Quote:
Originally Posted by Ursula Shackleton
This year, I had to change doctors because my old one retired. The only medical help I could find was a nurse practitioner who didn't seem to have much experience with psychiatric work. The nurse practitioner interviewed me for 20 minutes, did some bloodwork, and told me I had seasonal depression and didn't need medication. I latched onto that for dear life. One of my best friends is an *actual* psychiatric nurse practitioner in that she worked for decades in a psychiatric hospital. She told me that she didn't understand how I could have seasonal depression that resolved in the middle of winter... and then of course, all that psychosis. So I found an actual psychiatrist who interviewed me for several hours, like my previous psychiatrist did. And I came to the conclusion that I don't actually care *what* I have, as long as I can function well in my life. My new psychiatrist said I have bipolar 1 or 2 but most likely 1 because of the psychotic episodes in the past. Really, that's more logical lol, considering all that pesky mania.
So yeah, I was really hopeful that I just had seasonal depression for a while there... even though I knew it made no sense at all.
|
I'm glad you got the other psychiatrist opinion. It can be dangerous when a mental health professional makes rash diagnoses.
All of my psychiatrists and therapists always concluded pretty quickly that I have bipolar type 1. However, I remember a particular Ph.D. psychologist (therapist), upon first meeting me telling me "I am going to make my own diagnosis of you!", after I told her I have bipolar type 1. After all I had been through, such a statement really got on my nerves. At the end of that first (and only) session she declared that I do in fact have bipolar type 1. Again, what went through my mind was great annoyance. If she had told me something different, I would have wanted to give her the finger.