ECT Update
ECT 4 – while I was in the gurney waiting to be wheeled to theatre, a patient slapped my face (not very hard). I said to a nurse, “I don’t […]
Author Archives: blahpolar
Another Electroconvulsive Therapy Update
I’ve had three sessions of ECT so far, nine to go. Apparently I’m having seizures the way I’m supposed to, I haven’t experienced anything more than very temporary, very short […]
I Finally Had ECT
After the long wait for ECT, actually having it was, of course, utterly anticlimactic. I had to leave home at 04h30 to be in the ward by 06h00, by that […]
Further adventures in the public mental healthcare sector
I still haven’t had ECT. I haven’t had it because the head anaesthetist at the hospital won’t do the general anaesthetic for it, because he considers it barbaric. He goes […]
I’m going to have electroconvulsive therapy
The first wait was to see shrink two, who gave me the paperwork to go and wait at three more departments, x-ray, ecg and pharmacy. I have a date for […]
Bipolar Disorder and the South African Public Health Sector
I’ve been journalling my experiences with bipolar and the South African public health sector here, with a hiatus recently, thanks to bipolar depression. I’ve now finished my six months free […]
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We’re on Heart FM till 9am this morning.
#FeatureFriday: Natasha Tracy in the house!
Interview with Natasha Tracy, author of Bipolar Burble by the Blahpolar *passes Natasha a glass of water* How would you describe yourself, if you weren’t allowed to mention bipolar? I […]
CBT and Me
My whole soul rebels against structured things, always. I think I spent the first two months “forgetting” to do various cognitive behavioural therapy homework assignments. The week she finally said, […]
Meet the Seat
Well hello there, say hi to my low chair. It’s where I park my arse for therapy weekly and weakly at ward 13. It sits on the subordinate side of […]
Our Lived Experience 