newcomer

hi new to the forum. just wanted to say hello to everyone. i am new to this. i have bipolar. hypo mania right now. or so dr says. married long time three kids all girls.. onyx

Welcome to PC, feel free to hang out and talk with us, there are a lot of people that can share their experience(s),info and fun with.

DE

Welcome...this place is definitely a great place to be. Are you BP II?

not sure if i'm bpII but it sounds right. i swing up and down. how about you?

When I'm hypo manic my meds provider increases my Abilify for a week to try to bring me back down as I went 5 mos. in hypo mania & didn't tell her--it felt so good--but then suddenly I crashed & overdosed so she won't let me go more than 3 days in hypo mania (or depression) before adjusting my meds. I have bipolar 1 & understand that I got that dx, because I had delusions (beliefs that had no basis in reality).--Suzy

Welcome to PC.

I'm BP II. If you don't know where you fit in the spectrum no need to worry. I get hypomanic for short periods, but most of my cycles go from normal into depression. I also have moderate OCD.

If you cycle slowly and have further extremes: really super happy, god-like, possible psychosis and on the other side really deep and dark depression, with possible psychosis, then you'd fit the BP I description better.

Hi! I am new to this also.I have bipolar w/panics.I believe I have had it since I was 12 but people did'nt talk about that kind of stuff.I suffered with it until I was 28.Thats when I had to get help.I hope you get the support you need on here.I have found a few sweet people to talk to.I still haven't learned my way around the site good.Talk to you soon.

Welcome!

I'm new to bipolar (at least the dx - not the symptoms) - was originally diagnosed with anxiety/depression

Hi, I'm also new to this. I was diagnosed about 6 months ago with bipolar II. I have been trying to manage this without meds, but I don't think it's working. Sometimes I think that I can handle everything, but most of the time I'm so pessimistic that I feel I'll fail at anything I try. I'm moving away from home and my husband for a great job, but I'm terrified that I won't be able to function either at work or socially, and that I'll do something stupid. My husband is supportive, but doesn't really want me to take meds, because he's afraid my personality will change. I've hidden what I'm like when manic (sexual indiscretion) because I don't want to hurt him, but the result is that he doesn't realize how serious a problem it is. Ditto for when I feel suicidial...I don't want him to worry about me. I hate being such a burden. I'm also worried that my mood swings are affecting my dog, who has epilepsy. His seizures seem to be getting worse and more frequent. Aaggh. Myhead hurts, my heart hurts, and I feel like I'm fighting in a fog. I'm exhausted. Just when I think therapy has really helped me, and I feel on top of things, I slam back into depression. My doc prescribed some Zyprexa "just in case" and I'm wondering if it can possibly help me out of this hell. I'm really strong-willed, but I'm not sure how long I can keep going like this.

Thanks - any advice/support much appreciated.

meds can make us more sane...a mood stabilizer could help you too.
Many folks here take lamictal it also helps with the depression side as well.
I hope you have a therapist to help you work thru this...learning to forgive yourself is the hardest thing to do.
I wish you wellness.
bizi

fogboxer- try the meds you sound like me about 4 yrs ago. i hate taking all the hand full of meds but life is so much better now with meds yeah i have the occasional swing up and down. but nothing like the hell i was in before. call your dr try the zyprexa. or if that dosen't work try a mood stabilizer like neurontin or cymbalta. i am on both and can tell a diff when i miss a dose. pm me if you feel like talking. onyx

Hi, onyx, & welcome, from another newbie! I could use a little of your hypomania right now, if you want to send it to me - I've been near the bottom of the pit way too long, myself!

fogboxer, sounds like it's time for meds. It's nice to be able to have your needs work with what your mate wants, but I'm afraid your husband's just going to have to live with this. And, face it, since you've been hiding your moods from him, he doesn't know what you're really like now anyway. That may be the way to explain it to him, in fact, if you choose to explain it before the fact. Probably better to continue to keep the sexual indiscretions in the closet. It wouldn't do him any good to know about them, and would only hurt the relationship, unless you knew absolutely that he was going to find out about them from some other source anyway. Hope things get better quickly.

I have bipolar as well, and I think my husband would divorce me if I told him everything even though I was and am sick. I just found out I was bipolar about 3 months ago. I can't handle the guilt I feel about it and also I don't want to hurt my husband he has been through too many episodes with me. Do you struggle with the fear of divorce like I do? and it makes me feel guilty although I shouldn't blame me cause I am sick.