Actually, it is quite helpful Thanks. In fact, great replies all around,

For sure I will speak about it with my pdoc but while I wait for my next appointment, this is just what I was hoping for, to generate discussion.

It turns out that I also have BP II. I'm not sure I understand what you mean by intrusive thoughts, so I'll just tell you that when it comes to the hyper-attention to detail, somewhere in my mind I'm thinking, "I need to do this right so no one makes fun of me," whether anyone is there or not. I don't think that is what you had in mind, but I'm still interested in your feedback.

When I deliberately attempt to resist, say by being care-free in the order I wash my bits in the shower, I'm ok as long as I don't make any "errors". I will be able to carry this on to other activities through the day. But as soon as I make what I perceive to be a mistake, it all goes out the window and I basically have a fit that can continue the rest of the day.

The main impact of all this perfectionism is severe procrastination and an inability to follow through on tasks. The talking out loud thing, well, I think you can imagine thoughts of co-workers who see me walking the hallways muttering to myself.

---"Why is it important to label symptoms according to which disorder they represent? Sometimes it really does run together, because you are a person, not a collection of symptoms. And what matters is you being able to get help for what bothers you and what interferes with your life, so that you can have the best life possible."---

I'm interested in being able to communicate effectively with my doc and I'm trying to organize my thoughts. Discussions like this help me crystallize my perceptions, since otherwise they change all the time depending on my frame of mind. I have as great a need to organize and re-arrange my thoughts as much as anything else. E.g. I often rehearse the things I intend to say to people in my head, even for events that may be far in the future.

My goal is to be able to separate the wheat from the chaff, so to speak, out of all the confusion in my head. My diagnosis of bipolar disorder was some time ago. Now, the pdoc I've just started seeing is sure I have ADHD of the inattentive variety, and I'm identifying in myself all these other behaviors. By having discussions like this, I can distill out of them the most important parts and email them to my doctor so he can choose the best course of action. It satisfies my need for completeness and order while I'm at it.

Please continue with your feedback, I appreciate it.