Those of you with Bipolar I ... Have you ever been manic, come down briefly, and then rebounded back into mania? Or have you ever been able to enjoy a period of hypomania without going completely manic?

I'm concerned about feeling hypomanic right now. If I knew it'd stay hypomanic without shooting up more, I wouldn't worry as much, but I don't want to be hospitalized again. I just got out two weeks ago.

I'm on Seroquel right now (400 mg). At first it make me really, really groggy, and I felt drunk the first few hours I was up, but that wore off after a week and and a half. I am still taking the 400 mg, btw. I'm still sleeping, too, but having trouble falling asleep and I'm waking up far more energized than I was a week ago. No hangover feeling at all. My first instinct is to be glad I'm not bogged down Seroquel's side effects anymore, but I'm a little concerned I could be going manic again? I'm very chatty, bubbly, and feeling inspired to do a lot of artsy things. My sex drive is up, and I find myself wanting to drink more and more caffeine (I'm limiting myself to under 50 mg to be safe.)

I'm so confused. I am naturally artistic and love creative things, so part of me wonders if I'm just reacquainting with my old self, but I do have some of the not so pleasant symptoms of hypomania, too. Irritability at random intervals and my anxiety is up about stupid things while the things I should be anxious about I'm not anxious about at all. It's manageable right now. I'm not lashing out at anyone or anything, and the upside is definitely outweighing any bad, but I DON'T want to shoot too high and get hospitalized again.

I have an appointment with my psychologist in a half hour, and I plan to tell him about it, but I guess my ultimate question is can I enjoy hypomania without going manic? I figure as long as I'm still sleeping I should be okay. If I stop sleeping, then I'm REALLY flirting with the fire, but I have no clue. Maybe Seroquel alone isn't the answer, but my god, I just want to be able to enjoy this high... Part of me is afraid I'll be thrown on soul-sucking medication if I mention it, but again, don't want to be hospitalized either.