Bipolar and Pregnant: How to Manage and Succeed in Planning and Parenting While Living with Manic Depression
Product Description
The first book to tackle one of the leading concerns of women with manic depression and related disorders
You have bipolar disorder and want to start a family. There is so much to know and manage when thinking about becoming pregnant and having an optimal pregnancy and postpartum period. What are the risks? Can I go off my meds? How will my partner react? Will my child also become bipolar? How do I navigate through the often confusing and ever-changing research on mental disorders and pregnancy?
Kristin K. Finn was diagnosed with manic depression as a teenager. Upon deciding to become pregnant, she and her husband also had questions, concerns, and fears. Recognizing that there was no go-to guide that helps women with manic depression navigate pre-natal, pregnancy, and postpartum issues, Finn collaborated with geneticists, obstetricians, psychologists, and psychiatrists to bring you this ultimate support-group-in-a-book and pregnancy resource.
In Bipolar and Pregnant, Finn shares her insights and techniques that she developed through two pregnancies, as well as the advice of her esteemed team of experts. In addition, Bipolar and Pregnant:
- Provides information on medical aspects of pregnancy and gives advice on minimizing the risks of psychiatric flare-ups, avoiding episodes, monitoring behavior, and preparing to go off mediation as pregnancy looms.
- Discusses medical aspects of pregnancy, preparing for pregnancy, and optimizing the chances of getting pregnant
- Provides the latest research on medications used to treat bipolar disorder and their effect on developing babies.
You and your entire support team will be armed with the knowledge necessary to help you optimize your pregnancy, subside anxiety, and feel confident that you are doing the very best for you and your new family.
People don’t give a damn what they inflict on children.
Push comes to shove, it is all about what the so-called adult wants no matter the consequences to the child.
I really cannot rate the book: I have not read it and have no intention of reading it as it will annoy me too much.
Don’t bother flaming me, all you will do is prove my point.
two cents ¢¢
Rating: 1 / 5
I recommend this book to any woman (like me) who has a decent grasp on her mental illness and is ready to take on the next challenge: Motherhood!!!
This book was a push in just the right direction for me. It’s very reassuring to know it can be done, and done well. I took the suggestions from this book and used them to help plan discussions with my therapist and psychiatrist about me starting a family (both went very smoothly).
I feel as if at least one other woman out there understands what I’m going through, as if she could have written this book just for me. Am I going to follow her path step for step? It’s not possible. For starters, my psychiatrist is weaning me off one medication but keeping me on another. Kristin’s book helped me feel comfortable having the discussion and understanding the risks and benefits of my medications.
All of the suggestions in this book can be adapted to the reader’s life and the people in her life that make up her support network. There are no perfect answers, but this books helped me get on my way to finding my answers.
If nothing else, it reminded me my illness needs constant monitoring and care, whether I’m pregnant or not.
Thanks,
Jillian
Rating: 5 / 5
I found it very helpful to hear about how a woman with bipolar disorder successfully managed two pregnancies. This book not only gives women and their families hope – it also is an easy to understand, informative and practical step-by-step guide. I also appreciated the valuable information written by the professionals. In checking Kristin’s website, I found that the Cleveland Clinic Library gave the book a positive review which reinforced my opinion of the book.
Rating: 5 / 5
I have a family member who is bipolar and is considering starting a family with her husband. After researching this topic with my sister we were disappointed to find there was hardly any literature on this subject. I can’t tell you how excited we were to find a book written from the perspective of a bipolar parent. Bipolar and Pregnant provides great insight on the hurdles a couple must overcome to achieve a successful bipolar pregnancy. What we were most excited about is that the book offers advice on the decision making process, coping mechanisms during pregnancy and postpartum issues. My sister and her husband realize starting a family with a bipolar mother is a difficult one but this book has given them hope and inspiration regarding this important topic.
Rating: 5 / 5
Kristin Finn’s book offers the reader keen insights into how she managed her bipolar disorder during her pregnancy. This book recognizes that some bipolar woman go off their medications–like Finn–while others remain on their medications. It’s very helpful to read her first person account, and she does a nice job weaving journal entries she kept during both her pregnancies into the narrative to offer perspective on what she went through.
Rating: 5 / 5
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