Alison’s Story: Bipolar Disorder
by Kat Rowe | October 16, 2023
How I manage my bipolar disorder. Alison’s Story.
Hello, my name is Alison Gallagher and I have bipolar disorder. I was diagnosed with bipolar disorder in 2015 after a stay in Bloomfield Hospital in Orange. I manage my Bipolar in a number of ways. Firstly, I take medication everyday to stabilise my mood, then every day I meditate for half and hour. Weekly I see my support worker from, Stride for about an hour, then every month I see my psychologist Yin and I visit the GP DR Jack every six weeks. This is how I manage and to my credit and the credit of the people in my life who help me I have managed to stay well for the past eight years.
I am a mother and a wife, and my Husband and my two boys are very supportive of me and my illness. My children check to make sure I take my medication each day and my Husband checks in with me each day to make sure that I am tracking ok. My parents are also a huge support in my life and I don’t know where I would be without their support.
Having a support worker or recovery coach from Stride has helped me to stay on track with my recovery and keep my bipolar disorder at bay. It is wonderful to have a debrief with someone each week and check in to make sure that you are still on top of things and if you are not feeling so great you that support is at hand. The NDIS helps me access support more easily and affordably.
Thanks to being well and in recovery for so long I have started to study TAFE this year to get some employable skills to hopefully get a job and get back into the workforce. I am just over halfway through with my studies and have been surprised that I have passed every subject.
Stride is helping me to live my best life through the support of my support worker, recovery coach who helps me to see my full potential and not just the illness I have. Without the help Stride I don’t know where I would be the services they provide are second to none and I can’t recommend them highly enough.
