The National Council for Community Behavioral Healthcare and AstraZeneca conducted a really interesting survey on the impact of bipolar depression on people’s lives.  There were a couple of points in the study that really caught my attention:

• The greatest concerns among people living with bipolar disorder are that their symptoms will have an impact on daily life, such as family, relationships, or job (73%), and that they will have long periods of depressive episodes (63%).
• Ninety percent of people living with bipolar disorder said that they have difficulty managing or completing day-to-day tasks due to their bipolar depression symptoms.
• When asked how they felt most of the time, only 27 percent of people living with bipolar disorder said they felt well-balanced and just 23 percent felt their depression was well-controlled.
• The majority of people living with bipolar disorder agreed that bipolar depression causes difficulty in their ability to manage housework (73%), run errands (59%), groom themselves (53%), and pay bills (49%).
• Sixty-one percent of people with bipolar disorder said their depressive episodes last longer than their manic episodes
• Fifty-three percent of people living with bipolar disorder agreed that they would rather feel “less than perfect” than go through another medication switch.

These findings got me thinking — what are/were the most disturbing effects of the eating disorder on my life?  I would have to say….

• Constant preoccupation with food that took away from my ability to concentrate on school / work.
• Low blood sugar and tiredness that further inhibited my school / work efforts.
• Heightened depression, anxiety, and panic attacks.
• Tension among family members due to their frustration/concern and my irritability.
• Avoidance of most social situations in fear of the event involving food.
• Isolation from friends.
• Lack of interest in all hobbies and many relationships, and. the inability to motivate myself to care about the things I once cared about.

I could probably make a list three-pages long, but these are probably some of the most upsetting elements of the eating disorder.  It would be interesting to see a similar survey to the Bipolar Depression Treatment Dynamic conducted for EDs.