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Bipolar Disorder and Barre3: One Woman’s Journey
Karina Bjork had always wanted to try barre3, and the opportunity aligned itself perfectly when a friend’s bridal shower included taking a class. From the moment she stepped into the studio, she felt welcome, comfortable, and unafraid. Below, Karina shares how barre3 has supported her in her experience of living with Bipolar Disorder and how the workout has reinforced the lessons she’s learned from being a mother.
BARRE3: Do you feel like you go to barre3 primarily for the workout, or are there other factors that draw you?
At first, I went to barre3 primarily for the workout. Over time though, it became much more than just that. Barre3 became a way for me to practice body and self-awareness. I would go before or after work, on weekend mornings, before my daughter woke up, or before I picked her up from daycare. Barre3 is something I do to help with stressful situations, but it’s also a way for me to start my day—regardless of whether I’ll encounter a stressful situation or not.
B3: Your young daughter is now a regular in the Play Lounge. How has that experience been?
The first time I took her to the Play Lounge, I felt so much anxiety. She screamed and cried when I dropped her off, and I remember standing in the hall waiting for her to stop crying. I wanted to grab her and just leave. As I was standing there though, another mom saw me, walked right up to me, and said, “Just go. Just turn around and go. She’ll make it.” That gave me so much relief.
I feel immense guilt when I leave my daughter with a babysitter or at daycare crying. It feels like, “How could I do this to my child?” But hearing the client say that, I thought, “No, this is fine. No one is judging me for letting her cry.” The instructor even said, “Stand by the speakers so you can’t hear her. They’ll put a sticky note on the door if they need to grab you.”
The fact that an instructor understood my anxiety made me feel good.
Now my daughter loves it! When I take her to the studio, she walks over to the Play Lounge, takes her shoes off, waves goodbye to me, and she’s off playing. She gets so excited to go.
B3: Do you feel like the tools you’ve learned in barre3 class have translated to other aspects of your life?
Barre3 has helped me so much when it comes to parenting. It’s taught me to be patient and to let go of things that I cannot control. One of the biggest things that I’ve learned from barre3, though, is how to love myself mentally and physically.
My favorite thing about my daughter is how every time she looks in the mirror, she smiles, laughs and says, “Look at that girl! That girl is me! I’m cute!” Every time I go to barre3, I pick a spot in front of the mirror, and I say that same thing to myself during seat work or stretching. In a way, my daughter taught me this, but barre3 has made it a practice I want to maintain. I want my daughter to grow up always thinking this way. If barre3 helps me believe that about myself, I can share that with her.
B3: You live with Bipolar Disorder and anxiety. Has barre3 played a role in helping you manage those in your day-to-day life?
Barre3 helps me practice mindfulness, self-awareness, and meditation. With Bipolar, I can go from 1 to 100 with the snap of a finger, but I practice what I do in barre3 every single day—sometimes every moment of every day. For a long time, it was impossible for me to tell when a Bipolar mood swing or an anxiety attack would happen, but now, barre3 helps me identify when they are coming.
When my body shakes in class, to me, it’s the same thing as experiencing Bipolar mood swings or anxiety. It’s my body accepting the chaos. Instructors always say to breathe through the chaos, to hang in there. And if you need to take a break, take it and come back stronger.
I’ve learned to take the same approach to the chaos I feel from Bipolar. I can breathe through it or take a break from it and come back a stronger person. I can’t control the chaos, but I can control my reaction to it.
Many doctors believe that Bipolar Disorder can be controlled with medication. My doctor says, however, that if I practice barre3 as a form of controlling my Bipolar long enough, I may no longer need medication.
B3: What have been your greatest takeaways from barre3?
The main takeaway from barre3, for me, is that our minds and bodies can handle anything for 30 seconds. In the grand scheme of things, 30 seconds is practically nothing. I repeat that to myself more than you would think. This is powerful to me because it tells me that every struggle is temporary.
Nothing lasts forever, the song won’t last forever, the Plank won’t last forever, the two-inches-down and subsequent hold won’t last forever. This translates to life.
The other greatest takeaway is how instructors tell us no one in the class looks the same or is doing something the same way as you. You might feel like you look weird doing a certain pose and that’s okay. You should never compare yourself to your neighbor or anyone else in the class. It’s your time, your space, and your body—not anyone else’s.
Ready to experience the empowering, feel-good effects of barre3 for yourself? Join us in-studio for 2 weeks of unlimited classes for $49 or try a 15-day free trial of barre3 online workouts.
Karina Bjork had always wanted to try barre3, and the opportunity aligned itself perfectly when a friend’s bridal shower included taking a class. From the moment she stepped into the studio, she felt welcome, comfortable, and unafraid. Below, Karina shares how barre3 has supported her in her experience of living with Bipolar Disorder and how the workout has reinforced the lessons she’s learned from being a mother.
BARRE3: Do you feel like you go to barre3 primarily for the workout, or are there other factors that draw you?
At first, I went to barre3 primarily for the workout. Over time though, it became much more than just that. Barre3 became a way for me to practice body and self-awareness. I would go before or after work, on weekend mornings, before my daughter woke up, or before I picked her up from daycare. Barre3 is something I do to help with stressful situations, but it’s also a way for me to start my day—regardless of whether I’ll encounter a stressful situation or not.
B3: Your young daughter is now a regular in the Play Lounge. How has that experience been?
The first time I took her to the Play Lounge, I felt so much anxiety. She screamed and cried when I dropped her off, and I remember standing in the hall waiting for her to stop crying. I wanted to grab her and just leave. As I was standing there though, another mom saw me, walked right up to me, and said, “Just go. Just turn around and go. She’ll make it.” That gave me so much relief.
I feel immense guilt when I leave my daughter with a babysitter or at daycare crying. It feels like, “How could I do this to my child?” But hearing the client say that, I thought, “No, this is fine. No one is judging me for letting her cry.” The instructor even said, “Stand by the speakers so you can’t hear her. They’ll put a sticky note on the door if they need to grab you.”
The fact that an instructor understood my anxiety made me feel good.
Now my daughter loves it! When I take her to the studio, she walks over to the Play Lounge, takes her shoes off, waves goodbye to me, and she’s off playing. She gets so excited to go.
B3: Do you feel like the tools you’ve learned in barre3 class have translated to other aspects of your life?
Barre3 has helped me so much when it comes to parenting. It’s taught me to be patient and to let go of things that I cannot control. One of the biggest things that I’ve learned from barre3, though, is how to love myself mentally and physically.
My favorite thing about my daughter is how every time she looks in the mirror, she smiles, laughs and says, “Look at that girl! That girl is me! I’m cute!” Every time I go to barre3, I pick a spot in front of the mirror, and I say that same thing to myself during seat work or stretching. In a way, my daughter taught me this, but barre3 has made it a practice I want to maintain. I want my daughter to grow up always thinking this way. If barre3 helps me believe that about myself, I can share that with her.
B3: You live with Bipolar Disorder and anxiety. Has barre3 played a role in helping you manage those in your day-to-day life?
Barre3 helps me practice mindfulness, self-awareness, and meditation. With Bipolar, I can go from 1 to 100 with the snap of a finger, but I practice what I do in barre3 every single day—sometimes every moment of every day. For a long time, it was impossible for me to tell when a Bipolar mood swing or an anxiety attack would happen, but now, barre3 helps me identify when they are coming.
When my body shakes in class, to me, it’s the same thing as experiencing Bipolar mood swings or anxiety. It’s my body accepting the chaos. Instructors always say to breathe through the chaos, to hang in there. And if you need to take a break, take it and come back stronger.
I’ve learned to take the same approach to the chaos I feel from Bipolar. I can breathe through it or take a break from it and come back a stronger person. I can’t control the chaos, but I can control my reaction to it.
Many doctors believe that Bipolar Disorder can be controlled with medication. My doctor says, however, that if I practice barre3 as a form of controlling my Bipolar long enough, I may no longer need medication.
B3: What have been your greatest takeaways from barre3?
The main takeaway from barre3, for me, is that our minds and bodies can handle anything for 30 seconds. In the grand scheme of things, 30 seconds is practically nothing. I repeat that to myself more than you would think. This is powerful to me because it tells me that every struggle is temporary.
Nothing lasts forever, the song won’t last forever, the Plank won’t last forever, the two-inches-down and subsequent hold won’t last forever. This translates to life.
The other greatest takeaway is how instructors tell us no one in the class looks the same or is doing something the same way as you. You might feel like you look weird doing a certain pose and that’s okay. You should never compare yourself to your neighbor or anyone else in the class. It’s your time, your space, and your body—not anyone else’s.
Ready to experience the empowering, feel-good effects of barre3 for yourself? Join us in-studio for 2 weeks of unlimited classes for $49 or try a 15-day free trial of barre3 online workouts.
