Have you ever thought about how you define success? Success can mean different things to different people, and this is especially true for people living with bipolar depression because the disease affects each person differently.

For people successfully managing the depressive episodes of bipolar disorder or caring for someone that is, success can be measured in many different ways. For some, being able to maintain relationships with family and friends is a sign of success. For others, finishing a college degree or just feeling well enough to get out of bed may also be a measure of success. The point is, each person with bipolar depression may take a different path to achieve his/her measure of success.

As a physician who works with people living with bipolar disorder, I think it's important that people with bipolar depression know that their journey to successfully managing the disease may be different from the next person's, which is why I'm excited to be involved with a new campaign: SPEAK and Be Heard... Living With Bipolar Depression.

The campaign, sponsored by AstraZeneca, is designed to raise awareness about mental illness, inspire hope, show the importance of seeking an accurate diagnosis, and developing an appropriate treatment plan with a health care provider to successfully manage bipolar disorder. Through this program, patients and caregivers can tell others about the struggles they have overcome or the challenges their loved ones faced before adopting an appropriate treatment plan and learning to successfully manage symptoms.

People with bipolar depression and caregivers of loved ones diagnosed with bipolar depression can log onto http://www.speakaboutbipolardepression.com to submit their stories. Then, they may have the opportunity to travel to New York City in the fall to act as a role model and further share their story with media and the mental health advocacy community. Submissions are being accepted until Wednesday, June 24, 2009.

I encourage all patients and their caregivers to visit http://www.speakaboutbipolardepression.com to learn more about the campaign and how they can SPEAK out and share their success stories to help others living with the disease. Together, we can bring greater awareness to this disease and help share the stories of those individuals that are successfully managing it.