Diagnosed with Bipolar Disorder at the Young Age of 17 with Avantika

### Show Description: Welcome to "Advancing With Amy / Mental Health Warrior & Neurospicy Mama," a podcast dedicated to exploring and supporting mental health journeys. Hosted by Amy, each episode dives deep into personal experiences, practical advice, and conversations with experts to illuminate the complexities of mental health. In this compelling episode, Amy talks Avantika, who was diagnosed with bipolar disorder at the young age of 17. Avantika shares her journey from denial to acceptance, the struggle to find the right medication and therapy, and the transformative power of peer support. She also discusses her proactive steps in managing her mental health, including founding a mental health organization called "Beautiful You." Join us to hear Avantika’s inspiring story, her advice for those newly diagnosed, and how education and empathy play crucial roles in mental health advocacy. Whether you are battling mental health issues yourself or supporting a loved one, this episode offers valuable insights and hope for the journey ahead.

📣 **Connect with Avantika:**
Follow Avantika on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/avantika.bo2 and explore more about her work and her organization, Beautiful You, which is dedicated to advocating for mental health through multiple mediums.  You can also listen to her show, Beautiful You Podcast on Spotify .  She also has a Link Tree you can check out.

On another note: If you've ever wondered how to make money with freebies, check out my affiliate link for a great deal on a course that shows you how to make that money.  Click here.

All right, we're here with Ivanika today, and she's going to talk with us about her journey with mental health. And welcome.

Thank you so much for having me. I'm so grateful to be a part of it.

Oh, you're very welcome. So I was reading. You actually came to find out at 17 that you had bipolar disorder. Can you tell me how that came about?

Yeah, I was 17 when I got the first diagnosis, so my dad was diagnosed with bipolar disorder as well, and I knew that he had something when I was, like, 14 or 15. I just didn't know what it was like. From a very young age, I knew that there was something that he was dealing with. We just haven't detected it yet. And the psychiatrist who diagnosed him with it, I was like, finally, we have an answer to it. And I honestly just went to see the psychiatrist to see her and just have a conversation with her about what it entails and everything. And she mentioned that. She mentioned that there's, like, an 80% chance that the kids might as well get bipolar.

And I was like, oh, that would never be me. That could never happen to me and stuff like that. I was just in denial. And then the thing is, when I was 16, I was experiencing all the signs of bipolar. I just didn't know that it was bipolar. I thought that everyone has good days or bad days, and I just brushed it off as just a bad day. And, yeah, like, I went. I went back home, I did some research on it, and I read up on it, and I got myself acquainted with what it actually entails.

And then I started thinking about my whole year, and then I was like, oh, I actually might have bipolar because that is what I've been dealing with since I was 16. And then I went back to the psychiatrist, and then she basically diagnosed me with it because she heard me. She took my case history and everything, and she. To know my story more intimately. And then she was like, oh, yeah, you have bipolar.

Wow. It sounds like that came as a shock and was hard to accept.

Yeah. Yeah, for sure. Considering that I was only 17. I feel like it's a very young age to be diagnosed with anything, let alone a mental health disorder. So it was definitely a shock. And I was. I remember being in denial for few months, followed up after that, where I was just. I was like, okay, this is the information.

This is a new piece of information that I have. What do I deal with it? What do I do with it? So, yeah, it was definitely a big shock for me.

Yeah. So what do you do to help yourself with those mood changes. Do you take medication? Do you journal?

So right now I'm on medications. I have been on medications for the last two years. So to give you a little bit of backstory, it took me a while to get the right therapist and the right psychiatrist for me. I went through, like, about three or four psychiatrists, four or five therapists, and then finally, in 2022, I found two amazing healthcare professionals. So I've been going to them consistently for the last two years, and I am on medications. I do seek therapy on a regular basis as well. So these are the two things which have been monumental in my management of bipolar. And apart from that, I engage in different hobbies.

I work on after therapy, like after therapy work that I do. I engage in mindfulness, meditation, gratitude, and I journal sometimes not so much, but sometimes I have to do that as well. So it's just. It's tiny bits of activities here and there that honestly keep me sane.

Yeah. Well, sounds like you found a good treatment regimen, so that's wonderful. Can you tell me a little bit about peer support and how that plays into your mental health?

So I think I was. I think I started being part of this peer support group a year ago, a year and a half ago, maybe. I was so tired of dealing with mental illness by myself, and I was like, I need to be surrounded by people who have been through similar stories, who know what I'm going through and with whom I can talk about it in a very non judgmental space. That's when I just started looking up bipolar peer support groups in India, and I came across this amazing support group. And, yeah, it has been monumental because it's just. It's a bunch of people who have similar diagnosis, or maybe they have, like, type one, type two, or cyclothemia or something like that, but it's somewhat similar, and they understand what you go through. The amount of empathy, that amount of empathy and compassion that there is there in the support group is just phenomenal. Yeah.

To be surrounded by people who are just there to support you, to listen to you without any judgment, plays a big role in your mental health journey.

Yeah, that's beautiful that you were able to find that. Is that all online or do you actually go in person sometimes and meet people?

They do have meetups offline. I just. I have only been to one of them. I haven't found the time to go to more of them. But, yeah, apart from, like, whenever I'm struggling, I just shoot a message or if I'm like, going through. If someone is going through it. I just read the messages to provide support. So it has mainly been online for me, but they do have offline peer support groups as well.

Okay, that's great. And I noticed you have a website of your own and a book and everything like that. Would you talk to us a little bit about that?

So I run a mental health organization called beautiful you. We have a podcast of our own. We, it's on Spotify and YouTube. We are active on Instagram, we have LinkedIn. We also recently launched a book, an ebook that surviving times that talks about, that shares people's journey of mental health struggles in the form of prose and poetry and. Yeah, so basically, we are advocating for mental health through different mediums on social media as well as we are bringing it offline now. So we are focusing on spreading the advocacy offline as well.

That is wonderful. Yeah, I looked at some of the poetry and it was really good. So that was interesting. So is there anything that you would say if you were talking to a young teen like you were at 17, and they're starting to notice some of the signs and symptoms, what they should do, what they should look for.

Do you mean what they should look for bipolar? If they are starting to notice certain signs, yes. One particular thing that you need to know that isn't much talked about is the fact that your energy levels will go hand in hand with your mood swings. So the way that you function when you're going through a low episode versus when you're going through a high episode versus when you're going through a period of normalcy, it will differ a lot. So you need to make sure that you are showing grace to yourself, you're compassionate with yourself, and that you're patient. Because one thing that has helped me a lot throughout the journey, looking back now that I realize, is that just being patient with it, because the first psychiatrist or the first therapist that you talk to may or may not be the right fit for you. So it takes time to find the right professional help for you as well. And as much, as much as it sucks, as much as it is dreadful and everything you need to go through the process, because once you find the right fit for you, your life will be changed. Yeah.

Someone who is going through it, I would just suggest advice them or suggest them that just be patient with yourself. Notice, read up on it. Educate yourself on it as much as you can. Read up stories, read up videos, and go through all of these things, educate yourself on it. Because when you are well informed, that makes you more empowered, and that gives you more power to handle your disorder. Your disorder doesn't have to define you in any way. It doesn't have to shape you or mold you like it does. It holds as much power over you as much as you let it.

So make sure that you. It's like, for me, it's like I have bipolar. That is a part of me, but that's not all of me. It's just a part of me. There is so much to me than just bipolar.

Yeah. That is great advice. I love that. Just a part of you and not all of you. So I have bipolar disorder myself, and so I feel the same way. So when were you diagnosed? I wasn't diagnosed until I was in my thirties.

Oh, wow. Okay.

So, yeah, I was diagnosed with depression before then, and then later they found out it was actually bipolar disorder.

Oh, wow.

So, yeah.

How have you been managing it?

Medication? Journaling? I have not been able to find a therapist lately. I had a good therapist and they retired. So I'm in the process of trying to find another one.

I hope that you're able to find the right one for you.

Thank you. So is there anything you'd like to leave our listeners with today?

One thing is that if you are someone who is diagnosed with a disorder, I would like to reiterate once again that the disorder only holds as much power over you as much as you let it. It does not need to limit your potential. It doesn't need to put you put yourself in any boxes whatsoever. And, yeah, it's. It's not a death sentence. It's not a death sentence at all. And you can come out of it. There's no cure at the moment, but we are hopeful that with the way that medicines, medicines and technology is, like, advancing, there might be a cure for bipolar a few years down the line, but it is something that can be managed.

I won't lie. It is difficult. You will have such hard days on some. Sometimes it will be so hard for you, but on other days, it's worth it. Like it's living is worth it. Keep fighting. And for someone who is a caregiver or who has a loved one who has been diagnosed with a disorder, I would just suggest you educate yourself on the disorder as much as you can. Ask questions and ask them how you can be there for themselves and just listen.

Be empathetic, be compassionate. Show grace to them. And, yeah, your most important thing is do not assume, but ask. Leave your preconceived notions that you have aside and learn about the disorder because people with bipolar have it differently. Every person who has bipolar deals with it very differently. So you need to ask yourself, you need to be get curious and you need to ask yourself, how do I help this particular individual better, this particular loved one better? And you need to just be open to information.

Wow. That is all such great advice. And I love the education piece because I'm very big on educating yourself on your own diagnoses. Sometimes you know better than the doctor does because you know what you've been going through and feeling.

Absolutely, yeah.

Thank you very much, Ivanika. I've really enjoyed talking with you. Would you tell us again what your address for your website is? So.

I don't have a website. I have a link, but you can find me on Instagram at Avantika B, zero, two B, four balloons. And you can find beautiful you at beautiful. You can find all the work that we do there. We have a link in the bio. You can just get access to all the information that we have out there. And, yeah, it was lovely talking to you. Thank you so much for having me on this.

Oh, thank you. You have a great rest of your weekend.

Thank you.

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