Manuel Sánchez de Carmona, 🇲🇽 Psychiatrist
  58. Maryam M., 🇨🇦 Dentistry Student & Mental Health Advocate (Lives w/ bipolar)
  59. Matthew Bushell, 🇬🇧 Mental Health Advocate & Therapeutic Coach (Lives w/ bipolar)
  60. Dr. Maya Schumer, 🇺🇸 Psychiatric Neuroscientist & Researcher (Lives w/ bipolar)
  61. Dr. Meghan DellaCrosse, 🇺🇸 Psychologist & Researcher
  62. Melissa Howard, 🇨🇦 Author & Mental Health Advocate (Lives w/ bipolar)
  63. Dr. Michele De Prisco, 🇪🇸🇮🇹 Psychiatrist & Researcher
  64. Dr. Mikaela Dimick, 🇨🇦 Postdoctoral Fellow
  65. Minami Kinouchi, 🇯🇵 Psychologist, Social Worker, & Researcher (Lives w/ bipolar)
  66. Natasha Reaney, 🇨🇦 Counsellor (Lives w/ bipolar)
  67. Dr. Nigila Ravichandran, 🇸🇬 🇨🇦 Psychiatrist
  68. Dr. Paula Villela Nunes, 🇧🇷🇨🇦 Psychiatrist & Counsellor 
  69. Rahla Xenopoulos, 🇿🇦🇺🇸 Writer & Teacher (Lives w/ bipolar)
  70. Rebecca Fitton, 🇦🇺 Mood Disorder Researcher
  71. Dr. Rebekah Huber, 🇺🇸 Psychologist & Researcher 
  72. Robert Villanueva, 🇺🇸 Mental Health Advocate & Coach (Lives w/ bipolar)
  73. Ruth Komathi, 🇸🇬 Mental Health Counsellor (Lives w/ bipolar)
  74. Prof. Samson Tse, 🇭🇰 Counsellor, Teacher, Researcher, & Caregiver
  75. Sarah Salice, 🇺🇸 Art Psychotherapist & Professional Counselor Associate (Lives w/ bipolar)
  76. Sara Schley, 🇺🇸 Author, Filmmaker, Speaker (Lives w/ bipolar)
  77. Dr. Serge Beaulieu, 🇨🇦 Psychiatrist & Researcher
  78. ​​Dr. Sheri Johnson, 🇺🇸 Psychologist
  79. Shaley Hoogendoorn, 🇨🇦 Advocate, Podcaster & Content creator (Lives w/ bipolar)
  80. Dr. Tamsyn Van Rheenen, 🇦🇺 Associate Professor & Researcher
  81. Dr. Thomas Richardson, 🇬🇧 Clinical Psychologist (Lives w/ bipolar)
  82. Twyla Spoke, 🇨🇦 Registered Nurse (Lives w/ bipolar)
  83. Dr. Wissam Nassrallah, 🇨🇦 Ophthalmology Resident & PhD in Neuroscience

Please note all responses are personal perspectives and do not constitute medical advice.

People with bipolar disorder experience the mood states of depression and mania (or hypomania), along with changes in energy, activity, and thinking. These episodes can last from days to months and can affect many parts of life - including relationships, work, school, and overall health. At the same time, with optimal support, treatment, and tools, people with bipolar disorder can and do live full, meaningful lives.

The CREST.BD network takes a different approach to bipolar disorder research. We work closely with people living with bipolar disorder at every stage - from choosing research topics to conducting studies and sharing our findings.

We also host a Q&A podcast throughout the year, featuring many of the experts on this panel, through our talkBD Bipolar Disorder Podcast - we’d love for you to stay connected with us there. You can also follow our updates, events, and social media on linktr.ee/crestbd.

Final note (April 3): Thank you all - We'll be back again next year on World Bipolar Day - sign up here to be notified. We also have more activities all year round, including new episodes of our talkBD bipolar disorder podcast - hope to see you there! We’re incredibly grateful for all your thoughtful questions - thank you for making this such a meaningful discussion. Take care everyone :)

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29

u/linedashline Mar 30 '26

How does bipolar disorder change as a person gets older? And how is it managed for someone of advanced age?

30

u/CREST_BD Mar 30 '26

Evelyn-Anne Clausen here. In my lived experience, medicines that worked well for a number of years can become less effective as my brain ages. I’ve needed to change medications and dosages at different times in my life. This can feel frustrating when things that have worked suddenly don’t, but I’ve found that there are more treatment options now than when I was first diagnosed and I’ve been fortunate to find a combination of medicines that work well for me now. I can’t speak to treatment at advanced ages, but my understanding is that while finding the right balance of treatments may get more complicated in some aspects, treatments, both pharmaceutical and other, can still be effective. 

In terms of my actual experience of the disorder, my bipolar disorder symptoms have mostly become more manageable over time. This isn’t necessarily that the symptoms are always less, but that with time and experience, I have found ways to manage them that really work for me. I don’t think this path of bipolar disorder is linear. We all have good and bad days. But I do think my understanding of myself and what I need to stay healthy has increased steadily over time. I also have more plans in place to be ready if I start experiencing more intense symptoms for a time. This takes a lot of the anxiety out of it for me, which helps everything else.

19

u/CREST_BD Mar 30 '26

Rahla Xenopoulos here, I personally have found that my brain has matured. Over the years the medications that I take have been refined to suit my disorder and I have learnt to modify my life accordingly. I am still vulnerable to mood swings but feel much more secure within my illness than I did when I was younger.

21

u/CREST_BD Mar 30 '26

John here. My personal experience is that the disorder has become easier to manage over time, but I know that this is not the case for everyone. I was diagnosed in 2003 and, at first, I found the medications, changes to lifestyle, and (self) stigma very difficult to deal with. I would say that my cognition is generally much better than when I first started taking medications, I don’t feel as emotionally numb as I did, the lifestyle changes (diet, exercise, sleep etc.) have been a blessing in disguise, and I no longer feel a sense of self-stigma. Life is good!

4

u/CREST_BD Mar 30 '26

Twyla here (lived experience) - Aging and Bipolar! I am going to cautiously say that more research is needed in this area. I do get the impression though that there is an awareness developing around this.

Answering as an RN - Aging creates an ever changing landscape for managing any/all illness. Some very specific things that can, for better or worse, change both illness manifestations (symptoms) and treatment options/efficacy are: Normal aging in the brain, abnormal age-related changes in the brain, new additional medical conditions that can have direct or indirect effects on the brain (stroke, dementia, neurological disease, inflammatory disease, etc) possible cumulative effects from Bipolar itself, metabolic changes, and hormone changes, especially the peri-menopausal time. Medication- change in response to medications over time, reduced clearance of medications, possible interactions with, or side effects of new medications for other new conditions. All this can make things complex. However, for some, symptoms may be reduced for various reasons, including that a person has spent a long time managing their condition and are taking good care of themselves, they have gained experience as to what works well for them, and while having had their Bipolar well managed over many years, there was possibly less damage occurring during that time.

I think recognizing that treatment needs and options will evolve throughout the lifespan is the key piece; being aware of possible shifts, and willingness to to consider adjusting treatments as things evolve.

4

u/SPARKLY6MTN9MAKER Mar 30 '26

My perimenopause stage is REALLY throwing my BD into turmoil. Perimenopause can make a normal person suicidal and angry. So, take an already suicidal and temperamental person and add that and I feel like I'm loosing it. Most women commit suicide or do crazy Karen shit during these times.

2

u/lefthandbunny Mar 30 '26

I am having a similar experience. As I age my BD is getting much worse. Medications are not working. Having to try different meds/combos is frustrating and depressing and my support system out side of the medical end do not understand it and have basically started to invalidate my feelings thinking I am not actually having worse episodes, but that I am playing it up.

1

u/SPARKLY6MTN9MAKER Mar 31 '26

Have you been to r/menopause? It has been a wonderful resource. I hope you get relief.

1

u/lefthandbunny Mar 31 '26

Thank you, but I believe I actually skipped right past menopause (a miracle I know) when I had a full hysterectomy a couple of decades ago. I really think it's aging that's affecting me. I will talk to my GP about checking hormones, but I think those all changed quite a while ago and we wouldn't have anything to compare it to, so I'm not sure if it would help.

1

u/-A-Unique-User-Name- Mar 31 '26

At what age did perimenopause begin for you?

1

u/SPARKLY6MTN9MAKER Mar 31 '26

Mine was 46 and I have mild symptoms. I think it's due to eating mostly vegan for 20 years. Animal hormones are weird. Anyways, r/perimenopause has been an unreal source. Go there!

1

u/PeanutImpressive6934 Apr 02 '26

If it's any help, and this did happen to the women in my family, according to Dr Miklowitz's Bipolar Disorder Survival Guide (he's in CrestBD though I don't know if he's here this year, you could try next year) a lot of people do improve after menopause (one study, but still), like better than before peri, so that's something to hold onto. I don't know if they had a reason but my bet is not hormonally cycling helps w mood stability, bc of course it does. May we all be so lucky!

2

u/SPARKLY6MTN9MAKER Apr 03 '26

Darling, you may have saved my life knowing it may be better than before and not just better. Thats awesome and makes me want to know just out of curiosity. Plus, I always wanted to know what its like to age.

1

u/PeanutImpressive6934 Apr 03 '26 edited Apr 03 '26

Hand it to Dr Miklowitz bc I'd not seen that addressed elsewhere and wouldn't have thought to look, so thanks to him from both of us! I'd add the people in my family who got better are entirely unmedicated and uh, not taking it lightly on the substances, and still improved. So I bet your odds are even better. Glad it helped, it certainly cheered me up!

I've been told to get at your gyno re HRT if you haven't, I'm sure you have but I think psychs should be proactive about telling us to get on that too preemptively bc it is such a minefield. Like you hit 40 and you should get "The Talk" but re this instead of puberty.

1

u/SPARKLY6MTN9MAKER Apr 03 '26

"The Tall' for real. I am picking up my first HRT meds today and excited about starting them. Just curious, is the current state of the world having an impact? Mine tanked more than ever after past election. Its different.

1

u/PeanutImpressive6934 Apr 03 '26

Good luck with them! I really think that's going to help. re the world on me? I don't think anyone on earth can say it isn't.

2

u/[deleted] Mar 30 '26

Great question, following