Keep track of external rhythms and causes of manic depressive episodes. Knowing if seasonal changes or other natural rhythms affect your moods and cause your emotions to swing will help you in preparing for and even to prevent manic depressive episodes. Many sufferers of bi-polar syndrome are affected by the seasons such as winter blues and spring mania. Knowing this is a problem for you can help you to set your own limits and even regulate your medicines (with your doctor's advice) to offset the effects of such timings.

Another common trigger for manic depressive episodes is anniversaries. The event of a loved one's death, a divorce, or other traumatic events in your life can cause an episode. Knowing that can help you prepare for it in advance and either lessen the affects, or avoid it altogether.

The big stress events in our lives can be devastating to those suffering from manic depression. Such normally happy events that are surrounded by stress and tension are marriages, pregnancies, promotions, and even moving to new housing are some of the things that cause stress in any life and make mental disorders come into focus. Knowing that these things can trigger episodes can help you mentally prepare for them, and with your doctor's care keep them under control.

Make sure you have your support system in place. Knowing who you can call on when you need someone to talk to you know will not judge you is as important as knowing who to call for medical advice. Keep the numbers of your trusted friends and family members close at hand.

Knowing the signs of impending crisis will help you to prevent them from becoming too serious. Some of the symptoms of a manic depressive episode are: rapid thought when your mind moves so fast you can't even keep track of each thought before the next one starts. Irritability - learn to tell when you are beginning to experience an irrational bout of irritability to get it under control before it gets out of hand. Absent mindedness - if you find yourself not being able to finish a thought, or remember what you were just doing you can stop yourself and seek help before you lose control completely. Not sleeping - if you can't sleep more than a few hours, and yet have headaches, watery eyes, or other signs of sleep deprivation contact your physician to get it under control. The proper amounts of sleep are very important in dealing with mental illnesses. Getting obsessive over little things - if you suddenly become obsessed over little things it is a beginning warning sign. This is another one of those things that can be hard to spot on your own. Having someone you trust alert you to the beginnings of this symptom can help tremendously.

A very serious sign of impending crisis is not feeling any emotional response at all to something that you should feel emotional about. If you experience something bad or traumatic but don't feel anything about it, you need to seek professional help.

Know thyself. What is true for one person suffering from mental illness may not apply to you. As you deal with your manic depression you will learn what affects you and what does not. Keep track of everything and learn to spot your own personal warning signs. As you get better and better at it, you will gain newfound control over your illness and have a happy productive life.