[champagneferret]

Hello,

Two years ago, I was diagnosed with Bipolar II. I am trying to live with it the best I can while I'm college, which I'm one year away from completing (my undergrad).

Like many here, I was originally diagnosed with depression as a teenager. I've got through a lot, but I am stable now, thankfully.

[LilianSofia]

Hello.

I was diagnosed with Bipolar Disorder two years ago after a severe manic episode that landed me in the hospital. I've been on Latuda for most of that time and have had terrible fatigue. I decided to go off of all my meds about a month ago because I was frustrated. Sick and tired of feeling sick and tired. I became manic again, unfortunately. So now the psychiatrist has me on Lamictal, slowly increasing the dosage. So far, so good. I'm still taking a low dose of the Latuda while we increase the Lamictal.
I'm a single Mom with two young boys, ages 5 and 9. I also have Lupus and struggle with constant fatigue. I'm only able to work part-time at this point.
It is hard to go to work and act like everything is okay.
Looking forward to getting to know people here.

[Turtlesoup]

Welcome all-I have found lots of support from this site & hope you will as well-big hugs to all

[applemp3]

Struggling with manic and depression moods. Getting meds reevaluated soon. Feel alone. Most of my significant others just can't seem to understand what it's like to live in my head. Too much anxiety in social situations. Thank you!

Applemp3

[Jayne Marple]

Hi Everyone!

I'm Jayne and I'm here to network and socialize with people who are living with mental health issues similar to mine; this is the first time I've reached out to others online. I live in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. I share my home with two dog-children, a cat-child and a husband. In the perfect world, I would be able to generate income from being a writer. Also in that world I'd be an awesome musician who plays several different instruments. I garden, like to read and I dabble in creating computer generated art. I like to watch cartoons. I'm a fan of old black and white films along with old televison shows. I want to get well so that I can enjoy my life.

Thanks for reading my post. I hope we get to meet each other here soon.

[LostMommy227]

My name is Laura and I just moved to Texas. I have been diagnosed with Bipolar II and am currently unmedicated because I still nurse my one-year-old daughter, and don't really plan to stop anytime soon. Plus, we are hoping to have more children before long.

I should probably be on an antidepressant, but I quit taking it (without consulting a doctor (bad move, I know)). I haven't had much of a problem with depression since I was a teenager. I always treated it with marijuana and risky behaviors that would push me towards hypomania. Since I got married 3 years ago, I just used pot, but now that's not an option.

I guess I just feel lost in this new state without any friends or family close by.

[Roblovescats]

Word of advice... feel free to disagree. .. if you are new to realize that you have bipolar you may feel a sense of relief in finally knowing what it is. .. DON'T go telling people that you know that you have it!!!! Talk here. We understand. Others will feel weird around you and blame every disagreement they have with you on the fact that you are just bipolar.

FOOD ALERGY WARNING: contents may have been in contact with nuts

[prepsychmel]

Hi everyone,
I've been posting on here for a little while now but I wanted to introduce myself. My name is Melissa and I am 31 years old. I live in St. Louis, MO. I was diagnosed with Bipolar type 1 when I was 18 years old. I also suffer from Panic Disorder. After going through a few crappy pdocs, I found an amazing one who I've been seeing for the last 6 years or so. I'm stable on meds and live a pretty normal life with the ups and downs we all go through. I'm happy to be here and to get to know all of you!

[LIN2058183]

Hi! My name is Lindsay and I have just been diagnosed with Bipolar Depression. My psychiatrist still has not told me which one I have, we are still in the process of figuring that out, but my life has been a total rollercoaster ride. I am just getting out of a depression which was bad. I have a toddler and it is hard to be around him when my moods fluctuate so much. I am also in full-time school and it hasn't been easy passing my classes while being on all of these medications and having to change them all of the time. I am currently on generic Lamictal 150 mgs, Klonopin 1.5 mgs, and Zyprexa 10 mgs. I am also wondering what people's experiences were like on these meds and if they helped them with the depression phase of bipolar. I feel like the Zyprexa is lifting me out of it quickly, but I have been reading about weight gain!!! I do not need to gain anymore weight. My psychiatrist gave me a few options while I was there the last time and she recommended me to go on lithium and I told her absolutely not because of the weight gain with that. I am switching psychiatrists in January due to insurance changes so we will see what cocktail my new doc prescribes. Right now though I am feeling pretty good. Getting better. I hope it lasts, because I do not want to be depressed again!!!

[HollywoodCourt]

Hi everyone. My name is Michael(I usually spell it Mychal:P ). I've been bipolar for a few years now, originally diagnosed with just depression in my teens. I take Cymbalta and Remoran and am doing well on them. I recently moved to Florida, I like it here but I haven't made any friends yet.

I like reading, basketball, baseball, and pretty much anything to do with California. I really want to be a journalist one day.

I look forward to getting to know all of you.

[Tango62]

Hello from Geneva Switzerland. I have had a wild journey to get to my biolar diagnosis including 3 times over 22 years sitting in front of psychiatrists saying 'I think I am crazy crazy, not normal crazy' and not being taken seriously. This is despite the fact I am an experienced health professional who has worked in psychiatry. The last time was last year and basically they really did not do a good assessment and made a bad misdiagnosis. I am taking action through our local Canton as I fear the clinicians concerned will be making other false negative diagnoses.

My form of bipolarity is Bipolar I with ultra rapid cycles, running hypomanic/manic and terrible mixed episodes that led to self destructive actions that went far outside my normal behaviour range. It was like trying to rein in a wild horse galloping out of control in a forest fire. It has been 7 months since the diagnosis and initially I made a good recovery on atypical antipsychotics then relapsed but am now getting back on my feet with an adjusted dose.

Although friends and family have been amazing, it has been an isolating part of my journey and have been looking for a place to write up bits of my experience. And, I am being very open with friends and colleagues. It is a medical disorder and as much as a diabetic needs insulin to function, I need medications and it is nothing more than that. Anyone who has a problem with it, they have a problem, not me.

So, thanks for this site

[October31]

Hello Everyone!

I am a 37 year old male and I have bipolar disorder, ADHD and depression with anxiety. For many months now I've been depressed with mixed states of mania. My psychiatrist started me on antidepressants a couple of months ago (in addition to my mood stabilizers). I don't have thoughts of death anymore and I'm generally in an okay mood, but the depression still lingers in the background of my life.

My therapist and I talked about starting a daily routine that includes exercise and keeping a mood journal. I really want to start a routine because I believe it will have a positive affect on my well being, but I have no motivation to do anything. Just getting out of bed in the morning and getting to work is difficult. I have plenty of time after work to fit in a workout and/or write. I don't know if it's the depression or something else, but I can't get myself to do anything. Sometimes I don't even have the motivation to shower or brush my teeth.

Has anyone been in a situation where they've been depressed and it caused serious motivation problems? Any suggestions about starting a routine and creating a mood journal? I'm grateful for any advise that you have to offer.

Thank You.

[Moogieotter]

Welcome October! lots of us have many experiences with motivation and depression and those type issues. You've arrived in a very good place please continue to share thanks!

moogs

[Sideways12]

Hi I'm a 46 year old male and just got diagnosed type 2 bipolar.

[Moogieotter]

Hi Sideways, welcome!

[14325]

Hey, guys. I don't really know if I'm bipolar or not but I thought i would come here for advice even if I'm not. I'm 15 years old and have repeatedly gotten myself into stressful situations because of my "over aggressiveness, mood swings, and snappy nature". I constantly have to stay in my room because I don't want to deal with my family, not that any thing is wrong with them. I don't want to deal with them because of the fact that every time i come out I am called unsocial and overactive by my brothers and my mom. When I'm at school I get randomly angry or "crazy happy" like I've had a ton of energy drinks but while the anger goes away slowly the happiness goes just as fast as it came. I am constantly asked if I'm ok because I apparently look mad when i feel fine. What's more I had a recent spat with my Algebra II teacher for "not interacting with the rest of the class" when all I want is to be left alone. I'm not antisocial i just don't know these people and don't want to deal with them. Then she took me out of the class for the same reason which is the last thing a kid wants done to "help" them. She then called my parents and told them that I looked like i wanted to kill her when she was talking to me. If I did I did not know I did the same way I did not know i was being hateful or antisocial. I looked up some stuff about being bipolar and some of the symptoms and to be honest it felt like a key in a lock. I talked to my mom about it and told her what i read even tried to show her the website page but she insisted that i was just looking for an excuse for my behavior. Maybe that's true but i would like some more opinions than just hers. I'm sorry if i offend anyone by asking or being childish but I just really am concerned about it. Thanks.

[filthylessons]

Hi... I was recently diagnosed with bipolar II. It is a terrifying and confusing thing for me, oftentimes. I feel almost like I am two people, one that's really me and another that's defined by my manic episodes. I feel confused about which one is really the real me, because the thoughts and feelings are so different. I have started a new antidepressant after being on Zoloft for many years, and have also added trileptal as a mood stabilizer.

...Anyway, I'm new to the diagnosis, but not to the disorder. I have been unknowingly living with it for many years now. I'm reaching out to people like me.

[7moons7seas]

Hi there, everyone! My name's Caroline, and I was diagnosed with bipolar II about six and a half years ago. I think that for a long time, I was in denial about what that diagnoses meant for me and the people around me, but due to a recent traumatic event, I'm coming to grips with the terrifying reality that has been my life while my disorder has been untreated. I guess that I'm here because I feel little support and understanding in my "real" life and want to feel a sense of community.

[Kayjay7]

Hi my name is Karen, just diagnosed with Bipolar 1. This was triggered by things that happened all at the same time. My sister was visiting me, and fell, cracked open her head, and broke her hip. 3 days later my husband had a heart attack (his second, which required open bypass surgery), and after his surgery, I found out he was cheating on me. At the same time I work at a pretty stressful job. It all finally caught up to me a few months later and i went seeking help. Now I am under the care of a physiologist and psychiatrist . We still don't have the right combinations of med's, and it's been 3 months. I'm leaning toward the depressive side. They prescribed abilify to go along with my pristiq, which put me in a manic state, so they had to change to Suraquil, and that seems to work better, however I'm still not stable. I've gained weight, been off work for 3 months, and am likely to lose my job because Federal law states 12 weeks of FMLA and thats it. I'm pretty sure the company I work for will not extend the holding of my position any longer. I have no ambition to do anything, I have shopped online more than I should, and just found out that is one symptom of bipolar. I am in close contact with my therapist and psychiatrist, who are trying to get me stable. But the good news is that I finally have a name for how I've been all of my adult life. I self medicated for this reason, not because I was a drunk/drug addict, but because there is a chemical imbalance in my brain. Sounds weird I know, but at least it has a name. I am looking forward to chatting with people who understand what I'm going through.

[tommyp]

I am 60 y.o. male diagnosed about 12 years ago as bipolar 1. I go by Thomas. Nice to see everyone here.

[ohyouknow_linz]

I am linz. 9 years after being diagnosed I have finally come to terms with the fact I am not in control. I am looking for support and people who understand and can relate to this mess of life.

[BastetsMuse]

NO, not manic today, I just like the look of the green smile! I'm BastetsMuse, and I've been dealing with my bipolar for over 20 years now. Sometimes it's a beast, sometimes a friend; always a challenge.

I live in the Reno area of Northern Nevada and have been on the permanently disabled list for the past five years. My diagnosis combo just got to be too much to handle in the employment environment.

I think you can see my profile if you want personal details; if you're curious though, just ask.

[quasicrystalline]

Hello, everyone. I'm L for now - I don't feel comfortable giving my first name at the moment. Paranoia issues, pretty much. I'll hopefully get over it eventually.

I'm 24, female, and somewhat diagnosed. After falling into a bad depression, I hauled myself into counseling again. Over the course of counseling, I grew erratic and in full on crisis mode. All of a sudden, I had all kinds of energy and had no idea what to do with myself, and this is when my counselor suggested I could have bipolar disorder. I've long known I had anxiety/depression issues, but this was a new term for me. I wasn't sure how I felt about that, but I was so miserable I just wanted something to give and agreed to visit a psychiatrist and undergo psychological testing. The psychiatrist seems very convinced it's bipolar. I was flying pretty high when I walked into her office that day. Extremely high for having been suicidal recently, but for some reason, rather than flee from mental help as I may have done in the past when I was feeling really good, this high was accompanied with a wickedly intense, impatient need to get to the bottom of my problems. I was prescribed a couple new meds immediately, and she nearly pulled me off Wellbutrin, but I contested that. I firmly believe Wellbutrin is the only psych drug that's ever done me any good, so I stayed on with it along with a mood stabilizer and an antipsychotic now.

I haven't heard the official psychological eval yet, and I'm nervous about it. I've come to terms that it likely is bipolar, but I have this intense fear, they'll suddenly decide it's not, and tell me I'm 100% fine or something. I don't think I could deal with that at this point. It's really strange - I was so sure it couldn't be this at first, but now that I've accepted it, it fits so well and explains the hell I haven't been able to explain for years. I've been through so much mentally and I'm desperate for help, it would drink me off the brink to be told I'm fine. I probably have no reason to fear this, but I don't necessarily have appropriate fears.

Anyway, I guess I'm just looking for support from people who understand what it's like! I don't have many friends at the moment. I alienated myself from everyone when I was last depressed.

[quasicrystalline]

That was supposed to be DRIVE me off the brink, not drink me off the brink, though I've certainly done that before. LOL.

[moonchck13]

Hi I'm Paige, 37 f. I was diagnosed with Bipolar I and hospitalized after a manic episode about 11 years ago. I'm new to this whole forum thing, so please excuse me while I get adjusted.