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#1
Nov 29, 2010, 04:57 PM
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My aunt is a psychiatrist and she and my mom were talking about whatever the heck I have (which I thought was bipolar II) and my aunt says I should say I have a "mood disorder" and not bipolar because I haven't been formally diagnosed... I was FINALLY getting comfortable with having bipolar but now it's a "mood disorder" - how vague is that??! I've been on lamictal for 6 months and have been relatively steady as a result... I've told all my close friends I have bipolar so now what? I hate this. I just want a concrete diagnosis but I suppose mental health is never concrete... This may sound weird but I would rather have bipolar than a "mood disorder" mostly because it is something plausible and explains what I've been going through for the past couple of years... Mood disorder my butt! Sorry for the rant...
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#2
Nov 29, 2010, 05:20 PM
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Hi Laur88 Bipolar is a mood disorder. The term mood disorder includes bipolar, depression, cyclothymia, SAD, PPD etc. Did your Aunt say that you didn't have bipolar?
__________________
Favorite book on bipolar "Living with Someone who is Living with Bipolar Disorder" by Chelsea Lowe, 2010 Check out my blog The Bipolar Roller Coaster: http://blueoctober.psychcentral.net/ New Post March 23 "New Therapist" |
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#3
Nov 29, 2010, 06:19 PM
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To reiterate what blue said, bipolar IS a mood disorder.
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#4
Nov 29, 2010, 07:05 PM
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Say what you want.... More people understand what bipolar disorder means rather than a mood disorder which sounds lame... anyway some of the bigwigs in bp say its all part of the "bipolar spectrum" so tell your aunt to shove it (in the nicest possible way) she doesn't have to live your life and its not her choice.
__________________
 I can do all things through him who gives me strength
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#5
Nov 29, 2010, 09:51 PM
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Quote:
Quote:
A question for everyone: what does it mean to be formally diagnosed with bipolar? It's not like you can take some sort of test... I thought I had been formally diagnosed but it seems my aunt does not think so. |
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#6
Nov 29, 2010, 10:34 PM
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Quote:
__________________
Favorite book on bipolar "Living with Someone who is Living with Bipolar Disorder" by Chelsea Lowe, 2010 Check out my blog The Bipolar Roller Coaster: http://blueoctober.psychcentral.net/ New Post March 23 "New Therapist" |
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#7
Nov 30, 2010, 04:16 AM
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I think it's always difficult to make a concrete diagnosis. The symptoms are what really matter, and need to be treated
__________________
"I'd rather attempt to do something great and fail than to attempt to do nothing and succeed. Robert H. Schuller" Current dx: Bipolar Disorder Unspecified Current Meds: Epitec (Lamotrigine) 300mg, Solian 50mg, Seroquel 25mg PRN, Metformin 500mg, Klonopin prn |
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#8
Nov 30, 2010, 04:16 AM
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Criteria for BP is a whole heap of technical things like must have had depression of at least 2 weeks and hypomania of 4 days (mania of 5 days for BPI) and theres a bunch of technicalities about if the episodes occurred while on meds or drugs and if it could be described better by another condition (eg schitzophrenia, schitzo affective disorder....) so the main point to get a diagnosis is the mania: have you had a period of elevated mood that lasted for 4 days and occured while you were not on drugs...
__________________
I can do all things through him who gives me strength
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#9
Nov 30, 2010, 04:24 AM
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And I'm not even sure I meet the criteria for hypomania; except that it may well have occured before I was aware of what was actually going on in my head
__________________
"I'd rather attempt to do something great and fail than to attempt to do nothing and succeed. Robert H. Schuller" Current dx: Bipolar Disorder Unspecified Current Meds: Epitec (Lamotrigine) 300mg, Solian 50mg, Seroquel 25mg PRN, Metformin 500mg, Klonopin prn |
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#10
Nov 30, 2010, 05:04 AM
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Quote:
You can still be BP if your manias occurred on ADs but theres a chance that you might be able to recover (on drugs) and then live without drugs if this is the case. (drug induced BP)
__________________
I can do all things through him who gives me strength
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#11
Nov 30, 2010, 03:15 PM
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Um, according to the DSM, bipolar is a mood disorder...I just looked it up...glad your aunt isn't my pdoc! (just kidding, lol). I would ask her to explain what she feels is the difference between bipolar and a "mood disorder".
__________________
Be who you are and say what you feel... Because those who matter.. Don’t mind... And those who mind.. Don’t matter." (Dr. Seuss) 
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#12
Nov 30, 2010, 04:27 PM
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Yeah my aunt is a psychiatrist and a very good one at that! She's not MY pdoc although she prescribed me meds once when I was going through an intense depressive stage. I think she just thinks that because I haven't been "officially" diagnosed I should just say I have a mood disorder rather than BP. I think I prefer BP - it's more concrete and encapsulates my symptoms a lot more than the broad mood disorder... Thanks everyone for clearing up what exactly "mood disorder" means!
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#13
Nov 30, 2010, 05:29 PM
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Just wondering if you've been to DocJohn's sticky at the beginning of the forum?
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#14
Nov 30, 2010, 05:51 PM
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Yeah, quite a while ago though. I'll read it again!
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This is an old thread. You probably should not post your reply to it, as the original poster is unlikely to see it.|
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