How to Prevent a Manic Episode in Bipolar Disorder

Hi, guys, this is Dr. Nicole. And I wanted to talk to you today about a conversation I had with one of my patients who has bipolar disorder, type 1. And our conversation was surrounding what to do to prevent manic episodes. And the number one tip that I want to share with you is the tip of sleep. Sleep is so important. Regular sleep can prevent manic episodes in a lot of instances. And sleep can be an indicator on if you're developing mania or hypomania so that you can use that indicator to make changes in your protocol and help stabilize your moods. So again, it can be a chicken and an egg. Is it that the sleep is making me manic or is it that the mania is making me not sleep? And so a lot of patients will ask me, what can I do? And the most important thing is to have a regular waking and sleep sleeping cycle. So pick a time that works for you to go to bed and then have a sleep regimen and a sleep routine that your nervous system can start to adapt to. Turning down the lights, maybe having a cup of tea an hour before bed, turning off all the screens, whether it's a phone or a device of some sort, a television, turning that off and then starting to wind down for the evening. Brush your teeth, maybe use some essential oils, just anything that seems relaxing to the nervous system, grounding bringing you into your body. Go to bed around the same time and then try to set an alarm to get up at the same time. And then avoid napping during the day because daytime napping is going to make sleeping much more difficult at night. And then if you find that sleep is becoming more of an issue, this could be a sign that you are moving into hypomania or mania. I often see that as one of the first indicators. And so getting a good night of sleep for some people can abort that manic episode developing. And for others, it can help keep you steady while you wait to get in with your doctor and make an adjustment to your protocol. Some of my favorite tips for helping sleep is my Happy Sleepy Powder. It's got a bunch of amino acids, and they aim to increase gaba, which is a tranquilizing, relaxing neurotransmitter, and to push down cortisol. Cortisol. When it's elevated, it creates this waking response that can prevent us from falling asleep. Happy Sleepy Powder I have. It's combined into multiple bottles so that you can pick one at a time and see how you feel on each product and dose it individually for you. The other thing that I love to recommend is botanicals. They can be absolutely wonderful. For example, valerian root is good at not only helping you fall asleep, but maintaining sleep if you find that when you're going into mania that you're waking up more frequently. And so some other botanicals may be Chamomile, passiflora, Hops, schisandra. But always talk with your doctor if you're taking medications for bipolar because you don't want to interact with anything that could make your symptoms worse or make the medication change in its efficacy for you. So if you're trying to prevent manic episodes, number one is sleep. Sleep is an indicator of how you're doing and sleep is going to help you maintain stability. There are so many more things I'd love to tell you about, but we've gotten into the three minute marker of this video, so. So stay tuned for next time to learn more. I have tons of free content on my website. Other videos, check them out. My website is www.drnicolecane.com. we've been talking about tips to prevent mania and first and foremost we talked about sleep. So I hope that you have a happy, healthy mind and great stability. You are not alone. There's a lot of people that are with you and you, you can get better. You can feel like yourself again. And there's tons of free information on how to get started on my website, www.Dr.nicolecane.com. thanks guys. We'll talk to you soon. By.