Bipolar Disorder Therapy Rochester NY

Balance emotional highs and lows while managing life experiences

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Understanding bipolar disorder and swings in mood

Bipolar disorder is a complex mental health condition that affects people and their relationships in a variety of ways.  It can be a condition that is known or unknown by those that have it, or family members may notice swings in behavior and mood.  There are a lot of things you may be experiencing that may seem natural to you, because they’ve happened throughout your life, but they’re actually abnormal and a part of the condition. I’ll help you gain insights into what that means.

What to expect from Bipolar Disorder treatment

Psychological Assessment & Moods

One of the first things I’ll do is a psychological assessment. I’ll talk with you about your life experiences regarding your mood swings and what it is that you’re trying to get out of living a fuller life. This can include how you feel overall, any complaints you have, medication you are currently taking. I’ll take a look symptoms you’re experiencing, whether that be:

  • depression 
  • mania 
  • more manic symptoms

I’ll go through what’s called a DSM5, which is a diagnostic criteria tool to make a formal diagnosis. This tool can highlight shifts in mood, energy, activity levels, ability to concentrate,  symptoms over varying time frames, and more. The DSM5 will confirm if you have bipolar disorder or a different mental health condition.

Psychotherapy

Psychotherapy is really about figuring out varying aspects of your life and relating it to what you want to do –  essentially your goals. Goals relating to:
  • your family, friends and loved ones
  • your performance at work
  • taking care of yourself (health, exercise, medications)
  • all aspects of your life
I’ll look at how frequently you’re having manic or depressive episodes, how they affect your life and how you manage all of these different aspects. When you figure out what it is that you want, you can create a plan. When you have a depressive or manic episode, ask yourself:
  • What are the things that I’m doing to care for you?
  • What are you doing to care for yourself? 
  • What is your team around you doing to care for you? 
Together, we will create a treatment plan based upon all the factors you want and who you’re surrounded by to help manage your bipolar disorder while getting what you want out of life.  I’ll note that some people actually appreciate the manic episodes and “love” the feeling – the feeling of being “bulletproof” and “on top of the world,” but the reality is the consequences of decisions made during this manic time are often counterproductive to your goals. I will talk with you about managing those situations and your life in a way that makes more sense long-term.

Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT)

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy is a technique to change negative thoughts into positive thoughts. This can be centered around daily activities or sometimes you may fall into a downward spiral of negative thoughts like:

  • What if’s
  • All or nothing thinking
  • Black and white thinking
  • I should have’s…
  • And more

This can cause a “mental trap” where you get in your own way, get stuck with “analysis paralysis,” or you have repeated negative thoughts and can’t break free, stopping you from living the full life that you want to live.

CBT can help combat those thought patterns and help you with anxiety, depression, and other mental illnesses. 

What we do together is have an interactive conversation about what your patterns of thought are about certain topics and I’ll help you reframe your negative thinking. I’ll have you “challenge” your thoughts to help prove to yourself that the negative thoughts you’re having aren’t true, they aren’t as valid as you think, and you’re much more capable than you realize.

During our sessions, I’ll give your a few tools to help you do this in your daily life. I have some homework pages and questionnaires you can take home to fill in when you’re struggling, like for example:

  • What is this negative thought?
  • Why is this negative thought coming up?
  • What are the consequences of these negative thoughts for this way of thinking?

Then I’ll have reframing questions to help you think clearly the truth to help and reframe depression or anxiety issues.

Schedule A Consultation

What to expect from Bipolar Disorder treatment

Psychological Assessment & Moods

One of the first things I’ll do is a psychological assessment. I’ll talk with you about your life experiences regarding your mood swings and what it is that you’re trying to get out of living a fuller life. This can include how you feel overall, any complaints you have, medication you are currently taking. I’ll take a look symptoms you’re experiencing, whether that be:

  • depression 
  • mania 
  • more manic symptoms

I’ll go through what’s called a DSM5, which is a diagnostic criteria tool to make a formal diagnosis. This tool can highlight shifts in mood, energy, activity levels, ability to concentrate,  symptoms over varying time frames, and more. The DSM5 will confirm if you have bipolar disorder or a different mental health condition.

Psychotherapy

Psychotherapy is really about figuring out varying aspects of your life and relating it to what you want to do –  essentially your goals. Goals relating to:
  • your family, friends and loved ones
  • your performance at work
  • taking care of yourself (health, exercise, medications)
  • all aspects of your life
I’ll look at how frequently you’re having manic or depressive episodes, how they affect your life and how you manage all of these different aspects. When you figure out what it is that you want, you can create a plan. When you have a depressive or manic episode, ask yourself:
  • What are the things that I’m doing to care for you?
  • What are you doing to care for yourself? 
  • What is your team around you doing to care for you? 
Together, we will create a treatment plan based upon all the factors you want and who you’re surrounded by to help manage your bipolar disorder while getting what you want out of life.  I’ll note that some people actually appreciate the manic episodes and “love” the feeling – the feeling of being “bulletproof” and “on top of the world,” but the reality is the consequences of decisions made during this manic time are often counterproductive to your goals. I will talk with you about managing those situations and your life in a way that makes more sense long-term.

Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT)

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy is a technique to change negative thoughts into positive thoughts. This can be centered around daily activities or sometimes you may fall into a downward spiral of negative thoughts like:

  • What if’s
  • All or nothing thinking
  • Black and white thinking
  • I should have’s…
  • And more

This can cause a “mental trap” where you get in your own way, get stuck with “analysis paralysis,” or you have repeated negative thoughts and can’t break free, stopping you from living the full life that you want to live.

CBT can help combat those thought patterns and help you with anxiety, depression, and other mental illnesses. 

What we do together is have an interactive conversation about what your patterns of thought are about certain topics and I’ll help you reframe your negative thinking. I’ll have you “challenge” your thoughts to help prove to yourself that the negative thoughts you’re having aren’t true, they aren’t as valid as you think, and you’re much more capable than you realize.

During our sessions, I’ll give your a few tools to help you do this in your daily life. I have some homework pages and questionnaires you can take home to fill in when you’re struggling, like for example:

  • What is this negative thought?
  • Why is this negative thought coming up?
  • What are the consequences of these negative thoughts for this way of thinking?

Then I’ll have reframing questions to help you think clearly the truth to help and reframe depression or anxiety issues.

Schedule A Consultation

Bipolar Disorder education

Bipolar education is really about understanding the disorder, knowing the symptoms, and being aware of certain behaviors within yourself. Manic behaviors can be different for various people but some of the most common ones are:

  • impulsive spending
  • foolish business investments
  • being overly talkative or feeling “pressured” to keep talking
  • having illicit, sexual behavior
  • having a lot of ideas and becoming distracted easily
  • having an expansive mood, meaning an overly-inflated self-esteem or grandiosity
  • a decrease need for sleep and increase of your brain “racing” at night
  • increases in goal activity

While some of these symptoms like becoming distracted really easily are generally known as a sign of ADHD, it can also be a sign of bipolar disorder and many people get misdiagnosed at younger ages. 

I’ll help educate you more about these situations so you can identify a “manic episode” outside of my office and take action to limit the “negative damage” that they can cause.

Managing Bipolar Disorder with Anita McLeod

As a licensed mental health professional with over 20 years experience, I have helped many clients with bipolar tendencies understand their condition, teach them to recognize their symptoms in the moment, and help them manage emotions to keep a more level-headed approach to various situations. This allows clients to feel more in control of their thoughts and increases the stability of important relationships in their lives.

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Bipolar Disorder Can Impact Your Quality of Life

Whether you realize it or not, bipolar disorder can affect all aspects of your life including your emotional well-being, relationships, work performance, sleep and more. While the highs are high, the lows can be very low, even suicidal in some extreme situations. I am consultative, educational, and can help you manage a more balanced emotional state.

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Getting the right treatment

Bipolar disorder has varying degrees of severity that are very different for every person. I experienced working at a clinic where most clients were severely and persistently mentally ill. This included clients that didn't have resources like family, friends, or good medical care, medication, and more. I was able to help people get the care they needed and manage their mental health, despite limited resources. I bring this experience forward to today to make sure each of my clients get the care they need.

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How I help our counseling clients

Bipolar disorder can affect all aspects of your life and relationships. One minute you may be cool, calm, and collected, but if a trigger event happens it can set you off in an instant. I help clients manage this condition in addition to helping them with other aspects of their life.

Couples Counseling
Trauma & PTSD
Grief & Loss
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What our bipolar treatment clients are saying

Bipolar Disorder Testimonials

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Schedule An Appointment With McLeod Counseling, PLLC

For A Complimentary Phone Consultation

If you are a new client wanting to schedule a counseling session or or an assessment service, please call me at 585-967-9700 or fill out our form with your best phone number and email so I can get back to you within 2 business days. 

As a reminder, I am committed to your privacy. Do not include confidential or private information regarding your health or condition as this form is for general questions and appointments.

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Frequently Asked Questions

There are currently no known causes of bipolar disorder but there are signs that it is genetic and can run in families.

Bipolar 1 is a more severe type of bipolar disorder than bipolar 2. It has to do with the frequency of manic, depressive, or both episodes. You can have mixed symptoms with depression and manic at the same time or over a period of hours or days. That’s something that we call rapid cycling.

As mentioned above, the symptoms vary between certain behaviors and swings in mood. You might go from feeling happy to sad very quickly. If you get angry over small issues and don’t feel like you have control over your moods, that can be a symptom as well. Getting an evaluation would be the only real way to know for sure it is bipolar and not another condition.

There’s a lot of overlap in symptoms of not being able to keep your attention and moods. There’s a bit of a fine line between the two conditions and sometimes people are misdiagnosed with ADHD when they actually have bipolar disorder. I would really have to look at the symptoms on a case-by-case basis to determine which you might have.

It depends on the intervention you get, if you do at all. Some episodes can last for days unless somebody intervenes, usually with medication, to get you to come down from a manic episode. That usually is a mood stabilizer or any anti-psychotic medication to help you to come down from the high. A depressive episode can last for a long time too, it depends on the situation, but that usually is remedied with medication as well.

Depressive disorder doesn’t have the manic symptoms (highs) of inflated self-esteem, being more talkative, or the decrease need for sleep. It’s really a lack of the “high symptoms” that’s the difference between bipolar disorder and depressive disorder.

Bipolar affects serotonin and dopamine in the brain. Someone with bipolar disorder typically has deficits of both chemicals and that is why bipolar disorder is a brain disorder. That is also why medication is usually recommended, to help restore these levels to their appropriate amounts. 

Daily life can be affected very easily if you are not taking care of yourself. If you’re not getting enough sleep, keeping your stress levels low, maintaining a healthy balance of work, or not taking your medication regularly, bipolar disorder can become very problematic and cause you to go into a manic or depressive episode.

In relationships – spending habits, sexual behaviors, high stress levels, and more can cause obvious strains between you and your partner, let alone the depressed moods or highs and being unwell. These highs and lows can also affect your behavior toward children.

Overreactions at work due to an episode could cause you to lose your job.

There are countless situations that could go wrong because of mismanagement of bipolar disorder.

When you’re doing well, you feel like everybody else, you are like everybody else and should be treated as such. When you’re taking good care of yourself, on your medication, or keeping your stress really low, then people won’t know the difference. 

When you are having an episode and you’re not thinking straight, it’s hard for you to think rationally. It’s very hard to intervene when you are manic as you have a “bulletproof” feeling. 

A depressive episode is a little bit different and easier to intervene, but you may think that life isn’t worth living and you feel down about anything or everything.  This is why suicide rates are much higher for people that are bipolar and why managing mental health is so critical.