The cyclothymia collective

It's been months since I updated. I have a pretty good reason: I've been having a really good time and have not wanted to think about cyclothymia. I am doing very well on my mix of Lithium and Wellbutrin. I'd say my life has changed radically. I can think, I can feel, I can see and I can create.

I replaced Zoloft with Wellbutrin in December in an effort to see if it would bring some peace to my chaotic mind, on the hunch that I was ADHD. Where I live there are only one or two ADD/ADHD specialists, and no one is doing adults as of yet, so I was really on my own about it, reading and reading online. I built up a case for it and presented it to my psychiatrist and he agreed to try it (Wellbutrin is supposedly the drug of choice for Bipolar people who have ADHD/ADD). Within three day I felt improved, and it has just been getting better.

I spent most of the Spring working on my novel when I wasn't at work or parenting. This was a joyful experience for me. It was like being 11 or 12 again, before the neurology set in. I have been writing every day now for the last seven months. I won't claim to be a good writer; just being abke to write at all feels very good. I feel like I've stepped out of a time machine, thirty years older.

I've also lost 25 pounds. No more carbohydrate cravings, and an ability to plan and follow through on exercise have made it effortless. I have hooked up a laptop to my treadmill and do my mindless surfing there-- and writing, of course.