M. Crowe, M. Inder

The primary outcomes from this study of psychotherapy for young people with bipolar disorder identified that most participants had continued to remain well. Given that up to 80% of people relapse within two years, it was important to establish how these participants described the process of staying well. To examine how participants in a psychotherapy for young people with bipolar disorder study at five-year follow-up described their experiences of the intervention and its impact on living with the disorder. This qualitative study was conducted five years after participants had completed a psychotherapy intervention in a randomised controlled trial for young people with bipolar disorder. Thirty people were recruited into this qualitative study and interviewed regarding their experiences. The data were analysed using an inductive thematic analysis. Three themes were identified from the data: self-awareness in the context of bipolar disorder; understanding my bipolar disorder; and learning to stay well with bipolar disorder. Mental health nurses can promote the factors that participants found helpful in learning to stay well -self-awareness, understanding the unique characteristics of their disorder, learning to take care of the self and stabilization of social rhythms. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.