[Icare dixit]

1) When was the onset of your BP (I am talking clinical/severe symptoms; if you had depression before any hypomanic or manic episodes, please give both ages; if you started out with hypomania and only later mania, please make a distinction there as well)?

2) Do you think a different age of onset would have made a difference in the course of your BP or your chances in life?

3) At what age did you start to receive appropriate care?

4) What, if anything, did you use (or had prescribed) to cope, before that time?

5) Did that help you or make things worse?

6) Have you had a period or multiple periods in which you'd (looking back) really overcome all BP-related problems (including mood-induced anxiety)?

7) Do you think that in the long run you have been improving?

For me it was:
1) age 11, 21 and 24.
2) I think my early onset has made it easier to accept BP and see a linearity in my life beyond the manic-depressive patchwork, but it has also made me chronically delusional in the eyes of some (my latest diagnosis was schizoaffective disorder, BP-type; sometimes referred to as schizomanic (shorter!)). I regret the lost chance of joy and excitement in my early teens. I am living proof that these years are formative and I am not always happy with the result (but for the most time I, "delusionally", am).
3) age 31.
4) an antipsychotic only.
5) it helped to make the cycles longer and less severe. It especially helped with depression.
6) yes, 7 years, but not after mania onset.
7) only for the last year, so it is too soon to tell. Otherwise, no.

See to the end of my signature for details.

I am very much interested in your experiences!

[Miss Laura]

1. 13 (depression) and 24 (mania)

2. No not really, I think if I was honest and seemed help earlier I might had a diagnosis earlier?

3. 24 years old

4. Anti - depressants (Prozac, Mirtazipine and Citalopram)

5. Both.... cured the depression but sent me manic

6. No

7. I have massively improved since I became unwell (2009 onwards). Even though I have my set backs I'm always improving

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[theenemywithin]

Onset is only the beginning of the illness. There are possibly many walking around with the appropriate genetics who have not yet experienced the illness. They have not encountered the appropriate environmental assault, stressful event. There could be many stressful triggers that result in onset, as many as the varying responses you may get to other questions. While there are general symptoms, all may share some but not all, each of us has unique characteristics that may be difficult to relate to.

[Ocean Swimmer]

I think I was always BP. Weird childhood.
1st hospital age 19. Met predator Pdoc.

On opioids for control. Sometimes Valium.
Got stalked by Pdoc.
Was with lots of guys. But rarely intercourse.

Got successful. In Real Estate. Wall paper business. Buying and fixing up houses.

11 yrs later crashed hard. Got rid of 2nd fiancé. 1st one od Coke on purpose. 2nd one on Coke and had personality disorder.

Mom stepped in and rented all my houses. I was left with only a cottage in the high desert and family vacation house on Colorado River. I was getting stronger.

Then mom asked me to be a live in nurse for grandparents. Oh hell.
Symptoms started in a bad way.

Met my husband at River. Taught him to wake board. We have a big ski house w awesome view and ski boat at Lake Naci.

20 yrs later. Here I am.

[1278]

1. 5/6 or as long as I can remember (depression) 20 (mania)
2. Yes 100% I wish with all my heart I had gotten sick AFTER I finished my medical degree so I could have a back up plan, maybe do an MBA and work in admin at a hospital
3. I don't think I have received appropriate care yet, or maybe my standards are too high
4. Prozac, Effexor, Cymgen, Cipralex, Abilify, Geodon, Seroquel and ECT
5. Anti depressants just made things worse, I just became more suicidal in the long run and tried to kill myself, they also made me gain 20 kgs and rapidly cycle for over a year (thanks psychiatrists). ECT did nothing whatsoever and atypical antipsycotics like abilify and geodon gave me severe anxiety to the point of paranoia.
6.No
7.No

[seoultous]

1) In retrospect I think my symptoms started in early childhood. I was unhappy and got into fights at school when I was around 10. I think depression started around 7 and hypomania around 10.

2) I was never debilitated by my illness. It just got in the way a few times. I have accomplished most of my goals.

3) At what age did you start to receive appropriate care? I was 34 when I was treated for major depressive disorder and then diagnosed bipolar when I was 38.

4) I did not self medicate and the first prescribed medication I got was anti-depressants.

5) The anti-depressants did not work and one caused a hypomanic episode. That sealed my diagnosis of bipolar II.

6) I have long periods of stability with only very low levels of lingering depression.

7) Over the long term I have been improving. I owe a lot to my psychiatrist who has found the right drug combination for me. I also have a great therapist. I feel in control of my BP as opposed to the other way around.

[ComfortablyNumb5]

Originally Posted by Icare dixit

1) When was the onset of your BP (I am talking clinical/severe symptoms; if you had depression before any hypomanic or manic episodes, please give both ages; if you started out with hypomania and only later mania, please make a distinction there as well)?

2) Do you think a different age of onset would have made a difference in the course of your BP or your chances in life?

3) At what age did you start to receive appropriate care?

4) What, if anything, did you use (or had prescribed) to cope, before that time?

5) Did that help you or make things worse?

6) Have you had a period or multiple periods in which you'd (looking back) really overcome all BP-related problems (including mood-induced anxiety)?

7) Do you think that in the long run you have been improving?

For me it was:
1) age 11, 21 and 24.
2) I think my early onset has made it easier to accept BP and see a linearity in my life beyond the manic-depressive patchwork, but it has also made me chronically delusional in the eyes of some (my latest diagnosis was schizoaffective disorder, BP-type; sometimes referred to as schizomanic (shorter!)). I regret the lost chance of joy and excitement in my early teens. I am living proof that these years are formative and I am not always happy with the result (but for the most time I, "delusionally", am).
3) age 31.
4) an antipsychotic only.
5) it helped to make the cycles longer and less severe. It especially helped with depression.
6) yes, 7 years, but not after mania onset.
7) only for the last year, so it is too soon to tell. Otherwise, no.

See to the end of my signature for details.

I am very much interested in your experiences!

1) I'd say I first "snapped" when I was 9 and my mom passed away. Then my dad moved his pregnant mistress into my moms home just a wk after. I was severely depressed and first started to self harm.

2) I don't think the age mattered. I'm not really sure really because from so young it was all I knew.

3) didn't go to my first pdoc till about 16 when I first became hypo and had major insomnia. As far as "appropriate care". Don't know how much it helped at the time really. Mostly because I was underage and my dad didn't (and still doesn't) believe in BP.

4) before my first pdoc I was popping major amounts of OTC sleeping meds. My dad went through my room and found tons of empty packs and realized I had a problem.

5) it helped at first and eventually my tolerance got so high and it didn't do anything.

6) I had periods in my 20's where I did feel better. However I would stop my meds because I told myself, or wanted to believe I was "okay". Which lead to self medicating until I'd finally go back to the pdoc or end up in IP

7) I didn't start improving and stopping the self medicating cycle until just a few months ago when I snapped out of a major depression and alcohol addiction and started meds again (12 yrs down the line!). Now I fully believe in my meds and know that I need them probably for the rest of my life. But lately I have been hypo again.

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1) Depression: age 12. Not sure on hypomania, but probably around then?

2) No

3) Sought help at 22, got diagnosed with ADHD + depression, but didn't do anything with the diagnoses. (I refused to go to therapy or get medicated.) Then sought help again at 24 when things worsened.

4) Nothing, although I wanted to do pot

5) Pot probably would've made me feel a little better, but I doubt it would've made much of a difference in the long run

6) Not really

7) Not really, but.... I officially started seeking help in July 2015, so we're currently trying to find the best medication combo for me. I hope that by July 2016 I will have made some great improvements.