#TalkBD - My Bipolar Story (Louise Dwerryhouse) - Blog

In our latest #TalkBD podcast episode, retired social worker and mental health blogger Louise Dwerryhouse speaks on her 31-year journey living with bipolar disorder. She discusses her experience leading up to her diagnosis, what strategies she has implemented to stay well, and her advice to other people living with bipolar disorder.

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The Expert

Louise Dwerryhouse - TalkBD Bipolar Disorder Podcast

Louise Dwerryhouse, MSW

Retired Social Worker, Mental Health Blogger, Lived Experience
crestbd.ca/louise
Louise is a retired social worker who worked in Canada and the UK and is now an advocate and mental health blogger on “lived experience” living in Vancouver, British Columbia. She was diagnosed with bipolar I disorder late in life, over 30 years ago at the age of thirty-five, and has been living well with the disorder for 10+ years. She writes to those alone, frightened and traumatized by volatile mood swings such as she had in her early days post-diagnosis. Louise tries to lead by example, by sharing her journey to recovery, showing it is possible to live well with the disorder. Her dream is to see a society centered on acceptance, inclusion and less stigma in her lifetime.

Our Host

Dr. Erin Michalak

Professor, UBC Psychiatry
crestbd.ca/erin / @erin_michalak

Erin is the Founder and Network Lead of CREST.BD, and a Professor at UBC Psychiatry. Her research in mental health, patient-oriented research, and quality of life in bipolar disorder is globally recognized. Erin spearheaded the development of the first BD-specific quality of life scale, the QoL.BD. The QoL.BD has seen rapid uptake internationally and is now the gold-standard for BD quality of life assessments. Under Erin, CREST.BD also launched an online version of the QoL.BD, and the Bipolar Wellness Centre, a web portal of scientifically validated wellness strategies for BD. In 2018, she was awarded the CIHR Gold Leaf Prize for Transformation in Patient Engagement.