Testing speaker 1,2…1,2…, okay good.

We are live in my studio today and I present to you the first edition of our Mental health 101 blog interviews. We have a very special guest with us who will be taking us through a mental health condition she faces. I know it’s been a while but today is not about me, because we have Esenam in the building. Yayyy!

When I say FACTA, you say NON VERBA. “FACTA….. Thank you. When Holyco girls meet this nahh we do. hehe. Thanks for your understanding.

Well as you all know I am Selorm and I will be your interviewer for today. We have Esenam with us today, who is a person living with Bipolar Disorder. She has accepted to spend her time with me today to tell us all we need to know about her life with Bipolar Disorder. So, with our coffees ready, let’s get right into it.

Me: it’s a pleasure to have you here with us today, Esenam.

 
Esenam: Thank you Selorm. The pleasure is all mine.

Me: okay now tell us who is Esenam? I’m sure everyone is excited to know who Esenam is.

Esenam : Well as you have already said, I am Esenam . Esenam is a 26-year-old daughter, sister to one brother and friend to others. She is a Projects Coordinator at Mental Health Society of Ghana, where she works closely with Self Help Groups to develop community and district associations of people with mental health challenges. She also organizes appropriate training for Self Help Groups and performs advocacy activities at both local and national levels. She studied French and Linguistics at the University of Ghana. She is an avid youtuber who likes to educate people about Bipolar Disorder and other mental health conditions. Finally, she is one of the biggest fans of God as she firmly believes He is the reason for where she is now. Well that’s about who Esenam is ( LAUGHS)

Me: Wow, She’s amazing and I’m happy to interview her today. Now as a young lady starting life, how was it like to be diagnosed with Bipolar disorder and what is it like to be living with that condition?

Esenam: Ermm, I must say it was quite painful and difficult for me to accept and process. It felt like a death sentence at that time and I lived in denial for about a year. It was even more difficult to process since we live in a society that has very little awareness about mental health conditions. I felt quite “different” from the “normal” person and thought no one could understand or relate to me on the same level again.

Me: That must have been a lot for you to take in. Honestly, I like how you have been able to handle everything until now. It is quite impressive. How long has it been since the diagnosis though?

Esenam: Thank you. It’s been a tough journey but God has been faithful. Well I was diagnosed with Bipolar disorder in 2015 so I guess it has been about 6 years now and we are taking it one day at a time.

 
Me: Really glad to hear that, Ese. Hope you do not mind me calling you that.

Esenam: Not at all, Selorm.

Me: Great! Now how has this health condition affected your daily life or what has changed in your life since the diagnosis?

Esenam: Well quite a lot has changed actually. I have been on prescribed medication since that day. I always carry my medication with me everywhere I go to tackle unforeseen situations such as getting home and not being able to take my medicine at the set time. I have a set time for taking my drugs and I have chosen to be diligent with it as it helps me stay on course and prevent relapses.

Me: I’m impressed. Personally, I am not a fan of taking medications and so I must say you are doing pretty well. Those medications are they for curing the disorder? Is Bipolar curable?

Esenam: Unfortunately, it's not curable. As I said earlier, the medication is there to prevent relapses and help improve the way of life of the person.

Me: Okay, I guess one has to be diligent with the medication. I see our coffee mugs are empty, let me get us some refills quickly.



Me: Now that we have made ourselves more comfortable, let’s get back to it. With you sitting all pretty and confident in front of me, I wouldn’t have guessed you have such a health condition. I am sure most of my readers are thinking the same too. So my question is, is there anything that indicates that a person has bipolar disorder?

Esenam: Well there are no physical symptoms on a person per say but some different or irrational behavioral patterns observed over a period of time can lead to such a diagnosis. For me, I experienced unusual urges to splurge money I didn’t have which led to lots of debts, unusual provocative dressing which were not a part of me, suicidal thoughts, heard voices and saw things that were not real. These finally got to the point where my father saw the need to take me to the hospital. Bipolar is a disorder that has the manic and depressive episodes so when a person for a period of time is behaving in such extremes aside their usual self it is necessary for us to take action and help the person.

Me: o okay, and how does one maintain the condition when diagnosed?

Esenam: when one is diagnosed, I would advise one to diligently take their medication always and on time. One should also engage in therapy sessions and put themselves on good dieting and exercise. Lastly, I would advise one to know their triggers and avoid them, like external influences that tend to leave you stressed and make you have either the manic or depressive episodes.

Me: O ok, I definitely agree with you especially about the exercise and knowing your triggers aspect. I think it actually works well in all aspects of our lives. Thank you for that.

Me: As we are wrapping up the interview, I would want to know how you manage your most important relationships and how different Bipolar disorder is from the normal mood swings we experience every day?

Esenam: To answer the first question, I mostly make sure who I am and what I have is known at the beginning of every relationship since I am big on honesty and transparency and then we take it from there.
Now to the second question, its true Bipolar and mood swings are similar but normal mood swings last for shorter periods whilst someone with Bipolar disorder tend to have unusual manic and depressive episodes for an extended period of time.

Me: O ok, I didn’t know that. I’m very glad you made time to answer all these questions myself and our readers have been curious about. Well, Ese, any final thoughts for us?

Esenam: Sure. Mental Health conditions are ever present with us as the WHO estimates 1 in 4 people would experience mental health condition in their lifetime. We therefore need to take care of our mental health and address things that bother us as soon as possible as prolonging dealing with them can lead to some mental health challenges. We also need to be kind to people as we do not know what they might be dealing with and be careful with our words as they can affect people for a long time. We should also seek help in times of troubles and help others when the reach out to us. Yeah.

Me: Thank you very much Esenam. It is indeed important for us to take care of our Mental Health. We are grateful for your work as a mental health advocate and we wish you the best in all your endeavors. Our readers and I have learnt a lot today and it was a pleasure to have you here today.

Me: This has been Bi-polar 101 with Esenam and I was your host, Selorm. Catch you another time same place. Bye.