[Daonnachd]

Do you go through cycles of doubting the BP diagnosis, or is it a constant doubt, or do you accept it completely and without doubt?

I ask because I'm feeling comparatively good (Some might say hypomanic.), and I think maybe in the big picture I'm just experiencing depression broken by spells of normalcy. I'm doubting my diagnosis at the moment. Does this happen to you?

[*Laurie*]

Yes, that happens to me. I've noticed that I'm especially doubtful when my meds are working and I feel more normal. But then I'll run across something I wrote when I was depressed or hypomanic and I can tell I was not normal.

[BipolaRNurse]

Even in the face of incontrovertible evidence that I suffer from bipolar 1 disorder, I still have moments when I find myself wondering if all this is really just an existential crisis that I'll get over at some point. LOL

Yeah, I do this all the time.

Since I recently had Adderall-induced mania, I'm most inclined to believe the Dx. But right before that, I thought the BP Dx was a total farce.

[raspberrytorte]

Yeah.

Even now I sometimes think my situations regarding mood are something else entirely.

What something else I'm not quite sure.

[JustJace2u]

I'm still 'learning' and haven't quite figured out what all this stuff means, like being hypo manic for example. What's that feel like? I'm trying hard to educate myself, but when you start doubting yourself it's hard.

[jacky8807]

All.the.time.
And after my recent side effects from abilify I'm thinking bout throwing meds to the curb again
Ask me again in a few months lol

[Daonnachd]

Originally Posted by JustJace2u

I'm still 'learning' and haven't quite figured out what all this stuff means, like being hypo manic for example. What's that feel like? I'm trying hard to educate myself, but when you start doubting yourself it's hard.

I was thinking of you, and newly diagnosed generally, when I typed my original question. I figured you'd also be wondering still.

Now, others may contradict or amplify, but hypomanic seems to be primarily identified by elevated energy and mood in a range which can pass for an energetic normal, but is clearly outside the norm of depression. As far as I know from professional literature, it's more commonly seen in the BPII diagnosis.

[franz kafka]

I was diagnosed at age 16... played the med game for a few years, then started completely doubting the diagnosis. I stayed unmedicated for more than a decade before getting re-diagnosed. And yes, I doubt all the time. I usually think the medications are causing the mood swings, not my own brain chemistry/structure. This makes compliance difficult for me.

[LadyShadow]

Doubting it for many years caused nothing but heartache on my family and multiple hospitalizations.

I just have accepted my bipolar take my meds and shut up.

It has worked out pretty great so far.........

[~Christina]

No...... I have no doubt I have Bipolar.

[OctobersBlackRose]

Yes I do go through periods of doubt, I've been going through one for.a.few.month now, on and off. It sucks, cause that is all I think about sometimes...

[Daonnachd]

I know that there's not a blood test for it, but is there a specific medication which elicits a reaction only in those with bipolar? Let's say Blahzabean causes mania in people with BP, but in no one else. My doc could prescribe it as a test. Anything like that around that you know of?

[~Christina]

Originally Posted by vertigo

I know that there's not a blood test for it, but is there a specific medication which elicits a reaction only in those with bipolar? Let's say Blahzabean causes mania in people with BP, but in no one else. My doc could prescribe it as a test. Anything like that around that you know of?

Nope no such thing... That is why I think most people struggle with having Bipolar diagnosis..

A few people have said that there Pdoc has put them on an AD and if they went manic then they got the BP 1 .. I do doubt that decent Pdocs do this. JMHO

I also have Fibromyalgia.. There is no test to prove or disprove.. Its like BP its based off symptoms

[JustJace2u]

Originally Posted by vertigo

I was thinking of you, and newly diagnosed generally, when I typed my original question. I figured you'd also be wondering still.

Now, others may contradict or amplify, but hypomanic seems to be primarily identified by elevated energy and mood in a range which can pass for an energetic normal, but is clearly outside the norm of depression. As far as I know from professional literature, it's more commonly seen in the BPII diagnosis.

Thanks for thinking of me...I think. LOL!!! It's so hard. At first I thought I totally was accepting of the diagnosis only because of my past history of SAD and knowing that both my grandfather and an aunt on my moms side have or still have some type of MI. My grandfather is deceased but my aunt is still alive and if I remember correctly she's BP1 and has been hospitalized numerous times. I've always dealt with depression, but up until a few months ago that's all I thought it was. Then I started having thoughts of what life would be like for everyone around me if I were dead. I cry at the drop of a hat, I have serious issues with concentration and memory...etc. There are times when I am as happy as a clam and feel like I'm on cloud 9. I guess this explains it, to a degree anyway.

[Gabyunbound]

No doubts here, but it doesn't mean it doesn't make me very sad sometimes that I do suffer from it.

FYI, I do believe those with Bipolar 1 have hypomanic episodes, it's just that they also have manic episodes (it actually only takes one for a I diagnosis). So I think with Bipolar I you have hypomanic episodes independent of mania, or those that eventually turn into mania. Those with Bipolar II have hypomania (greatly increased energy, lack of need for sleep, agitation, etc., etc.) but not mania. I don't believe you can have either flavor without hypo or mania, just depression is "unipolar' Depression.

[Daonnachd]

Originally Posted by Gabyunbound

FYI, I do believe those with Bipolar 1 have hypomanic episodes, it's just that they also have manic episodes (it actually only takes one for a I diagnosis). So I think with Bipolar I you have hypomanic episodes independent of mania, or those that eventually turn into mania. Those with Bipolar II have hypomania (greatly increased energy, lack of need for sleep, agitation, etc., etc.) but not mania. I don't believe you can have either flavor without hypo or mania, just depression is "unipolar' Depression.

That fits with everything I've read. Thank you.

[cincidak]

I have no doubts now. I did a couple of years ago after I was diagnosed. I went two years unmedicated. Now I take my meds like clock work.

Sent from my SM-T550 using Tapatalk

Originally Posted by ~Christina

A few people have said that there Pdoc has put them on an AD and if they went manic then they got the BP 1 .. I do doubt that decent Pdocs do this. JMHO

My pdoc did this to me and I found it a bit unethical, but... in a weird way, I was glad he did it because it helped me "confirm" the Dx. However, I'm not saying that what he did was the right thing to do.

Also, Adderall shot me into mania, so there's that too.

But, there are plenty of people who have antidepressant-induced mania who *aren't* bipolar. Similarly, some people with ADHD get stimulant-induced BP. Nothing is definitive.

I'm sure there will be a test for BP in the future, though. Someone will figure it out; it's just a matter of when.

[~Christina]

Originally Posted by bluebicycle

My pdoc did this to me and I found it a bit unethical, but... in a weird way, I was glad he did it because it helped me "confirm" the Dx. However, I'm not saying that what he did was the right thing to do.

Also, Adderall shot me into mania, so there's that too.

But, there are plenty of people who have antidepressant-induced mania who *aren't* bipolar. Similarly, some people with ADHD get stimulant-induced BP. Nothing is definitive.

I'm sure there will be a test for BP in the future, though. Someone will figure it out; it's just a matter of when.

A decade ago my husband was depressed and he was given a AD and he literally lost his shyt.. He is not ,was not Bipolar ...

There are studies that show on a MRI that there are some differences between a Bipolar brain and not... But <~~~ Huge but... There really hasn't been enough reliable double blind multiply studies done by actual professionals.

[Daonnachd]

Originally Posted by ~Christina

There really hasn't been enough reliable double blind multiply studies done by actual professionals.

Yeah, I found one paper discussing neurotransmitter biomarkers in bipolar brains, only one.

Yes, it's happening right now. I'm wondering if I'm just experiencing nervous break downs which meds won't help. I'm struggling to take my meds and feel they will do me more harm than good. But then I will be sure again in no time and I know this, so it's confusing and hard. I wish my mind could stay certain, it's kinda maddening to be honest. The confusion is a difficult thing for me to deal with sometimes.

[Amy Today]

I just brought this up to my t because I was doubting my dx. My manic episodes are always extreme stress induced. More like PTSD responses. As long as I'm not having extreme stress, I just stay mildly depressed and my anxiety is through the roof just always. It doesn't reaallly sound like Bipolar to me.

But my t disagrees. She said I'm kinda textbook. What does she know? She only has a big fat degree and a ton of experience. Lol. That being said, we all know diagnosing is not easy because it's based on a lot of subjective information and objective observation. It's not foolproof science.

[xRavenx]

Originally Posted by vertigo

Do you go through cycles of doubting the BP diagnosis, or is it a constant doubt, or do you accept it completely and without doubt?

I ask because I'm feeling comparatively good (Some might say hypomanic.), and I think maybe in the big picture I'm just experiencing depression broken by spells of normalcy. I'm doubting my diagnosis at the moment. Does this happen to you?

Sometimes I feel that way if I'm going through a situation that would be really hard on anyone (i.e. the loss of a loved one, or a broken relationship). Then, it gets hard to say whether my symptoms are from Bipolar or just part of what I'm going through at the moment. Then, however, I remember all the times when really nothing bad was happening around me, and I was freaking out, behaving abnormally, or experiencing inappropriate mood difficulties. Then, that reminds me that the Bipolar will always be with me.

[pirilin]

I don't doubt. I'm sure. Positively 100% that I don't have a single faulty wire in my harness. It's all charred even.