Bipolar and Me and Me: 5 Things I've Learned about Bipolar II Disorder

1) About 2.5% of the U.S. population suffers from some form of bipolar disorder – nearly 6 million people. So we're in good company.

2) The psychiatrist I'd been seeing for the past three years misdiagnosed my condition. He was less like a medical doctor, and more like the doctors in Spies Like Us.
3) Bipolar II is pretty trendy these days. As a result, it's earned the false reputation as the milder, more fun younger brother of Bipolar I. Like the kind of easygoing mental illness you could have a beer with. The reality is, Bipolar II is different from Bipolar I but still equally severe.

4) Studies have shown a link between Bipolar Disorder and Creativity. But when I enact a full performance of The Pirates of Penzance with my cats, it's still considered "weird."
5) "If you can't get rid of the skeleton in your closet, you'd best teach it to dance." ~George Bernard Shaw

Just Deduce It

Known for astute logical reasoning, use of disguise, and forensic science skills, Sherlock Holmes and Dr. John Watson were a Law & Order: Grisly 19th Century Homicide Unit.

 

Not sure if in love with Sherlock Holmes.....or with Robert Downy Jr.

What is it about the Watson-Holmes match-up that makes it so effective? The success of this twosome is more than just simply two Industrial Age bros joining forces to create the ultimate crime-solving team. I theorize that a yin and yang dynamic is fundamental to a successful partnership. And when it comes to relationships, you're either a Sherlock Holmes or a Dr. Watson.

Show your work.

The Cat Ambassador Program recently discovered an odd couple pairing between young cheetahs and Anatolian Shepherd puppies. Their contrasting but unexpectedly symbiotic personalities make this union more effective than it is adorable. The shepherd's steady disposition neutralizes the naturally tweaky cheetah, while the cheetah's energy stimulates the mellow shepherd.

The result is so sweet, I could stir it into my morning coffee. While the use of cross-species experimentation is perhaps better suited for wildlife conservation than dating, the concept strikes a cord. In relationships, how do we choose what we need in a partner rather than what we want?

If you examine your own relationship, spend an evening with a couple, or crouch in the bushes spying on my married neighbors, you'll quickly discover the Watson/Holmes balance appears in every successful relationship.

Where Holmes is calculated, Watson is intuitive. When Holmes is methodical, Watson is visceral. A Holmes-Holmes match is oppressively analytical while a Watson-Watson pairing lacks grounding and direction. But once you place Holmes in the driver seat, you'll find Watson content to navigate this union off into the sunset.

Or at least as far as the oddly homoerotic second movie.

Insomnia and Me: 5 Things I've learned before 5:00am - Part XV

1) The zebra puzzle is a logic puzzle attributed to Albert Einstein. Allegedly only 2% of the population can solve it.
2) The Tenzing-Hillary Everest Marathon reaches heights of 18,200 feet. Participants spend three weeks in Nepal prior to the race to acclimate to the high altitude.
3) In 1918, the USS Cyclops vanished without a trace within the area known as the Bermuda Triangle. The ship was carrying 306 crew and passengers at the time of its disappearance and neither the ship nor any survivors have ever been recovered. 
4) Michael Jordan's "Failure" Nike commercial is the most inspirational sports commercial of all time.
5) Chronic sleep deprivation can cause fatigue, daytime sleepiness, clumsiness, weight loss or gain as well as adverse affects on the brain and cognitive function. But don't worry. Dr. FluffyFur assures me it's alright.