I think a lot of people wonder if they have BP because they have "mood swings." I think that is what a lot of the public understands to be BP. In fact, only some BP folks would describe what they experience as mood swings. For a lot of us, BP consists of distinct (and sometimes lengthy) periods of depression and other distinct periods of mania or hypomania. Mood swings alone don't make you BP. In fact, I'm pretty sure that the "swing" part is not even in the criteria that professionals us to diagnose you.

That said, it sounds like you have something serious going on and ADHD and BP can occur together. The only way to really get to the bottom of this is to have a thorough assessment by a pdoc or psychologist. If your pdoc isn't listening, you should consider replacing him. Another thing that one of my friends did with this issue was to seek a formal assessment with a psychologist. The psychologist met with her several times and had her complete lots of questionnaires (with a million questions) before arriving at a diagnosis.

Good luck,
EJ