Is hpersexuality long??

Does it last long and is it different between men and women?

How long it lasts really depends on how long the mania lasts. It doesn't necessarily have to be there for the whole manic episode, though. I've had it last anywhere from a week to a couple of months. Sometimes it happens multiple times within the same manic episode with non-sexual periods in between. It varies quite a bit.

Fortunately when I've had it I've been in relationships, and the men were incredibly flattered. I think women might be able to cope with it through fantasy better than men. The worst thing for me was having to "sort myself out" several times a day, sometimes to the point where it hurt to pee. I was very embarassed by it, and used to hide in the bathroom a lot. Perhaps it's my Catholic upbringing, but I didn't have affairs, just obsessed about sex a lot, dreamt about it a lot, and was very demanding to my partner at the time. A couple of times I thought I was going to blow up or go mad if I didn't get enough. I was frightened to go out, because I thought I might throw myself at strangers. At it's worst I'd have to sort myself out between five and over ten times a day. I'm not going into details about how I did this, I'm still ashamed.

But it does pass. I can't tell you how long this would last though, I always remember the only thing prozac did for me that was beneficial was that it stopped my sex drive. You've no idea the sense of relief that gave me. OK, I also went manic and hyper in other ways, but at least I wasn't a sex junky.

Thank you guys, Im trying to learn about this and your stories are greatly helpful, also is it possible for a guy to kinda be in a hypersexual mode or phase but not actually act on it, ?

I think recognizing that its a manic episode that is triggering the hyper sexuality is a very important first step. Before I knew that I had a BPD I just thought I was an adventurous sexual person. Unfortunately I did many unseemly things during that time. Since I received my diagnosis and read everything I could on it I am able to recognize this not as who I am but as a symptom of BPD. Realizing that allows me to be able to take steps so I can avoid that behavior.

I think it's perfectly possible for a guy to be in a hypersexual mode and not act on it. In fact all guys start off in this way... think of the hypersexual trauma your average teenager goes through. Most of them manage not to run around when they're in their teens.

Women use their imaginations, tell stories, men are more visual... even teen boys, if they have no access to porn, will fixate on pictures of women. So, a man who uses visual aids will find it easier to avoid actual infidelity, if he knows he has a problem and is motivated to get round that problem.

I wish I knew more men who were prepared to discuss this... I'm only talking hypotheticals (from experience) but without a man coming on confirming what I'm saying it's just a load of balloon juice.

But yes, I do believe that a man can find other outlets for his sexuality than thoseb which women use.

I agree with this. Not because it isn't such an urgent drive, but because when you're manic you are driven by something outside of natural relationship desires, and the whole experience can be overpoweringly unpleasant and tormenting.

As for how long, I think it depends on the duration of the mania. Speaking for myself, this can be months or longer.

LOL Prozac. I never thought I would see someone singing its praises for those reasons, Mgran. Chemical neutering at its worst LOL. Actually Prozac put me into a manic episode once, and I was as wired as can be, but it nailed my performance (male issue).

When I am manic like I am, I always get hypersexual, but I have a husband who can't keep up with me, so I always want to stray, even with a women, because I am bisexual, but my husband knows about that and he lets me be with a woman, but not a man because to him, being with a man is cheating and I have to agree with him.

It lasts just as long as I am manic which can go on for a week or two or only a few days.

I think it's worse for women because their needs cannot be met with the man they are attached to because the men can't keep up with them.

Woman can usually keep up with a man. That's just my opinon though.

Am I the only one here who has a hypersex drive ALL the time. When I am manic I have a hypersex drive, when I am depressed I have a hypersex drive ( I need the closeness ), when I am in normal mode I have a hypersex drive, when I am medicated I have a hypersex drive. Riperdal was the only med that made me have no sex drive.

I do control it and feel no need or want to stray from my partner and he is awesome about trying to keep up. I am lucky for that. I think it's easier for him, because I am always the same in that regard. Anyone else tho?

Anika, I am also always hypersexual, so don't feel bad. I am able to control my urges and not go do anything to stupid....
I have been hypersexual for as long as i can remember, I have also been bipolar 1, or showing signs of it, for as long as I can remember. I am a male by the way.

As for me before I knew and accepted BP I always thought my husband was abnormal. I had always been hypersexual but did not know it was a symptom of the BP. I had my past adventures but now that I know that this is a sign, I make sure that I just take it out on my husband. It is usually only when I am manic. I can see it coming on because I start to notice guys when before I was not, dream dream dream (which actually feel like its real), and thoughts are always there too.

I was hypersexual last fall. I thought it was the abilify, which was new, but I tried abilify again this summer and nothing. Now I place it in the context of the mixed episode we were treating last fall and it was likely a manifestation of the mania. The hypersexuality lasted about 4 weeks for me.

Don't be ashamed. I keep a vibrator in my purse for this very reason. Sorting yourself out is the best way to cope. It's not dirty or bad. In fact, it's almost normal (if you're male). Societal standards suck; don't let it make what you are going through make you feel even worse. That seems unfair. I look at it this way: at least I can sort myself out and haven't thrown myself at any strangers even though I have thought about it.

I'm such a prude (thanks to Irish Catholic background) that I really do beat myself up about it. I've often thought of getting a vibrator, but I don't know where I could get one online, and haven't wanted to google it, in case I get all sorts of rubbish on my computer. I could never walk into a sex shop, and I was never able to ask my previous partners (the men I married) whether they could find one for me. And I also worry about if I died and my father or son found it... You know the Auden poem "they f you up your Mum and Dad, they may not mean to, but they do..." It wasn't just my Mum and Dad, it was those blasted nuns. NEVER send your child to Catholic school!