I know I say this time and time again.

Mindfulness is the missing piece in the bipolar puzzle. It’s the key to managing bipolar disorder.  But the question is: why?

The answer is simple, yet complex.  By practicing mindfulness, we learn to just be present with bipolar symptoms rather than trying to make them go away.  This helps us to manage bipolar disorder.

I know that this may seem like it doesn’t make sense. But trust me… it works.

You see, our minds normally respond to bipolar symptoms by using automatic thinking patterns. In truth, these patterns actually make symptoms worse. However, if we simply let unpleasant emotional states be, they tend to become less intense and fade away.

That’s the mindful approach. It’s how you learn to live with and manage bipolar disorder.

Learning to manage bipolar symptoms mindfully can totally change your relationship with your illness. That’s because once we see and experience reality as it is through mindful awareness, we have the freedom to act.

In other words, mindfulness is the path to freedom. It  is about liberating us from our habitual thinking patterns and behaviors that keep us stuck.

And there’s something else. Something that you need to know.

There is scientific evidence to back this up. Scientific research has shown that mindfulness is helpful for people with bipolar disorder. In short, meditation practice can actually rewire the bipolar brain.

Amazing, right?

Think about it like this…

Bipolar symptoms are simply the result of faulty wiring in your brain. Symptoms automatically occur when neurons misfire. That’s why you are NOT your symptoms.

Scientists once thought that this “misfiring” was permanent. It was assumed that the adult human brain was unchangeable. That is… until the game changing concept of neuroplasticity was discovered.

Bear with me. I’m going to get scientific for a minute.

Neuroplasticity is the medical term for your brain’s ability to reprogram itself in response to experience. It means that your brain can adjust course. It can literally change the way it fires.

That’s where the power of mindfulness comes in.

Before mindfulness meditation, the brain’s natural tendency is to take a path of mind wandering chaos. HOWEVER, as we develop mindfulness skills, it becomes easier and simpler to experience the present moment by way of focus on the breath and other bodily sensations.

The result is life changing.

Through regular meditation, we have the ability to change habitual thinking patterns and emotional responses. Much like a computer update, the brain’s software adapts and changes.

This is why mindfulness just may be the missing piece in the bipolar puzzle.

By practicing mindfulness, you can change (and learn to live with) your thoughts. And changing (and learning to live with) your thoughts will most certainly change your life.

Now you see why I constantly stress mindfulness as an essential part of health and happiness. Sometimes learning the answer to “why” can be the driving force in taking up something new.

To learn more about this fascinating concept, continue to follow this blog.  I will regularly post mindfulness articles and exercises.

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To your mindfulness,

Dr. Marchand

PS. To learn  more now, please check out this link.: Mindfulness for Bipolar Disorder.