[~Christina]

Okay, I have been wondered about this for a while..

I take meds(for now).. But even medicated I still have some highs and lows. and I am very Ok with this.

When I spoke to my T about this yesterday ... he said " medications do not fix everything , Bipolar or not you will be up and down , like normal human beings. there is no reason for people on medications to be so medicated that they can not function at all "

Of course there are times that it is Bipolar and you need additional help. For me its the pain and hallucinations that lead to sui issues.

There are times I get pissed off for a damn good reason. example : I got my nose pierced my husband thinks I am too old for that " (I'm 46).. OH hell yes I got Pissed at him.. It's not my Bipolar it's just life.

Every mood I have or feel isn't Bipolar ... Its just life.

Personally I do all the self care I can to help myself.

Anyway , just wanted to know if others feel this way ?

[Cocosurviving]

Thanks for posting this topic. I'm at the confused stage. I can't even remember who I was before onset (2012). When my moods change just through out the day and week. I find myself second guessing myself. I always wonder if its me (baseline) or if its BP. I'll looking forward to reading what others have to say. Maybe I can learn something that will help me on my journey.

[faerie_moon_x]

I actually think this is why a mod tracker is very important. Maybe not everyday 360 days a year for the rest of your life. But, you know, as often as you can. Because then you can start to figure out what a baseline actually is vs. what is not normal or if things are not regulating themselves.

It's just like testing your blood glucose if you have diabetes. "Normal" fasting glucose is supposed to be in the 80s range. But for people with diabetes their goal is to be under 150 at baseline. That's not "normal" but it's a healthy goal, and learning what it takes to be at goal is something we have in common with them. Except instead of poking our fingers we just have to write it down.

[BlueInanna]

My moods are just life related like you say too. But I do worry myself when I start having mind racing, rage, feeling psychotic with cognitive deterioration or can't get out of bed for days. I had the same things while on bp meds. Meds or no, the waves come the waves go -for me.

And I'd be pissed too, you're not too old for a nose ring, sheesh, as if!!

[manicminer]

I came to the realization that "meds don't fix everything," and they don't fix anything if you continue to flood your body with depressive and stimulant chemicals at the same time.

I took it to the extreme by ending my use of meds altogether. But at the same time I implemented some extreme lifestyle changes and continue to find new venues for preventing the onset of symptoms.

Sure I still swing from time to time and tend to get a little too excited/agitated at times. Yesterday was a horribly depressed one. But it could also be attributed to the lack of adequate sleep, dreary weather, and very negative medical news. That's all life, tho it put me in a funk I could not bring myself out of even with the enjoyable, depression relieving activities I persued.

[emgreen]

Originally Posted by ~Christina

Okay, I have been wondered about this for a while...

...Every mood I have or feel isn't Bipolar ... Its just life.

Personally I do all the self care I can to help myself.

Anyway , just wanted to know if others feel this way ?

You hit the nail on the head, Christina. I have to monitor which mood swings are bipolar & which are just situational things. More often than not, it's the latter. Thanks for that reminder about self-care.

[ultramar]

Originally Posted by ~Christina

Okay, I have been wondered about this for a while..

I take meds(for now).. But even medicated I still have some highs and lows. and I am very Ok with this.

When I spoke to my T about this yesterday ... he said " medications do not fix everything , Bipolar or not you will be up and down , like normal human beings. there is no reason for people on medications to be so medicated that they can not function at all "

Of course there are times that it is Bipolar and you need additional help. For me its the pain and hallucinations that lead to sui issues.

There are times I get pissed off for a damn good reason. example : I got my nose pierced my husband thinks I am too old for that " (I'm 46).. OH hell yes I got Pissed at him.. It's not my Bipolar it's just life.

Every mood I have or feel isn't Bipolar ... Its just life.

Personally I do all the self care I can to help myself.

Anyway , just wanted to know if others feel this way ?

I agree with you and your therapist. There's a temptation/danger to attribute every mood and emotion to bipolar. I hate to beat a dead horse (because I've brought this up before) but bipolar (according to DSM criteria) only manifests itself during episodes -between episodes we just are who we are and deal with what life throws at us like everyone else.

I deal with lots of things that have nothing to do with my bipolar. Except when anxiety gets extreme, for me, these other things aren't to be dealt with medications. Sometimes we can get angry, anxious, irritable, happy, productive, down, hurt, and that's just the way it is. Therapy has helped me a lot. I don't think throwing pills at every uncomfortable emotion (and I'm not saying anyone is claiming this, just thinking this out) is the answer in the long term, nor does all of this pain and/or discomfort necessitate -or not always- an additional diagnosis. Then, I think, there's the danger of wracking these up, and then, yes, everything can and does end up becoming a symptom of a diagnosis/illness. I'm sure we all have things we can work on outside of bipolar, and without medications.

[cool09]

I think there's a huge difference between regular mood swings and bipolar (or unipolar) mood swings (including racing thoughts, trouble putting thoughts together). My bipolar mood swings are unstoppable after a short period of time (and become more intense) and I end up getting completely drained from the agitation/irritability and end up laying down/sleeping for days and days until I feel better. In college (and work) my racing thoughts were unstoppable (and almost 24/7) and I could not remember what it felt like having a clear head (at 13-14 yrs old).

I could also not describe what was going on with me (from 15) until I was about 32 and had a decent breakthrough w/paxil (after yrs of treatment and hospitalizations including ECT x16) and started working FT again. I'm 49 now and on SSDI and take 4-5 meds (and all sorts - lithium, klonopin, effexor, lamictal and ritalin sometimes). I've actually found ritalin and adderall to stop my agitation/irritability for short periods of times (which my Doc said can happen to some people which is why he prescribed them).

I expect psychotropic medication to balance my symptoms so they become manageable again. I've had short glimpses of this with only a few medications and I know it's totally a biochemical issue. Unfortunately, I don't believe that medications are fully advanced yet from my experience over last 25 yrs. And I believe that Psychiatrists know this, as well. I've had Psychiatrists who couldn't help me with meds (due to side effects, no response, etc.) and dragged me along and took my money for years.

[comicgeek007]

I think my mood swings have gotten worse since starting meds. They cycle much faster than ever before, but at least I'm not suicidal for months at a time...

[Cocosurviving]

Originally Posted by ultramar

I agree with you and your therapist. There's a temptation/danger to attribute every mood and emotion to bipolar. I hate to beat a dead horse (because I've brought this up before) but bipolar (according to DSM criteria) only manifests itself during episodes -between episodes we just are who we are and deal with what life throws at us like everyone else.

I deal with lots of things that have nothing to do with my bipolar. Except when anxiety gets extreme, for me, these other things aren't to be dealt with medications. Sometimes we can get angry, anxious, irritable, happy, productive, down, hurt, and that's just the way it is. Therapy has helped me a lot. I don't think throwing pills at every uncomfortable emotion (and I'm not saying anyone is claiming this, just thinking this out) is the answer in the long term, nor does all of this pain and/or discomfort necessitate -or not always- an additional diagnosis. Then, I think, there's the danger of wracking these up, and then, yes, everything can and does end up becoming a symptom of a diagnosis/illness. I'm sure we all have things we can work on outside of bipolar, and without medications.

I understand what the DSM states but I disagree. I learned through personal experience every medical and mental health book is not exactly accurate.

Personally I've noticed my temper is a lot worse after BP onset. Now I'm afraid to get real mad. I also have a lot more mood swings (for no reason, no trigger) through out the day and week. For example yesterday I had a mellow day. I was able to get a few household things completed. I woke up this morning completed one errand then my mood changed. I've been home in bed for the past five hours. Nothing situational happened to sadden me. I also read other threads on here mentioning the exact same thing about tempers being extremely bad. I heard it referred to as having a BP moment. I do not know what is actually is but it's not baseline.

I do agree we should not blame everything on BP. But that DSM is not a Bible. Everything is not black and white. The gray area does exist.

[hamster-bamster]

Originally Posted by ~Christina

Okay, I have been wondered about this for a while..

I take meds(for now).. But even medicated I still have some highs and lows. and I am very Ok with this

...

There are times I get pissed off for a damn good reason. example : I got my nose pierced my husband thinks I am too old for that " (I'm 46).. OH hell yes I got Pissed at him.. It's not my Bipolar it's just life.

Every mood I have or feel isn't Bipolar ... Its just life.

There is no med for husbands who believe that their 46-year-old wives are too old for nose piercing (or, anything else they might want to try).

That is a shortcoming. The pharmaceutical industry should get going, developing effective meds for such husbands.

[comicgeek007]

Originally Posted by hamster-bamster

There is no med for husbands who believe that their 46-year-old wives are too old for nose piercing (or, anything else they might want to try).

That is a shortcoming. The pharmaceutical industry should get going, developing effective meds for such husbands.

I wish there were a way to give you an internet high five.

[bluemountains]

Hi Christina,
I agree that meds don't fix everything. The way I figure out true clinical depression is when I feel helpless, and feel that I've failed my family. The sui, thoughts pop up during this time. But a time like now, when I am sad a lot of the time, and apprehensive a lot of the time, too, I am not sure how to classify this. When I get totally pissed off at the smallest things, I am not sure if this is hypomania either.
My pdoc asks my needs, but I can't really tell her. So, who knows?

Btw, way to go with the nose piercing! I saw this lady today who was maybe in her sixties and she had this super cool piercing that went from her earlobe to the inner part of her lobe. She actually had many piercings, but this one impressed me because her earring connected both of the piercings. The lady and her husband own a retro store that my son loves to visit.

Bluemountains

[BipolaRNurse]

I've been having serious anxiety issues due to extreme pressure at work, and it's good to know that it's not really my BP that's to blame---it's just situational, even though it's a pain in my arse and is causing me to lose most of this month's work days due to being out on medical leave. Slowly but surely, I'm beginning to be able to make the distinction b/t bipolar episodes and other emotional responses, which may not feel any better at the time they're happening but don't need medications.