I wasn't sure which of uou threads to put this in but keeping a mood diary over a period of time will really help you to see any patterns in your mood changes.
I find that it's ok to have a high or low mood but it's more if it lasts a certain amount of time for me or I start to lose insight that it is a problem.
Like mood changes will happen but I find having a trusted friend to clarify what is out of proportion helps too.
Monitoring your mood over a few moths though will help you see patterns and be able to track your early warning signs to reduce the next episode.
Cbt is also really good for bipolar. It helped me a lot and there is a really good book call "overcoming mood swings" with a lot of exercise in it that helped me realise what to do next and how to calm my moods and have more clarity over what is a mild, moderate or sever mood swing.
Also it's good for you to decide partly yourself when you would like help. Like I chose not to ask for help during hypomania or mild depression because I feel I can handle them on my own for a period of time.
It's different for each person.
Some people feel they need help sooner.
Doing a new crisis plan and care plan with your team may help you decide when help is needed.
It's a lot about learning what you can manage an what you can't. But that will come over a period of time with regular monitoring.
Hope that makes sense.
Tracking my mood is the best practice I've started for my mental health. I've learnt so much about my episodes. And now I'm building up the tools to manage even the bad ones.
Hugs x
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