@fern46- I also found it interesting the comparison she made when they upped her meds as a way of communicating her degree of pain to the world. I sadly have been there with that form of thinking. I found commonality with how she ruminated about the symptoms and how every mood shift was something marked. I had a couple of therapists, one in a group setting and the other, one on one, in the past month mention even if you are misdiagnosed, you can psychologically develop the symptoms of that disorder. At times, I let my diagnoses define me and at times consume me, but I never questioned if it has manipulated me. Are my symptoms real?