Yesterday, I posted an article giving a couple of updates regarding what I’ve been up to during my hiatus. If you missed it, you can find it HERE. I ended the post by saying I would give more updates today and, as shocking as it may seem, here they are.
Weight and Fitness
Fitness has been going fairly well, the eating…uh, not so much.
I have repeatedly said I never want to be in my 260’s again, and I’ve kept that promise to myself. Barely. At my last weigh-in, this past Saturday, I weighed 259 lbs. I had thought by now I most definitely would be able to say I will never see my 250’s again. I keep trying.
For fitness I go on long walks at least four times a week, usually five. Most of these walks are along the beach which keeps me motivated.
Food has been the big challenge, which I was warned about by my pdoc when he changed my meds recently. The top two side effects of my most recent addition are hunger and weight gain. When I say hungry, I mean real hunger. It never stops. I could easily eat an entire plate of meat and potatoes, have a huge salad and finish off with a full cherry pie and I’d still be hungry. I’m not talking about wanting to eat for emotional reasons, which is a challenge, I’m talking full on hunger. The feeling never goes away.
I did have a great discussion with my therapist last week. We went through my list of meds one by one and he gave suggestions of what can be changed to help with the problem. Unfortunately, there is no doubt my psychiatrist will refuse to make any changes, which leads me into my next subject.
My Psychiatrist
It’s time for a change. I’ve had my current pdoc for nearly ten years now, but it’s time we went our separate ways. He’s cantankerous and fights any and all changes. If I want something changed, because of side effects, I have to take Maurice with me. If Maurice walks in his office with me he gives a heavy sigh. He knows Maurice is going to make some kind of demand and is not going to back down. That shouldn’t be necessary.
The other major problem I have with my pdoc is he works for the LA County Department of Mental Health. The county has suddenly decided that I make too much money off Social Security and therefore my monthly share of cost is $700/month. To put this in perspective, I owe money to the IRS from years ago. The IRS has told me they will not try and collect because, based on their system, I have no income at all. We know how ruthless the IRS is, but they’re giving me less grief than the county? It’s beyond absurd.
My therapist has given me some great suggestions for new pdoc’s who accept Medicare. I’ll be making some calls this week to get out of the county system.
While I’m on the subject of psychiatry, I failed to mention something yesterday, when I was talking 
about us moving to Ecuador. With the help of people who live there, including someone with the International Bipolar Foundation, I learned the cost of the medicine I currently take will go up from my current share of cost, but not that bad. The big news is that almost all psych meds are sold over the counter. That’s right, no prescriptions necessary. I like that.
My Manuscript
The novel writing is going well. I stumbled for a while. I think the term writer’s block is overused, but I guess you could say that was true. Since I couldn’t move forward, I went back and wrote new 
drafts to my earliest work and I’m happy to say much of it is put to rest. No further drafts necessary. They are DONE! I was able to recharge my batteries and the new words started flowing again. It may not be the most productive method, but I currently write new material for a couple of days and then switch off and write new drafts of pages I’ve already written. The method is working for me. It’s made fall in love with writing all over again, and that’s the most important part. I couldn’t be more pleased.
Conclusion
I guess this is where I’ll wrap things up. I’m sure I could write plenty more updates, but nothing comes to mind right now. I do hope to breathe new life back into blogging. Perhaps posting a couple of times a week and going from there. I hope to get back to reading your blogs too.
You are worth waiting for. I applaud you!
Thank you, Pam. You made me blush
Sounds like you have had a busy time away. I will say it again, you were missed. I am happy to know there will be more posts from you in the near future. I love reading your words. 🙂
Thanks Iggy. I enjoy writing them. When I’m writing, for the blog, I tend to blow through the post without much though about grammar, etc. It makes me worry sometimes that people think, “this guy wants to be a writer?” LOL
I’m the same way when I write on my blog. But when doing “professional” type stuff, I mind my P’s and Q’s. 😉
I hope you get a draft done soon. I can’t wait to read it. Mine is hovering around 40,000 words.
I hope to get it done soon as well. Mine is also around 40,000, which means I have about 25,000 to go. That’s a typical length for a mystery novel.
Hey hey! Good to see you’re entering the fray again. Also good to hear that you’re renewed your passion for writing. Sometimes you just need to switch gears slightly to refocus on what you want to be working on.
“Switching gears” is a good way to put it. I thought I was accepting defeat and learned that couldn’t be further than the truth.
It’s great to catch up some more with you today. I’m inspired by how you’ve kept persevering when faced with challenge after challenge….you have a great attitude, and thank goodness your sense of humor is rock-solid.
Be extra-proud of yourself, dear Bradley- you’ve dealt with an ENORMOUS health challenge that few of us can understand, and for once I’m not talking about the bipolar! 😉 Maurice is such a catch, by the way!
I’m glad you’re going to change pdocs – yep, it’s time to find someone new.
And good for you for doing your homework on meds, Medicare, Ecuador, etc.
And oh yes – CONGRATS on falling in love with writihng again! That’s truly wonderful.
Love,
The Captain
I love everything about your comment. Thank you, Captain D
Congrats on the writing progress! Very awesome!
I is awesome. I’m thrilled to be moving forward.
I’m happy for you because your writing has taken on a new life. You have to do what works for you not necessarily what works for most other writers. I’m looking forward to hearing you say, “I’m published!!”
Oh, when it’s published, you and the entire world will know about it. 🙂
You sound like you’re in a good place and I’m happy for you, Bradley 🙂 Out of curiosity, may I ask what medication causes this enormous hunger?
Had to get off Abilify because of a change in my insurance companies formulary. My pdoc then chose to put me on Risperdal, which I am pretty sure is the culprit. My therapist is confused by it because they aren’t the same thing. I think I’ll deal with it until I get a new pdoc
Thanks Bradley. I hope you find a doc that instills more confidence than your previous one
Me too. So far, all the ones that have been recommended to me, don’t take Medicare, but I’m still looking and optimistic.
Hi there, so great to see you writing again and doing well overall!
Overall, not too bad.