[pacman_789]

Hi, I am new to the forum because my psychiatrist mentioned that she suspected I might have bipolar II or cyclothymia. However, I was not initially diagnosed as bipolar since my primary reason for seeing a psychiatrist was to manage my OCD. I mean, I’ve had mood swings over the years and irritability, but nothing I would have considered a full blown manic episode. It wasn’t until I began to take an antidepressant that I experienced hypomanic symptoms, and that’s when she mentioned that I may consider adding a mood stabilizer. Has that been most people’s experience, or did you already know based on your personality that you had bipolar? I’m just wondering because I know antidepressants can cause mania, and I’m apparently very sensitive to meds since I get relief from my OCD at only 25mg of Zoloft, which is less than the recommended starting dose for adults. It’s just hard to stay on the Zoloft, though, because of the hypomania it causes (excess energy, more confrontational, irritable, higher sex drive, eating more, etc.). The only bipolar symptoms I had prior to starting Zoloft were irritability and mood swings (giddy sometimes and depressed at others), but nothing that I would have considered severe shifts in mood. Can anyone give me their experience?

Thanks,

Andrew

[Wild Coyote]

I was diagnosed with severe depression for many years. In time, my diagnosis was changed to BP II. I was surprised at first until I'd learned more about BP II.

I hope you learn more about yourself and things get sorted out.

Best wishes!


WC

[wiretwister]

sneaky little thing bipolar is ... try not to worry about a dx ... just work on getting the symptoms under control .... you got the rest of your life to figure out what to call it ...

Tigger ...

ps: welcome ...

[Faltering]

My doctor first had suspicions of bipolar when I became manic on an antidepressant. I was 17 at the time. It wasn't until I had a full fledged mixed episode in college that I was officially diagnosed. Sometimes the way we react to meds is a good clue. I hope you are able to manage your symptoms.

[Daonnachd]

It was because of my reaction to an antidepressant that my doc first floated the possibility of bipolar. At that point I had never heard of BPII so I was skeptical. However, with the dx in mind I educated myself on symptoms and the light came on. I could look back on my life and identify various episodes of hypomania. ...It was no problem at all finding lengthy periods of deep depression. That said, I don't exhibit "severe shifts in mood" either as you put it, Pacman.
Learn about the nuances of symptomology and then examine your life again. To conclude, use reputable sources for your information, not just popular culture's image of bipolar.

[TheSeaCat]

Hello and welcome to PC.

It's a tricky diagnosis to figure out especially since there are several different divisions of Bipolar. I was initially diagnosed with a simple anxiety disorder and placed on Prozac to help the anxiety. I went hypomanic on every SSRI/SNRI he placed me on. We eventually realized it was more than anxiety with depression mixed in. So he dxed me with a Mood Disorder, my therapist dxed me Bipolar 2 with severe anxiety mixed in. I don't know if that is in the DSM-5 or not, but that's what i've gone with.

I guess my best suggestion is to trust your doctor and not rely on diagnosis's. You'll probably try a lot of medication and get very frustrated but you'll eventually find the right combo and feel better than you have in years. I would also suggest reading about the side effects.

I wish you the best of luck.

[downandlonely]

[QUOTE I would also suggest reading about the side effects.
[/QUOTE]

I'm not trying to invalidate your suggest SeaCat, but for me reading about side effects made things much worse. If you have anxiety, you can actually convince yourself that you are experiencing the side effects that are mentioned, and that can prevent you from taking medication that could help you. That happened to me with lamictal. I read it could cause sore throats, and then convinced myself that it was giving me one. So I wouldn't take it for a couple of years. When I finally gave it another shot, it helped a lot.

A similar thing happened with Abilify. I was on a forum similar to this one, and someone was telling me horror stories about Abilify side effects. My pdoc prescribed Abilify for me, but I wouldn't take it for months because I was scared of the side effects. Finally, I took it. It made me feel better with no side effects.

All of these medicines have potentially horrible side effects, but that does not mean you will get them. They work differently on different people. I stopped looking up side effects, and decided to trust my doctor. If I do notice a noticeable change, I will let the doctor know.

[pacman_789]

Thanks all for your helpful responses. I think Daonnachd is right about the cultural perception. I may have let that influence me and make me not want to admit that I might have bipolar. From reading more about it lately, I probably misunderstood the length and severity of a hypomanic or depressive episode that is required for a BP diagnosis. In any case, like several of you said, I guess the dx isn’t as important as getting the symptoms under control. So, I’m going to face my fears and start a trial of the Lamictal that my psychiatrist gave me to try.

[bewise93]

I was diagnosed with bipolar from being on Zoloft as well. I thought it was just the Zoloft so I had quit taking it but after a few months I had hypomania so I knew it was bipolar so I was put on lamictal. Hope you figure it all out!

[pacman_789]

Still trying to figure this all out. I've been on Lamictal now for over a week and feel like a zombie - little excitement, motivation, and feeling. I miss the confidence and sense of humor I had when I wasn't taking it. Is it so bad to feel confident about yourself? When I have high self esteem, I'm much more fun to be around and much more motivated to get things done. But, sometimes I feel guilty because I should esteem others above myself.

[MickeyCheeky]

Perhaps you can ask for a change of meds if the current ones aren't working?

[pacman_789]

Yeah, I guess that’s what I’ll need to do. This is all so new to me, so I just wondered if it was normal to miss certain aspects of your personality when you were manic. Maybe this is the new me I need to adjust to.