Hypomania, Earworms, and Episode Delays

Send us a text

Wednesday's episode will be slightly delayed due to bipolar disorder! (All is well, but productivity takes a backseat to mental health.)

I'm leaving the description the podcast AI wrote (mostly) intact because it's a great example of writing for SEO and not for purpose. 

• My "sleep and focus wavering" does not sharpen my resolve, it mostly makes me tired and frustrated. Also my focus doesn't "waver," it hyper-fixates. 
• California was not sunny, it hilariously rained the entire time due to the atmospheric river weather event.
• I have no idea where the "endless cups of coffee" came from.
• Healwell is totally down with self-care, particularly the kind that means you need to stop working right now.
• I fully intend to help "nurture your career," but not in the next 3 minutes.

AI WRITTEN DESCRIPTION: As your host, I'm opening up about my journey with bipolar disorder and how it's recently shuffled our podcast calendar. Navigating the unpredictable tides of hypomania, I've found my sleep and focus waver – but it's this very challenge that sharpens my resolve to deliver the enriching content you've come to cherish. With a candid heart, I share the strategies that help me manage my health while remaining steadfast in crafting our episodes, ensuring that our latest offering arrives imbued with the same fervor and dedication you expect.

Our latest adventure took us to a vibrant conference in sunny California, bursting with opportunities to network and exchange groundbreaking ideas over endless cups of coffee. I'm thrilled to recount this exhilarating journey and pass on pearls of wisdom that will elevate your future conference endeavors, whether you're a novice or a habitual participant. This episode is a celebration of human connection, the courage in revealing our vulnerabilities, and the importance of self-care—principles that guide us both personally and professionally. Join us for an episode that's as much a lesson in nurturing your career as it is in fostering your well-being.

Support the show

Send us an email: [e-mail]
Leave us a voice message: 703-468-1799

Check out our interview-style podcast: Interdisciplinary

You can support Healwell and the cool things we make by donating here!
Ways join in:

• Leave us a review on Apple Podcasts
• Subscribe to our Substack: "More Than Hands"
• Check Healwell’s live and online classes
• Continue the conversation with a free 3-day trial of the Healwell Community
• Find a copy of Rebecca Sturgeon's book: "Oncology Massage: An Integrative Approach to Cancer Care"

Thank you to ABMP and AMTA for sponsoring us!

Healwell is a 501(c)(3) non-profit based out of the Washington DC area. Check us out at www.healwell.org

Episode Transcript

Corey Rivera (00:06):
Hello friends, traditionally, creators try to
keep a certain distance from thepeople they create for, partly
as a mental safeguard and partlybecause you're not listening to
the rub to hear about mypersonal issues.
However, I'm a big fan oflearning in public and talking
about struggles, so this shortnote is to tell you that this
week's episode will be a bitdelayed.
Creating these episodes takes alot of time and I have bipolar

(00:28):
disorder, so it's common for meto experience hypomanic episodes
in February and or March.
I also have bouts in September,but the fall occurrences are
less intense than the springones.
People experience bipolardisorder symptoms in a multitude
of ways, but my hypomania makesmy sleep erratic, I talk very
fast and I tend to hyper-focuson whatever topic my wheel

(00:52):
mental of fortune has settled on.
Practically speaking, thismeans I wake up between 2 and 4
am, read and think deeply aboutone random topic and have very
loud earworms at almost alltimes, which can make it hard to
physically hear and thereforelisten to other people.
In case you were Funkyt own,an Ed Sheeran variety pack, and
the theme from the new TrueDetective season are the most

(01:12):
frequent visitors for this goround.
Sleep is always the trickiestpart.
People with bipolar disorderneed sleep the same way we need
water.
Deficits accumulate quickly andhave profound and immediate
effects.
When someone without bipolardisorder says they've lost a
night of sleep, it's bad and weshould all stop pretending it's
a sign that you're the besthustler, but the sleep loss will

(01:34):
correct itself.
When someone with bipolardisorder says they can't sleep,
it's often a red flag.
Also, people with bipolardisorder often don't have good
sleep pressure.
This means that when we losesleep, we don't feel more sleepy
.
We continue to be awake andalert.
You don't need to worry aboutme.
I've done this enough timesthat I know the best way for me
to cope is to take mymedications as prescribed, get

(01:56):
as much sleep as my brain willallow, not make any large
purchases of non-returnableitems and adjust my productivity
expectations.
I'm really excited about theupcoming episode.
We had a great time rubbingelbows at a conference in
California and I'm excited totell you about it and to talk
about things that you can do foryour own conferencing
adventures.
Thanks for your understandingand thank you for listening.