Quote:
Originally Posted by swimmingly
Don't worry friend! I'm really confused too, which is why I'm finally hunting for answers.
I think I missed a sentence or two in there, which is common for me. I think its more due to the severity and distance apart of the mania/hypomania episodes and the length of the episodes. From what I can remember, they usually last 5 or more days mostly. But they certainly have lasted less.
Looking back I clearly missed half of what I intended to type. I do that a lot when I get excited. But bpcyclist, that said, I'm only really beginning to understand bipolar (and probably misunderstand it too) five years after my diagnosis.
No one recommended reading, or sat down with me and explained what bipolar disorder even meant. It was a wham bam, thank you man. Pay your bill on the way out. When I was diagnosed, I had just been broken in pieces by a horrible woman and didn't even know how to breathe let alone what questions to ask, and had no family (that I would let in) to guide me through questions to ask. It's only now that I'm capable of doing research into my past, or asking questions of you generous people. Please tell me when you think I'm stepping in the wrong direction. It's a huge help to me. I'm exhausted by all the mind spinning I'm doing. I'm using this period of baseline I'm in to make as much headway to be prepared for the next bout of whatever comes my way.
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Good for you for digging into your own story, swimming. It can quite a challenge to diagnose this illness. I was initially misdiagnosed as major depression for about six years or so, until I had my first frank mania and psychosis. So, It really can be quite tricky and it is not infrequently misdiagnosed--especially, if there is a lof of addiction in the picture. In retrospect, I had maybe 40 or 50 hypo episodes as a child, as young as, oh, I dunno, call it four years old. Clearly. No one knew. I had friends, was always the life of every party, and did well in school. People just though tI ws colorful I guess.
On the other hand, for people who have a more classic, quite cyclical nature to their bp, folks who do actually have the illness commonly conclude they do not have it as a result of the symptom-free periods. I've been cured!!!
Good luck to you, whatever you conclude.