[WibblyWobbly]

I recently left an inpatient PTSD program and I'm now in partial. I've been IP 6 times in the last 14 months and done PHP twice. The program I'm in now is new to me. The pdoc who evaluated me on my first day spent less than 5 minutes with me before diagnosing me with BPD. I've had a dx of BD from my regular pdoc since last October after a few months as "episodic mood disorder NOS."

I'm very confused now and the PHP pdoc is telling me I need mood stabilizers either way so it doesn't matter. It matters to me because I want to understand my condition and how it is controlled.

Has anyone else been told they are one, only to be told later that they are the other? How do you deal with it? I'm not sure anymore that I can look at myself objectively and say that the traits of one disorder or another definitely do or don't describe me.

[Ripose]

I am the same way. According to my old pdoc my Bipolar 1 kept coming and going, he could never make up his mind, so I did the tests here on PC and read lots. However since I still can't decide what applies to me I just go with BP 1, it gives me a starting point at least.

[HALLIEBETH87]

I think almost any BP might have symptoms of BPD. I have both dxds. I know I have traits of BPD. They have said so since I was 17 before my BP dx. It used to bother me but now I just work on treating my symptoms. I go to personal counseling, take mood stabilizers and I go to a DBT group which is the #1 treatment for BPD, but I think its good for everyone lol

Either way, I hope you find the answers you seek. <3

[Nammu]

I've been diagnosed BPD when I'm in a crisis but any Pdoc or T who sees me beyond a crisis has told me I'm only BP with BPD like symptoms in a mixed episode.

If they haven't done specific tests for personality disorders and haven't seen you outside of a crisis and made a diagnosis in 5 min I would take it with a grain of salt. Decades ago when tests were more common I underwent a battery of them to rule out various diagnosis. There're specific tests for personality disorders..they are long, weird and intensive. Made me wonder about the sanity of those who created the tests. The upshot was that I had BP and PSTD with extreme dissociation no PD.

There is a lot of ambiguity in psychology and some docs lean towards one diagnosis over another, aftall there's no easy tests or X-ray for them to use. they have to rely on presenting symptoms, self reported symptoms and their experience.

[xxblackrosesxx]

Well for almost 5 years I was dx as being depressed and recently been dx as BP now and they have stuck with the dx for months. I had the random "are you autistic" which I've been tested for and there was no symptoms off it. They are so far sticking with their guns with BP.

I dare to say that BD cycles and are biologically organic in nature, where as BPD cycles are triggered because it's a personality condition caused by early trauma and abuse in the life of a child. Early abuse is a precursor to the BPD classification.

Once a person has BPD, a dissociative disorder can develop through unprocessed trauma. This can lead to secondary structural dissociation, a far distant cousin to DID. This is a condition where there is one distinct state (apparently normal part (ANP)) and 2 or more indistinct state (emotional parts (EP)). The EP doesn't take over consciousness.

DID is a tiertary structural dissociation where a person has 2 or more ANP and 2 or more EP. The ANP are the states that take over consciousness, per DSM-5.

BD is treated meds first followed by therapy whereas BPD is treated by therapy first followed by meds to control the EP switching.

A person can have both conditions. Some of my alters are BPD.

I hope this helps, I've got issues and I've been doing lots of reading.