Bipolar & Autism

So last night my husband and I were talking about issues I'm having with one of my friends at the moment....basically I'm avoiding her like the plague because she keeps dumping all her 'problems' on me and I can't handle it and it makes me angry. I pup 'problems' in quotes because she's whining about creepy guys hitting on her when she's giving them an open door on dating websites and she doesn't like he responsibilities of being a mother....anyways....I realized I've had this same reaction to a lot of friends in my past and have ended up accidentally sabotaging the friendships because of how I react to these types of situations. My husband says I lack empathy and I don't know how to put myself in other people's shoes...and he's right. He said he wonders if in addition to my BP I also have some sort of autism spectrum disorder.

He also sited my inability to handle change, the fact I get obsessed over certain things and topics, my being uncomfortable in social situations and a myriad of other things (I won't list everything he pointed out to me...it would make this post very long) as possible indications of some sort of autism. So I wondered....could he be right or are the things I do, and the things I'm unable to to...like empathize with people part of my BP or should I question my Pdoc about possibly having some other type of disorder as well.

Autism is one of those tricky things to diagnose when you're older. If it's not diagnosed when you're a kid, then it pretty much goes unnoticed because you've learned to compensate for your deficits. (You may not be able to fully compensate, but you can compensate enough to function on a daily basis.) So, it's entirely possible that you have it.

It can't hurt to bring up your concerns with your pdoc, but you should ask yourself 2 things:

(1) Do my symptoms affect my quality of life?
(2) What do I hope to achieve with the diagnosis?

I don't know what can be done for autism, to be honest. A lot of medications used for autism are off-label. For example, autistic kids tend to have mood swings, so sometimes they're prescribed an antipsychotic.

If you have a specific set of symptoms that are affecting your quality of life *and* you think medication can help, then definitely bring it up with your pdoc. Otherwise, it may be best to just work with your therapist (if you have one) to help you cope with your symptoms.

Maybe that's not the answer you're hoping for, but I know that it sometimes helps to know exactly what is wrong with you... So if you think the autism label/diagnosis is important to you, then definitely bring it up. Some people don't care; other people do. It's your choice.

Do you have very few interests or hobbies, and have you mastered the interests and hobbies you do have? Do you have trouble with friendships?
Do you not like authority? If you answer yes to these, than there is a possibility you might be autistic. Just get yourself tested.

Either/or. That's what I strongly believe.

Things very different in nature are often/always the same in appearance. That's pretty much the basis of all that I believe. Life's not paradoxical by chance but by necessity.

So yes, the appearance of a lack of empathy, maybe a lack of sympathy or a delusion based on empathy, is very much a possibility when having BP/SZ. SZ is of course the very best example. SZ and ASD are very different in nature. BP and ASD too. But ASD symptoms overlap with those of SZ and BP.

What makes it difficult is that the nature of things is sometimes considered unimportant in diagnosis. It's all appearances. But there are a number of criteria for symptoms which reflect the nature of BP (or SZ) more "faithfully". For BP that is an episodic nature.

But in practice, good psychiatrists will look for the nature of the problem in various ways which go beyond following a cookbook (as the DSM-IV mentions it is not).

So episodic nature (of delusions) is important. But I'd say it's intensity, as far as appearance goes. But true intensity. The good thing is that many with ASD try to fake it and those with SZ don't bother and it's genuine, only barely noticeable.

Not depression. ASD may cause depression. But not bipolar depression.

All other problems may be something about your personality or an anxiety disorder.

There are also psychological tests (not questionnaires) for measuring the difference. There are also blood tests, one in particular seems to actually be rather reliable but I forgot the name. But I wouldn't try any of that.

A psychiatrist that uses her intuition is required. But most are not very good at that, so they should see you change over a long period of time.

If you admit you were a complete idiot believing what you believed maybe a day ago then it's likely not ASD.

Or look at my psychometrics thread.

Do you like music? (as in, very much and it really affects you)

It definitely affects my quality of life. I've screwed up so many friendships over the years because of things like this, and it's gotten worse as I've gotten older. I have a very low tolerance for people and often end up saying things that hurt people even though I don't intend to. I also get really really frustrated...sometimes to the point of anger when I feel like I'm not being understood and I will harp on things for extended periods of time until I feel like I'm being understood. It causes a lot of problems in my relationships. My social skills have always sucked (except when I'm manic....then I'm friends with everyone...but it's also a time when I'm incredibly blunt and can end up hurting people.)

I actually like having labels for things. I hate the unknown. It drives me crazy. I need for everything to fit in neat little box with a label on it or I feel incredibly uncomfortable. So it might be worth bringing up with my Pdoc.

I do. I have several hobbies / interests that I'm completely obsessed with and I probably know more about those subjects than anyone I know. I've obsessed over mastering those subjects over the years and it's really distressing to me if I find someone else who knows more than me.

I have never liked authority. I was always very rebellious when it came to rules and authority figures.

I love music, almost to the point of obsession. It affects me greatly on an emotional and psychological level. I don't think I could live without it.

Perhaps it's because my brain is so scattered right now, but this didn't make a whole lot of sense to me

Sorry. You're not the first to tell me that , so it's probably just me (unless I'm manic: then it's all you all ). But most things I wrote are just about why I gave the answers I did.

Yes, it can all be because of BP (because BP can have some SZ or vice versa, which is more likely than ASD). SZ and BP is sometimes very much like ASD.

I don't think both can co-exist. The nature of the two (BP/SZ and ASD) is completely different. Liking music tells you more about that difference.

If it's episodic and delusional, ASD is unlikely. That's all that's important: delusions and do they change. Delusions are difficult to distinguish from the certainty (mostly based on facts, not beliefs, or "beliefs first", and more conventional knowledge). It's really difficult. But it's easier with BP than SZ: there are episodes with different delusions.

The intensity of the beliefs (but also behaviour) is the less tangible thing that can make it rather easy to distinguish between the too, but not every psychiatrist is able to.

I hope that makes more sense.

Is it always as distressing if others know more or best?

Is the obsessing (strongest) during mania?