Links

30 Apr 07

All the links on this page are bipolar or depression related.
Please inform me if you wish me to add new ones, including yours.

Drugs . Other Websites . Blogs . Online Support Groups . Books . Downloads
 

Information on Drugs
Crazy Meds has information on what the specific drugs do and their side effects. They have information on a lot of drugs and the writing style is targeted to us users (that is, I can understand what they write). The layout is a bit haphazard, but ignore that - the information contained is not haphazard at all. Highly recommended. Especially check out the comments that exist at the bottom of most pages.

Nom dePlume's website has an excellent document "Medicines for Mental Health" available for download. Unlike Crazy Meds, it doesn't deal with the details of specific drugs, but rather the various classes of drugs (SSRIs, MAOIs, anticonvulsants, etc.) and why they are being used to treat mania or depression symptoms and how they are supposed to work.

But his document is more than that. It explains in pretty clear language the current research on what is thought to be going on in your head - so you don't have to wade through reams and reams of scientific documents. His document is not exactly short, but it IS stuff you really need to know - how else are you going to take control of your mood swings, and your life? Highly recommended. If nothing else, read the Introduction and browse the sections on Depression and Bipolar Disorder.

RxList is a general internet drug index and portal. For a specific drug, find official information on dosage, side effects, interaction with other drugs, and warnings.

Organisation and Personal Websites
Pendulum Resources - a Bipolar Disorder portal and one of the best starting points.

Wing of Madness - a personal site which now has a bipolar News Blog attached, which is impressively up to date.

FyrenIyce - One of the first really good Bipolar websites that I came across. It doesn't seem to have been updated since 2001, but the links I tried still work. Was comprehensive back at the millenium, and still is. I still recommend it.

Bipolar World - a comprehensive site with the information accessible to the layman. Don't assume that the menu you see is all there is - it is a big site.

Mental Health Net's Bipolar Issues - Because of it's layout and well written information, this site is a good entry point for someone looking up information on bipolar disorder for the first time.

Dr. Ivan's Depression Central - it looks old fashioned, but most of the links on the front page are to pages with more detailed links. There's a lot more here than meets the eye.

Internet Mental Health - check under Disorders for Bipolar Disorder. Page a bit technical and aimed mostly at Bipolar I. But there are useful links further down the (very long) page.

If you want to examine online scientific journals, check out Pubmed.

Blogs
Bipolar Wellness Writer is an by a writer who chooses to be upbeat about being bipolar.

Online Discussion / Support Groups
Beepers Peepers - An active Google Group which offers good support. If you are new to discussion groups, this isn't a bad place to start. You have to request to join, but the process is pretty straightforward. You also need a Google account (but everyone has that nowadays, don't they).

If you have never belonged to an online discussion / support group, join one at least for a while. The simple presence of many like minded people with similar concerns makes a great difference in how you perceive yourself.

Books
Oliwenstein, Lori; "Taming Bipolar Disorder", 2004, Penguin Books, Alpha label, New York, New York, USA (and worldwide) - This is a good book to get if you or someone you know has been recently diagnosed. Although it is easy to read, I don't feel as if it's being dumbed down for me - they have a pretty good level of detail.

Jamison, Kay Redfield; "An Unquiet Mind", 1996, Vintage Books, New York. - Definitely worth reading. A realistic, sensitive, and hopeful view of trying to live on and be Bipolar at the same time.

Keyes, Daniel; "Flowers for Algernon", 1988, Bantam Books, New York, New York, USA. - A story of Charlie Gordon, a young man with learning difficulties whose intelligence is enhanced by an experimental medical treatment, which then fails. Although it is not about being bipolar, the triumph and anguish of Charlie is resonant with how we feel as our moods swing from mania to depression. Winner of 1960 Hugo Short Fiction and 1966 Nebula Novel awards.

Salmans, Sandra / People's Medical Society; "Depression: questions you have, answers you need", 1995, People's Medical Society, Allentown, Pennsylvania, USA. - A straightforward accurate clearly written book on depression in a question and answer format. Wonderfully comprehensive, but the drug information would be dated unless a newer edition has been released. Designed for both the bipolar person and family / friends. Worth getting.

Neugeboren, Jay; "Transforming Madness", 1999, William Morrow and Company, Inc., New York. - The author discusses issues concerning the proper treatment of mentally ill. Provides a balanced and insightful look at medication versus therapy. The author worries about replicability of successful programs. However, in writing a book accessible to us bipolar persons, he has given us the capability to make good choices, and solves the replicability problem because we can determine what to do next.

Downloads
A Mood Chart that can be printed out and used to plot your moods. In Microsoft Excel format. Also, check out the page Setting Up a Mood Chart for details on how to set up and use a mood chart.