Hey skittles!
Alexandra is right... the criteria goes like this...

Mood disorder

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

A mood disorder is a condition whereby the prevailing emotional mood is distorted or inappropriate to the circumstances.

The two major types of mood disorders are depression (or unipolar depression) and bipolar disorder.

*Depression (or unipolar depression), including subtypes:
Major Depression
Major Depression (Recurrent)
Major Depression with psychotic symptoms (psychotic depression)
Dysthymia
Postpartum depression

*Bipolar disorder, a mood disorder described by alternating periods of mania and depression (and in some cases rapid cycling, mixed states, and psychotic symptoms). Subtypes include:
Bipolar I
Bipolar II
Cyclothymia
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mood_disorder"

But, I also think that the dx criteria is very narrow-minded...cause I don't think ONE isolated manic episode is enough to give a bipolar dx....

Maybe that's what your pdoc meant?
Could it be that you had a manic/hipomanic episode and that was it? And now after some time the doc sees that you don't usually cycle, so then the new dx?

Anyways...dxs are just a way for docs to classify people and people are not their dx, but something much more complex...

If I were u I wouldn't pay as much attention to the dx..just try to work to feel better.

Take care,
Annie