[bipolarLady7]

I can be productive and not manic, right? Or enjoy spending money, buying things that my children and I want and need, and not be manic? Just checking, because I'm taking my meds and sometimes my husband still thinks I might be getting manic.

[middlepath]

i have started to notice that it is mania when i start needing xyz NOW. or thinking that xyz needs to be done right now. Its not the day to day stuff, its when it is really goal driven that my mood is taking a turn... at least that is what I have been observing in myself.

[A Red Panda]

I can tell the difference based upon my motivation and the urgency of it. If I'm like "Ok, I gotta do X, Y, and Z.... guess I'll do that this weekend" then it's normal. If I'm like "OK I really want XYZ done so let's do it now!!!!!" then it's more like hypomania. Same with shopping - if I just randomly purcahse something that's out of range, and then I find myself randomly purchasing other things just to treat myself.. hypomania. If it's a "Ok, you made it through the school year, here you can buy that magic bullet you've wanted to buy for months!" then it's normal.

Like... I spent $2000 in one weekend back in March. Was it hypomania? No. I had a list of what I wanted to purchase, it was my only weekend where I COULD do any shopping, and I'd just heard how much money I was getting back from taxes.

The $150 I spent in December however, on craft supplies to try and do some random craft with my students? Likely hypomania, as I didn't have a clue what I was buying them for and just thought they were too cool to not purchase.

[Resident Bipolar]

Of course you can be productive and not manic! Think about artists, teachers, doctors: all the productive people in the world that don't have a mood disorder at all, let alone bipolar disorder. It's completely normal to occasionally be productive; productivity can include doing housework and going to work every day - if that's from mania then my mum and the majority of other parents out there must be bipolar.

Then again, it's important to know the difference between productivity when in a 'normal state' and productivity displayed during mania and/or hypomania. During a manic episode, productivity will occasionally be mixed with impulsivity, hyperactivity and a handful of other symptoms. For example, when I'm manic, I don't work methodically and instead try doing many different things at once and have an intense feeling of having to get EVERYTHING done in a matter of hours. When I'm stable and productive, I work through things at a good pace but don't take on everything all at once; I will often create a to-do list and split the same amount of tasks over a few days.

Personally I'm more productive when hypomanic as opposed to fully manic but I guess that's easily explainable!

When it comes to spending money, it's human nature to go on the occasional shopping spree. Most people will buy a load of things to make themselves feel better. In the short run, spending money can lift anyone's mood because of the endorphins released during doing so (the guilt coming a few days afterwards). However, impulsive spending and over-spending both ring alarm bells. Just ask yourself: "Did I really need that? What did I need that for? Can I REALLY afford that? How much did that cost? Did I really consider that purchase before completely the transaction?" If you cannot truly justify the purchase and you spent a large sum of money without really thinking about it, you should consider questioning a manic (or indeed hypomanic) episode.

Stephen Fry is diagnosed with Bipolar Disorder (Type 1) and he did a documentary about this. In one part he went shopping with a psychologist and he explained how he has over 22 Apple computers - he knows he doesn't need them, he just wants them all. He then goes on a huge shopping spree without thinking about anything and without any justifiable reason for any of the purchases and says he owns every DVD there is in HMV even though he most likely will never watch over half of them.

My mum isn't diagnosed with any mental illness. However she will go on a shopping spree every now and then - she'll buy a pair of shoes, a few dresses, some makeup and £120 of food. This is normal as she can justify buying these items and she buys in moderation. I have observed her on a shopping spree to see the difference between a non-bipolar person shopping and myself (Bipolar patient) shopping and noticed that she would look around all the shops first and think about what she was getting before she picked it up and went to complete the purchase. When I'm manic, however, I will pick a load of items up without thinking about it. I'll just see it, ignore the price, pick it up and repeat the process over and over until I decided to leave the store. On arriving home, I'd realise I don't want half of the stuff.

I once impulsively bought a hamster when manic. I didn't think about it - I just asked the woman behind the counter to get it for me, I bought hay and a huge cage and lots of food and paid and started the journey home. Once half way, I began to get very depressed and started crying - I didn't want he hamster anymore. So I had to take it back the next day.

There you go. Think that should clear it up a bit
RB

[ultramar]

Absolutely. If you think about it, having periods of increased productivity is something probably many or most people experience in life, so it stands to reason that those with bipolar disorder could also experience this without it being hypomania (sounds like you're talking about hypomania, not mania). It's unfortunate that people sometimes (your husband) jump to that conclusion, though it's understandable.

If you're feeling extra productive, I would only worry if it were accompanied by other and disturbing symptoms (i.e. lack of sleep but very energetic anyway, pressured speech, etc.) and/or if your really bad (as in really negatively affecting you) hypo/manic episodes tend to be preceded by a period of increased productivity.

But otherwise, I would say it just is what it is, take advantage of it, enjoy it!

[bipolarLady7]

Thanks everyone for your very helpful answers!

middlepath, I want the house (or at least this living room) to be clean, but I don't imagine it will be clean in the next five minutes, or maybe even not all today. Also I want to lose about 10 pounds so my skirts and dresses will be more comfortable and I won't look like I'm pregnant when I'm not, but I'm not going to walk (19?) miles overnight by the light of the moon like I did early last year before I was hospitalized; instead, I'm going to do some exercises every day in hopes that it helps.

CheshireCatGrin, I spent less than $5 at Family Dollar, about $5 at Habitat for Humanity ReStore, and about $4 at Dollar Tree in the last week. Which is a lot more than usual, but that's because I don't usually have money, and my daughter also had money and we wanted to go shopping. We're using just about everything I bought.

Resident Bipolar, I understand that people without bipolar can be and often are productive. I think the difference is that they aren't struggling with a mental illness, while you and I are, so I need to be cautious while they don't necessarily. A little of my recent spending may have been a little impulsive, but I explain that by saying that I didn't know all of what was in the store before I went there. Also, right now I'm conscientiously saving $10 for this coming Saturday when we'll go to the children's consignment shop with my mother-in-law, and saving would be extremely difficult if not impossible when I'm manic.

ultramar, my sleep is fine. My speech is normally a bit pressured - my therapist and father-in-law often have to ask me to slow down no matter what state I'm in - so that's not quite an issue for me. You're probably right that I'm talking about hypomania rather than mania.

Thanks again everyone!

[A Red Panda]

It sounds like you already understood the answer to your own question Productive doesn't always mean (hypo)manic! It all depends on what else is going on!

[Nessa213]

I like the explainations of needing XYZ right NOW as opposed to being ok with getting it later. I never thought of it that way. I have times where I feel as though I HAVE to go to the store because I need to get whatever I need right that very second.

[bluewind]

I am an artist. When I was manic back in April I was beginning and finishing a painting a day for ten days! It normally takes three weeks to complete one! Sometimes I hate not being manic because I dont have as much fun and everything takes so long. However, it's like the tortoise and the hare. Eventually the tortoise gets to the finish line first because the hare ran so fast he had to take a nap before the end of the race. That's manic depression in a nutshell for me. So now I'm stable on meds, productive but not overly, yet not manic and racing...which btw sends me to the psyche ward. Three psyche wards in 4 months. Not fun but helpful. Think I'll be the tortoise now!

[faerie_moon_x]

Here is how I tell the difference:

Productivity = I can focus on a task until I complete it and move on to the next task.

Mania = I have a great idea! I start working on it. But wait! I have another great idea! I start working on it. I have another great idea! And, these projects are all really huge. Example is I tried to crochet a blanket for every single member of my family. Picked out the yarn for all of them. I finished 3 out of 30.

Spending money on needs/wants normally: I go and get the things we need and then I still have enough for groceries and bills.

Spending money during mania = We've got a lot of cool stuff! Now what do we eat for the next 2 weeks? Oh, and the bank account is overdrawn, too! Oh crap! Let's go pawn some things so we get by..... >.<

[comicgeek007]

Originally Posted by faerie_moon_x

Here is how I tell the difference:

Productivity = I can focus on a task until I complete it and move on to the next task.

Mania = I have a great idea! I start working on it. But wait! I have another great idea! I start working on it. I have another great idea! And, these projects are all really huge. Example is I tried to crochet a blanket for every single member of my family. Picked out the yarn for all of them. I finished 3 out of 30.

Spending money on needs/wants normally: I go and get the things we need and then I still have enough for groceries and bills.

Spending money during mania = We've got a lot of cool stuff! Now what do we eat for the next 2 weeks? Oh, and the bank account is overdrawn, too! Oh crap! Let's go pawn some things so we get by..... >.<

I have a lot of projects started right now but I'm not worried that I'm hypo at all because I've been sleeping normally.

I have at points had to tell my dad not to send me money because I would spend it on stupid stuff. And normally I have my emergency fund for myself that I won't touch unless I absolutely have to. I get really badly hypo (not technically manic), all that security is out the window.

[anneo59]

Originally Posted by ultramar

Absolutely. If you think about it, having periods of increased productivity is something probably many or most people experience in life, so it stands to reason that those with bipolar disorder could also experience this without it being hypomania (sounds like you're talking about hypomania, not mania). It's unfortunate that people sometimes (your husband) jump to that conclusion, though it's understandable.

If you're feeling extra productive, I would only worry if it were accompanied by other and disturbing symptoms (i.e. lack of sleep but very energetic anyway, pressured speech, etc.) and/or if your really bad (as in really negatively affecting you) hypo/manic episodes tend to be preceded by a period of increased productivity.

But otherwise, I would say it just is what it is, take advantage of it, enjoy it!

excellent points, we watch for these symptoms as well

[faerie_moon_x]

The key is, comic, even if you have more than 1 project you can focus on them one at a time and actually get stuff done. Example is you may have a paper for English, a paper for History, and a science report due but you can work on one for extended periods, and get a lot done or finished and then start the next.

For me, it's like, "I read half a paragraph for my English paper, now I'll write 2-3 scentances for this history thing, oh, wait, I have to figure that equasion out. Oh, back to English... I wonder what's on t.v.? This makes me think I should start a new story! But first I should draw a map. Oh yeah! I have to work on my history project!"

Obviously I'm not in school any more the above scenario was pretty common for me when I was.

[Nessa213]

Originally Posted by faerie_moon_x

The key is, comic, even if you have more than 1 project you can focus on them one at a time and actually get stuff done. Example is you may have a paper for English, a paper for History, and a science report due but you can work on one for extended periods, and get a lot done or finished and then start the next.

For me, it's like, "I read half a paragraph for my English paper, now I'll write 2-3 scentances for this history thing, oh, wait, I have to figure that equasion out. Oh, back to English... I wonder what's on t.v.? This makes me think I should start a new story! But first I should draw a map. Oh yeah! I have to work on my history project!"

Obviously I'm not in school any more the above scenario was pretty common for me when I was.

Stuff similar to this (not school related) has actually been happening to me for the last two weeks or so.

It's more like... I start getting dressed and then I remember that I need to empty the dryer. But then the washer is full too! Oh, I should wash the baby clothes. Man, I really need to vaccum. Wait, maybe I should put some pants on before I take out the trash. So I end up flying around the house half naked doing all this random stuff.

I don't feel particularly hypo though. Distractable and flighty perhaps.

[A Red Panda]

LOL! Nessa... I do the same. I just go from one task to another to another going "I'm going to forget to do this if I don't do it now!" and then I get none of them finished and go "oh.... crumb, now the dishwater is cold again!" (I almost undoubtedly have dishes in the mix somewhere and it ALWAYS goes gross and cold!)

[anneo59]

Originally Posted by CheshireCatGrin

LOL! Nessa... I do the same. I just go from one task to another to another going "I'm going to forget to do this if I don't do it now!" and then I get none of them finished and go "oh.... crumb, now the dishwater is cold again!" (I almost undoubtedly have dishes in the mix somewhere and it ALWAYS goes gross and cold!)

I can definitely relate, folks!