Comedian Struan Logan joins us to discuss his personal journey with bipolar.

A presentation by Julie A. Fast, renowned mental health expert, on managing bipolar and relationships. May Meeting: Relationships & Bipolar In our recent all ages meeting, we were honored to hear from Julie A. Fast on the topic of bipolar and relationships. Julie is an internationally recognised expert in brain health and mental health, with a special focus on bipolar disorder, psychosis, depression, anxiety, and schizoaffective disorder. As the bestselling author of several

Presentation from Royal Edinburgh Hospital pharmacists on different medication treatments for bipolar disorder April Meeting: Medications For Bipolar This month, we were joined by lead clinical pharmacist Paul Maguiness and specialist pharmacists Jennifer Falconer and Morven Forsyth from the Royal Edinburgh Hospital to discuss bipolar medication. Their presentation explored the different medication types for bipolar treatment and how they are used for episodes of acute mania,

A discussion with our Penumbra peer support workers on the stigma around bipolar. March Meeting: Bipolar & Stigma Our recent all ages meeting included a lovely presentation led by Mary Anne and Gregor from Penumbra about the stigma that often surrounds bipolar. Stigma is the negative beliefs commonly held about a group of people because they are different. People with bipolar can face stigma externally at work and in relationships, but also internally through our own negat

A presentation from Dr. Robert Hunter from the University of Edinburgh on kidney health and the use of Lithium. February Meeting: Kidney Health & Bipolar We were happy to welcome Dr. Robert Hunter from the University of Edinburgh for his presentation on kidney health and the use of Lithium. An expert in his field, Dr. Hunter is an author of the NHS Lithium Handbook and currently conducting research at the University of Edinburgh aimed at better understanding the role of molec

A group discussion about the challenges of sleep for those living with bipolar. January Meeting: Sleep & Bipolar One of the key issues for people living with bipolar is sleep. Sometimes it’s the struggle to fall asleep or sometimes it’s the consequences of not sleeping that can make life difficult. At our recent all-ages meeting, we held a group discussion to share our challenges as well as what has worked for us. Challenges There are many factors that contribute to problems

A wonderful night of good company and festive cheer! December Meeting: Holiday Event Last week we came together to celebrate the holiday season with our annual December Fun Night, and it was truly a wonderful evening for everyone who joined us. The night was filled with delicious food, exciting raffle prizes, and a spirited trivia game that brought out everyone’s competitive side. It was the perfect way to come together and share some festive cheer. We’re also thrilled to sha

Lessons on nutrition that can benefit mental health from specialist dietician Katherine Paterson. November Meeting: Nutrition Our November meeting welcomed guest speaker Katherine Paterson, a specialist dietician from Norwich. Her highly informative presentation covers an overview of nutrition, the NHS Eatwell Guide recommendations for a healthy diet, and current research exploring types of diet and bipolar. The word 'nutrition', we learned, comes from the Latin root 'nutrire

Dr. Iain Campbell from the University of Edinburgh discusses the connection between metabolism and mental health. October Meeting: Metabolic Psychiatry We had the pleasure of welcoming Dr Iain Campbell from Edinburgh University’s Centre for Clinical Brain Sciences to our October meeting. Iain delivered an excellent presentation about groundbreaking research in metabolic psychiatry and how he manages his symptoms of bipolar with a ketogenic diet. Metabolic psychiatry is an eme

Learn about advanced statements and how to advocate for the treatment you want when you are unwell. September Meeting: Advanced Statements At our September meeting we were joined by Kathleen Taylor, Engagement and Participation Manager at the Mental Welfare Commission for Scotland (MWC), and Gordon McInnes from the Glasgow Mental Health Network. Kathleen gave us a brief overview of the support available to individuals via the MWC and Gordon delivered a comprehensive presentat

Exploring the intersection of bipolar disorder and nurturing supportive relationships. August Meeting Summary: Relationships & Bipolar Thank you to all who attended the August meeting and contributed to our group discussion on relationships and bipolar. We looked at both the challenges of relationships as well as things that have helped us and listed the responses of our community memebers below. Challenges: Finding it difficult staying in touch with people when our mood is

Arlene Astley from Advocard presents information on changes to welfare benefits and the kind of advocacy support they provide. July Meeting Summary: Advocacy & Welfare Benefits At July's all ages meeting, Advocard's long-standing benefits guru Arlene Astley gave us a run-through of the many changes to benefits that are occurring, and reminded us all that Advocard is here to help you for free. Advocard is an organization based in Edinburgh that provides individual advocacy for

We welcomed long-time self-management trainer Dorrie M. who picked a few examples of triggers and how to have an action plan ready to deal with them when they come up.

A group discussion about mood monitoring and its potential to help us spot the early warning signs of a bipolar episode. June Meeting: Triggers & Action Plans Last Thursday at our all ages meeting we had a very enjoyable and interactive group discussion about mood monitoring and its potential to help us spot the early warning signs of a bipolar episode. Thank you to everyone for your contributions! Early Warning Signs (EWS) We spoke about the importance of monitoring your moo

Graham Morgan from the Mental Welfare Commission gave us a talk on the relationships with professionals which was followed by a discussion.

We welcomed Nick Bell to our group who spoke about the Edinburgh Crisis Centre: 24/7 support for mental health distress in Edinburgh.

Every year we ask our community how useful they thought our activities were and what they would like to see happen in the following year.

Our members give tips on what helps and what is a problem for getting good sleep when living with bipolar.

20% of us with bipolar have ADHD and 20% of people with ADHD also have bipolar. Missed diagnoses are common and order of treatment important

Disrupted sleep such as jetlag can really aggravate bipolar, and changes in our moods can affect our sleep in so many ways. A vicious cycle.