just bipolar?

I figured i would report what happened at my recent appointment with my pdoc for some reason... so here goes!

Ok I went there and we talked duh, so when it came time for the ask questions segment, I asked him what I was diagnosed as, he said at first I was diagnosed as a mood disorder, now Im Bipolar not sure what type just bipolar, what made the jump from mood disorder to Bp, and he even said just BP Im like ok what does that mean for me long term is mood disorder better? lol I guess not. Im just kinda well now not then but now well maybe this morning or yesterday, anyway a little angry at him I feel his lack of explanation is a little tough to chew. Should I have him explain why to me? Or just let him go with it? Just figured I would rant a little and ask advice. My usual you know eh?
Thanks in advance.

I reckon go all mood dis-order on him and casually assist him detract or reconsider....hehe....

just kidding Clinte...yeah sure if it's show and tell segment then you obviously showed somethin and it's only right to be told!

it's very early days though right?

this is what I would be really thinking about...it takes time lots of it to settle and is absurd to diagnose you immediately I would be diagnosing the doc with impatience dis-order....

rant is cool Clinte....hey and I'm not the guru...just thinkin' on the fly

Well Ive been diagnosed for about 7 months just now questioning it for my interest as Im a psych major. I may go psych myself up jam out and go in there pissed. lol Im also interested in the type. I wonder if he took the lazy approach and threw nos on there because he doesnt know what I am. ive cycled in his office once. Went from laughing to everything to crying.

I'm guessing good here Clinte....you are very intelligent yes....and not for building rockets but it's possible right....and check this out?

...it might be hard for them to 'read' you

imagine a genius kid comin' up to you and he's got his problems but he's a genius kid and he wants directions to the skate park but he already knows how to get there it's just he wants to know a more direct path

..I held back for years and years and I still do because I fail to grasp the concept of asking for help.

It may be hard to read me idk, thats why I have an ex she couldnt handle me either lol poor girl. Thanks for the nice words but I am of average intelligence although i wished otherwise but ill take the compliment. lol I could use the confidence boost. And Im smelling what your stepping in monkey.

...yeah I gotta wear knew shoes everyday

I don't think the "flavor" matters as much as we think it does. In a way, the NOS label is good because, as my pdoc explained it to me, we have more treatment options. Insurance companies tend to deny payment for anything that's experimental, or a med or tx that's for BP II when the patient is BP I, and vice-versa.

At some point the label will change and a number will be assigned. I've been dx'd less than five months and we're still experimenting with different meds, although I think we're getting closer to a definitive dx because he took my old dx of depressive disorder out of my chart at this latest visit and left only BP-NOS in. Because I have a particular sensitivity to light and a history of winter depressions, he wants me to try light therapy this winter, which is probably not something my insurance would cover if I were dx'd BP I because it works better for BP II.

Ultimately, we are much more than our bipolar diagnosis, and I for one want to try everything my pdoc recommends in order to get to the bottom of this illness and live my best life with it.

I understand I'm not worried about a number just would like to know why I am what I am, I agree my insurance has been willing to try anything for me which has been fantastic as we have gotten close to the right meds and I now believe we are on track, I just hate wondering what am I really, I'm a psych major we wonder these things. Lol I had to do a dx on a theorectical patient once and got it dead on second try but my first one wasn't wrong either just less direct. I was just that a more direct answer that's all. Thanks for your response it makes a lot of sense.

I think I know how you feel, Clinte. As a nurse, I want answers too, but I'm doing my best to be a "patient" patient because I see this as a battle for the rest of my life---if I get this wrong, I might as well take a long walk off a short bridge. This is my chance to FINALLY grasp the parts of life that have eluded me all these years, dancing just out of my reach. You BET I want my doctor to take all the time necessary to figure out exactly what kind of bipolar I am, and get the right combination of meds and tx that will allow me to live my later years as a fully alive human being.

I understand what your saying, I should be patient and let the doctor do his job and figure this out because even as a psych student I have no idea what this is, I can't find any good category to fit it in and maybe it doesn't need to I just like being able to fit somewhere so I can say this is what I'm up against. Oh well I'm gonna chill and let my doc do his job.

There are more people who fall under NOS then BP I/II because it's such a huge spectrum of severity.

I think I'm still considered NOS after 4 years. I get mixed episodes and hypomania but I rarely get depressions anymore...so who knows.

Before you get all whacked out about not having a number assigned, think of this: When I was diagnosed, they still called it manic-depressive. Period. No numbers, no NOS, nothing. We were all lumped into one category. I was never given a number, I read it on my receipt a few years after the DSM (diagnostic and statistics manual) changed it to Bipolar 1 and 2. Be glad you don't have to wait that long!

Seriously, tho, Our Nurse has the right idea. The insurance company is a lot more likely to pay for a wider range of drugs if you aren't classified. And if it really drives you crazy not to know, grab the most recent DSM (5?) from the medical section of your library and see if you can come up with a number. After all, it's not what number you are assigned, it's whether or not the meds work.

SO I guess he is not being lazy with just nos maybe helping me out in fact. Thats nice of him. i just was really pointing toward being something else. idk i just want a solid answer so I can read and understand, but i guess Ill just let him do what he does best. Thanks everyone. And Im not looking for a number i just went from bp 1 to nos so I figure he may be trying to give me broader treatment since little has seemed to work so far.

Dsm 5 has not come out yet lolol

Its funny because its been said to come out over and over but they keep putting it off. Hopefully its good.

You can say that again! And sometimes it takes years to mix the correct bipolar 'cocktail'---a prospect that terrifies me because I'm just getting started with only five months under my belt. So I'm not in any huge hurry about getting a number.....I want to learn what works to keep me stable. Right now, it seems to be Celexa, Lamictal, and Zyprexa with Ativan thrown in for good measure; but who knows what'll happen come wintertime when the depression likes to knock my feet out from under me.

I really don't like the current definitions from the DSM-IV, because it is so strict about defining BP I and II, and the fact that I've had two mixed episodes and a manic episode would make me BP I. I don't believe I'm that bad off. But, it is what it is, and for now, I'll just float around in NOS land and let someone who is smarter than me figure it out.