What is your typical mixed mood like?

I am trying to get a handle on what this actually means. Sometimes it is very clear cut for me. But much of the time I am not so sure. I sometimes can be in an elevated mood but very agitated and quick to argue. I can also feel full on energy but sad to the point in being tearful over things of no consequence. I think both of these examples are mixed. I can be elevated in mood but still irritable and very anxious. This is also when anxiety can manifest itself like stomach pain and diarrhea. This is more difficult for me to decipher, particularly when attempting to understand the role on anxiety in this picture. In all cases I get little sleep because thoughts are flying through my head.

How do you experience your mixed states?

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I don't count elevation plus agitation as mixed.

For me that's dysphoric hypomania, and usually hits after day 4 of euphoric hypomania.

Anxiety is a whole different kettle of fish, I have it daily to differing degrees, but I get the "disturbing skin crawling I need to jump out of my skin or rip out my hair" kind during a mixed episode.

I'm not saying that you don't experience a different variety of mixed episode that is different/worse/etc. but if OP is experiencing elevated energy as in hypomania/mania along with negativity/sadness/agitation that is a mixed episode from a psychiatric standpoint I think.

A true depressive episode wouldn't come with increased energy level and a true manic/hypomanic episode would not have such pronounced negative emotions. Wouldn't what OP is describing be a textbook mixed episode?

I usually just feel like Omg wtf is happening to me. Maybe elevated mood but super argumentative and easy to anger, fine one second and crying the next. Mainly I just feel like I have no control over my emotions at all and can't predict how I might feel or react at any given moment. It feels chaotic, unpredictable, and scary.

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For me mixed episodes are usually high energy with low mood and a lot of anxiety. I get delusional thinking and really bad paranoia. To me, it's a worse feeling than depression.

oh yeah anxiety through the roof at the same time as depression. often it's tearfulness, rage and anxiety all at the same time while wanting to disappear/leave/die/whatever. paranoia that I have no support system or that my mood is a result of the actions of my loved ones (i.e. not treating me right, conspiring against me, etc.) and the crawling out of your skin feeling is a pretty accurate description too. feeling tired but unable to keep my eyes closed. basically feeling the opposite of whatever I "want" to feel at any given moment. it's like my brain is fighting me, doing whatever I don't want it to do right then.

Well I wasn't commenting on the OP's experience now was I?

I was relating mine, just mine.

Because the OP wrote:


If I'm elevated it means I'm not depressed, and if I add agitation, it still doesn't make me depressed. Neither of these mean I'm sad or suicial, I'm more ready to rip someone's eyes out at the slightest provocation.

Again MY experience, which is what I thought was being requested.

Also, look up dysphoric mania, because agitated plus elevated mood as per the DSM is textbook dysphoric mania, not a mixed episode.

I've had two different forms of mixed. One where I've got energy but my negative deppressed thoughts nothing is fun nothing gets done but i'm everywhere. And the other is dangerous everything makes me want to hurt someone, normally myself. I do not know if these are true mixed episodes but my nurse seemed to think so.

Tig

A picture that is worth a thousand words.

When i'm in a bad mixed state i an energetic and impulsive, and i get myself into a lot of problems with high risk activities that would usually be associated with feeling good. Stuff like risky sex, drug use, spending lots, going to dangerous places. At the same time as being energetic and pleasure seeking, i get deeply depressed and suicidal. So it's a pretty dangerous combo because i have energy and drive to do anything, but no desire to keep myself safe or alive. I get really agitated and i don't sleep. It is more dangerous for me than depression, because with straight depression i just hide out and isolate. In mixed states i'm out getting myself into trouble. It's not always that extreme, but even a mild version is bad.

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For me I'm irritable, have intense insomnia that leaves me exhausted yet better than if I get any sleep for I awaken suicidal. Overall my mood is depressed with such high anxiety I can not make any decisions or focus on anything to carry it though to completion. The insomnia can lead to hallucinations and waking dreams. It's hard to be still but I have no energy to accomplish anything. In short, it's hell.

What is it called if I feel hyper-sexual and restless, but at the same time tired and sad? Would this be considered mixed? Or is this called just a bad day?

I feel very similar to what you have said r010159.

How do you cope with these feelings? I really need advice on that.

I don't really believe I have mixed moods per say. My issue is rapid mood cycling. I can literally go from happy as a clam to the most enraged psycho you've ever laid eyes on. It doesn't happen very often but it scares the hell out of my wife when it does. No violence ever happens. I think I would've been dead long ago had I ever committed violence on my family because I probably wouldn't be able to live with myself. I can also go from so sad that I'm balling my eyes out and the next minute laughing my *** off at something stupid I remembered all of a sudden. I really get the craps of it because I feel like my emotions just can't make up their mind. I feel the most sorry for my wife. She takes the brunt of it.

I definitely experience agitated depression and agitated hypomanias - where I'll be in a rotten mood and want to scream. but if it's a depression I'm ultimately sad and depressed, and if I'm hypomanic I'm typically just impatient with everyone because I want to GO GO GO. I wouldn't consider them mixed episodes though. I'm not sure if I have mixed episodes, but I tend to think that if I'm super depressed and FULL OF ENERGY then it's probably more likely to be mixed than anything involving being irritable.

Mine are the same way. This is a dangerous time for me, because it's when I start thinking about suicide and have the energy to do something about it (although I obviously haven't yet). I'd ten times rather be depressed than experience a mixed episode. I just came out of one that wasn't as bad as previous spells, but this time I called my pdoc BEFORE I went totally bonkers. I'm finally getting smarter in my old age.

I used to experience lots of energy, anxiety and depression. Now I get the anxiety, depression and extreme irritableness with hypersensitivity, I can't handle sounds, things to aching me or bright lights.

I have a related question. Can mixed moods be relatively mild compared to a full blown mixed nightmare? This is when I feel restless, agitated, and prone to angry outbursts. Anxiety is high. If I were to notice, I am unhappy, sad.