[liviacat]

I'm on day 39 of little sleep, irritability, distracted ness, anxiousness and just an overall manic mess. How long does a "typical" episode last? I know everyone is different, but any feedback would be appreciated! I see my pdoc on Wednesday so if you have suggestions on what I might ask him, I'd appreciate that as well!

I take Abilify, Celexa, Topimax, Restoril, and Xanax (still no sleep!!) No rec drugs, no alcohol - been sober 2.5 years. Solid relationship, good job that I don't want to lose - BP is making that difficult this past month (had two meetings so far about it) - help!

[~Christina]

It might be a good idea for you to tell him just what you posted here. You may just need a tweak in your meds or add a new med for a short time to help get you stable again.

Sorry you are going through this, Its a real pain !

Welcome to PC !!

[Anika.]

Depends, sometimes a month, sometimes about 5 months, once was 9 months, which was the most damaging one to date. Usually I was able to intervene and get it down around a month.

I would start with the sleep and focus my attention on that. The xanax doesnt seem to be working for you, so maybe time to look at other things for sleep. Usually I find that if I cannget the sleep back into a somewhat normal rage the mania slowly dissapates.

[hamster-bamster]

I agree with Anika - you need to start with sleep. Restoril must have stopped working for you. It happened to me, too. You need something else. Restoril is not a reliable sleep medication.

[BipolaRNurse]

I was either manic or hypomanic pretty much all summer this year. I thought it was better than depression, but apparently my family, co-workers, boss, and doctor disagreed with me on that one. LOL

I'm steady now, have been for several weeks. This is definitely better than either mania or depression! Sleep is getting to be a problem again, though, so I'm going to have to see my pdoc about better medication. I was on Zyprexa, which worked beautifully for me in that area (and kept the mania under reasonable control), but I gained 22 lbs. I couldn't afford and my blood sugars went out of control, so I had to come off it. It was replaced with melatonin, which helps me go to sleep quicker but I can't stay asleep, and I wake up too early on top of it. AARRRGH!

[liviacat]

Thanks for the advice - and the input - greatly appreciated! I will ask about other options for sleep and see what can be done. This has made work so difficult, I love my job and don't want to lose it - reasonable accommodations only go so far, you know? I do hope this doesn't last much longer... On the upside, I did manage 3 hours straight tonight!

[liviacat]

So very frustrated right now - have to vent. My pdoc wants to wait till Wednesday to do anything to address my situation whatsoever. I ruled out anything medical by going to my regular doctor today, nothing was out of the ordinary. So I wait, and not sleep. And the mania keeps building. I was ready to go to the hospital should that be the best solution for crying out loud... Not that I'm expecting a miracle, but I'm expecting a suggested course of action of some sort! Is that unreasonable??

[Cocosurviving]

Originally Posted by liviacat

So very frustrated right now - have to vent. My pdoc wants to wait till Wednesday to do anything to address my situation whatsoever. I ruled out anything medical by going to my regular doctor today, nothing was out of the ordinary. So I wait, and not sleep. And the mania keeps building. I was ready to go to the hospital should that be the best solution for crying out loud... Not that I'm expecting a miracle, but I'm expecting a suggested course of action of some sort! Is that unreasonable??

Ur request is reasonable. It would be nice in ur pdoc scheduled you to come tomorrow. I see mine once a month except when I'm not stable. I'm having depression--crying spells. I called my pdoc today and have an appt tomorrow that's what ur pdoc should do too.

[liviacat]

Thank you for validating my thoughts - I thought that's what he should have at least done as well. I'm sorry you're having a hard time with the depressive side, but I'm awfully glad you're getting in to see your pdoc as soon as you can, that's great. Guess I wait one more day after today - and start doing my homework for a new doc should I decide to move on.

[liviacat]

I'm having a terrible time today holding it together here at work... I got less than an hour of sleep and I'm definitely feeling it. Not that I'm exactly tired, I just feel kind of...detached sort of. Not really here but painfully aware at the same time. Does that make sense to anybody?

freaking ages!

[faerie_moon_x]

I'm an ultra rapid cycler so I would say.... like anywhere between a few hours to about a week. Depression lasts longer for me.

But, I'm also mixed a lot so sometimes I can't tell the difference. That's why I test myself occassionally with the mania/depression tests.

[nannywoofwoof]

Hi i have been reading through the replies with interest. My longest episode of mania lasted 9 months. However it's usually a few days to a few months. Hope you get sorted soon

Mania & hypomania is where I spend most of my time as a type I! The longest solid period with no "normals" inbetween was 9 months or so. Usually it lasts anywhere between 2 weeks to a month, at least these days. Mixed episodes no longer than a week & depression is also pretty short-lived!

Hope that helped.

[liviacat]

Saw my pdoc, increasing my Abilify and Topimax to ease me off the cliff here. Hope to see some sleep in a few days I think. Thanks for all the support and feedback! Hope you all enjoy thanksgiving

[Anika.]

I hope you enjoy your thanksgiving.... sleeping!!! Hopefully you will be!