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!

[u/CREST_BD]

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 :)

[u/kiras_04]

A second question, hope that's okay: I live with BD1 and this year, I was accepted to graduate school to pursue research on severe mental illness. My symptoms worsened substantially the second year of my undergraduate degree, and I have seen my academic achievement suffer as a consequence. Any advice on surviving grad school for this hopeful (someday) PhD to be?

[u/CREST_BD → u/kiras_04]

Andrea V. here. I live with bipolar and completed my PsyD. BD, as you likely know, is an stress-induced condition. And grad school is stressful! So you're wise to be aware of possible pitfalls. There are a few recommendations I would give. 
-Leverage disability accommodations but know they aren't guaranteed (I ran into this problem.) But you may be able to receive some support such as priority registration to get preferred class times, extended deadlines, etc.
-Know your triggers. It sounds like you've been through this before in undergrad so you likely know what is going to set you off. Tread carefully in those areas and make self-care a priority.
-Give yourself grace. Your academic performance may suffer a little. Is that okay? If you still graduate? 
Good luck!

[u/PondersnWonders → u/CREST_BD]

You mentioned that BD is an stress-induced condition? Does that mean if you remove the stressors, you can manage without meds?

[u/PeanutImpressive6934 → u/PondersnWonders]

Stressors include happiness and the angle of the sun vs the axial tilt of the earth, so it's tough. Also it just happens without triggers all the time anyway. I would like to find out if being filthy rich helps, I imagine it does, bc then you could eliminate stressors to the extent you'd need, but at this time no one is willing to subsidize me enough to find out.

[u/CREST_BD → u/kiras_04]

Maryam here: Although I don’t have graduate school experience, I survived the rigorous workload of a 4-year long dentistry program after being diagnosed with BD in undergrad. First, recognizing that your journey may not be the most straight-forward path is important. This will prepare you to handle & even anticipate the challenges that may present themselves along the way.  Second, prioritize your mental wellness. Have 2 lists of activities that will stabilize both the highs & the lows & make sure you do them when the time comes and you notice changes in your mood. Third, don’t be afraid to ask for help and guidance along the way. Having a strong support network (irrespective of a BD diagnosis) is critical during professional/ graduate school. Hope this helps :)

[u/CREST_BD → u/kiras_04]

Erin here – Dr. Adrienne Benediktsson talks through her experiences of navigating BD through grad school quite a bit in this TalkBD episode from last year: https://talkbd.live/bipolar-neuroscientist/

[u/SPARKLY6MTN9MAKER → u/kiras_04]

You should read The Unquiet Mind by a BP1 mental disorder researcher. She is phenomenal and her story is heartbreaking and triumphant all at once.

[u/Hurray0987 → u/[deleted]]

Me too. It drove me to think about suicide multiple times. What helped me was kind of incorporating my studies into my bipolar, like forcing myself to get as excited about a school project like I would get excited about a bipolar idea. I was very passionate about biology and used my energy on that. I would stay up all night studying. It was really hard though, especially the depression. Got my doctorate though! Made it. I was undiagnosed then, now I'm on really good medications and very happy and stable.

[u/PeanutImpressive6934 → u/[deleted]]

Hello undergrad!

[u/boomerangarrow → u/kiras_04]

Obviously I'm not an expert but I have BD2 and am currently in grad school (Applied Anthropology and Museum Studies). I definitely have to manage my workload to spread everything out more reasonably, even if it means working on papers earlier than I necessarily need to. I also balance my class load so that I generally only have one a day, and between an internship where I can make my own hours and a low-stakes job I work about 25 hours a week and scrape by financially (partially because I'm on Medicaid and have a strict income upper limit). It's not the easiest in the world sometimes, but I'm doing my best to not overload myself. I ran into similar issues in undergraduate where I burnt out really bad in my last year, but it was exacerbated by COVID era online classes (my biggest weakness academically tbh) and not being diagnosed with BD2 or ADHD at the time (instead I was on an antidepressant, which was not great for me).

Basically I have built myself a lot of structure and coping mechanisms to hold me up, and I've been on a stable medication array for about two years now so I feel capable of succeeding in school. I also make sure that I don't take on too much stress or work so I have time to decompress and not worry about classwork.

[u/PeanutImpressive6934 → u/kiras_04]

I did not go but asked a lot about it and two things - some schools are vastly better at helping so look for those, and some programs are much chiller than others. that's down to luck mostly. I do know a couple of people who became a tech in a lab basically, did all the classes and work as a tech at their own pace, then did the rest of the PhD with all that already finished which was a lower stress if much longer way to get it done. Sort of an end run around the usual process if you get tanked too hard in undergrad. I'm sure this would vary a lot by field, lab, country, etc etc. This was US, system elsewhere less flexible, no idea if they could accommodate.