Misdiagnosed

Hey everyone!!

I'm approaching my 31st birthday. I've always struggled with depression since the vicious murder of one of my siblings right before my 15th birthday.

When I was 22 I was admitted to a psychiatric hospital for threatening suicide. I was diagnosed with Major Depression and Borderline Personality Disorder.

Over the last 9 years I've sought psychiatric treatment, but it was rare to find a doctor who actually connected with me and once I did insurance and payments became an issue. Because of this I always felt under diagnosed and the reason my Major Depression was so bad was due to me not taking my appointments seriously (due to conflicting work schedules) and doping myself up with antidepressants which only managed to get me through the day.

Anyway I changed healthcare providers last year and on Thursday I finally managed to skip work and go see a new psychiatrist. We spoke for an hour and by the end of it I was told not only do I have Borderline Personality Disorder, but I am also Bipolar.

It feels like all these years of suffering were due to medical mistreatment. How could Bipolar Disorder be missed for so long? I'm absolutely grateful for the diagnosis because it makes perfect sense. I'm ready for recovery and to piece my turbulent life back together.

Does anyone else have experience with doctors taking years to diagnose you with Bipolar Disorder?

Welcome, IssaColdWorld!

I'm so sorry about your sibling's tragedy. I can certainly imagine how tragic/disturbing that was for you and your family.

I do hope that any new treatment, given your most recent diagnosis, helps you. I also hope that you have (or will) receive therapy to process the horrible tragedy you and your family experienced. I can tell you that the right medications certainly do help, but they can't do everything in most cases. Medications combined with therapy are generally a necessary combination.

I'm so sorry you're struggling, IssaColdWorld I'm so sorry about your sibiling. It must have been terrible to live through that. It's also terrible that you've been misdiagnosed for all of these years. Unfortunately it seems like this happens quite often to those who are struggling with Bipolar. But at least you've got a proper diagnosis now. Good for you! Hopefully you'll be able to get the treatment you need and deserve. Do you see a therapist? Maybe that could help. You could learn some new ways to cope with you feelings when they get too overwhelming. Just remember that we're here to support you. Do you have a support system IRL? Any friends or family that could help you? Either way, we're here for you. You can do this! You're strong, I know that. I believe in you. Feel free to PM me anytime. Let me know if I can do something to help you. Wish you good luck! Let us know how it goes. I'm so sorry you have to deal with this

If they don't see you manic, its hard for them to make the leap from historical reporting to actually diagnosing bipolar.

Glad you got yourself straightened out though, hopefully it will lead to more effective treatment and you can find some stability.

Yes. I was mis-diagnosed with major depression (and treated with lots of different SSRIs, which are not good for bipolar in general) for over 10 years (diagnosed at 19 or 20; I'm 41 now). Finally, I got a good psychiatrist who decided she would not just blindly trust the previous doctor's diagnosis (which is what they all did, prior to her, accepted the initial psychiatrist's diagnosis). She diagnosed me herself, first with the obvious postpartum depression, since I'd recently given birth, though even on those notes, she had written stuff like bipolar? (I recently got the records from my years of treatment with her since she is retiring, had to pay practically a fortune as I saw her 10 years).

Anyway, she soon diagnosed me with bipolar II until I had an out and out fully manic episode in her waiting room & office on a scheduled appt. I barely avoided the hospital on that one. Then, she changed the diagnosis to bipolar I. My new psychiatrist was her colleague, he has been at that clinic as long as I saw my old doctor, so he didn't change her diagnosis except to add "with mixed features" though that possibility was listed in her diagnosis summation to her when I got my records, so she had been thinking about it apparently.

Now that I know about bipolar and its symptoms, if the first doctor had asked me all the right questions and in a couple different ways, he could have diagnosed bipolar easily. It makes me angry. I think all those years on SSRIs have messed up my brain/mind/thinking? permanently.

That must have been really hard to be misdiagnosed for so many years. I thought for many years I had MDD/GAD, and it was finally confirmed by my psychiatrist, but turns out I had bipolar and now we think OCD. So I was misdiagnosed for a little less than a year. Even after the bipolar diagnosis I felt like something else was going on and it did not click until I learned more about OCD. I kind of feel some regret for not seeking help sooner, because I really got worse instead of better over time.

I was mis-diagnosed with IED for years. Then it was Mood disorder NOS, Then bipolar now I have no idea what I am. I'm on a anti-psychotic and a mood stablizer.

It was a terribly tragic event that reshaped my whole world and it changed the family dynamic. I think the worst part is the fact that his death was unexpected and cruel.

I am in therapy and taking a new medication which makes me hopeful for the future.

Thank you for your kind words. I'm in therapy and I see a psychiatrist. My support system consists of my family. Sometimes, however, that can be a double edged sword so I'm also exploring group therapy and DBT groups.

That actually makes sense! I was so manic at my appointment on Thursday I don't know how I was able to drive to and from the doctor's office. I started Lamictal that same night and I've never been as clear headed as I am now.

In the past I've gone into see previous psychiatrist either at a Bipolar low or when I was super happy about something happening in my life. I know for sure I have hypomanic episodes which have always frustrated me.

I was on Celexa for 7 years and I really think it messed me up more than it helped, but I did love how it got me through the day I have to admit that.

Then I went on Welbutrin last January because I could feel Celexa not working as well and everything really spun out of control for me. I weaned myself off and changed doctors because the psychiatrist I was seeing, she was extremely insensitive and hurtful especially when I showed up to appointments frustrated, agitated, and near tears.

I feel that some these doctors ignore the symptoms because they don't actually want to deal with you as a human being. I'm glad you met a doctor who helped you out with proper diagnoses because that's half the battle it seems.

Had to edit to add:

I was diagnosed with Postpartum Depression as well after giving birth in 2016 when my child was 2 months old. I was seeing that same psychiatrist who eventually prescribed me Welbutrin and she completely ignored that diagnosis!

Her attitude was, "you need to get your life together, you have a child now."

I will say that most women I know who have been dx'd with PPD end up being dx'd with Bipolar Disorder soon after which is why I'm not too shocked at my diagnosis, just bewildered at the years wasted.

Does OCD run in your family? My dad has it bad and it seems as he ages it's getting worse. I also fear I might have it as well, but only time will tell.

I think Major Depression masks Bipolar in some people. I also thought I had SAD however obviously now I know at certain times of the year I'm at a Bipolar low.

Seeking help no matter how long you wait is better than never seeking help at all.

I was misdiagnosed as disassociative fugue and anxiety disorders then major depressive disorder w psychotic tendencies, then bipolar 2 since 2002. I only recently got the diagnosis of bipolar with mixed features. I am functioning on so much better level now. I still have OCD and bpd but I suffered with those in childhood.

It does run in my family but I only found out when I mentioned I thought I had it to my sister and she told me she did. It makes sense she does in retrospect but I only knew she had MDD and anxiety issues. I think the major depression masked the bipolar and the OCD just seemed like anxiety since I struggle with intrusive thoughts and less obvious compulsions. Is your dad getting treatment? Sorry to hear he's dealing with that. If you think you have it maybe you could bring it up to get screened.

I was dx'd with Major Depressive Disorder at 14 years old after a suicide attempt then I did well for a year and stopped treatment and did okay till I was about 16 and then things started getting bad. I didn't go back to a psychiatrist until I was 18 as a last resort and I was diagnosed with Bipolar type 1 with psychotic features which then was updated to Schizoaffective Bipolar Type a few months later after my doctor observed that the psychotic symptoms were also occurring outside of manic and depressive episodes. I'm 24 now and that's still my diagnosis. I think it's common for people's diagnosis to take time. for example when I was diagnosed with MDD it was based on the fact that I was seen during a long severe depressive episode and I didn't remember or talk about the mania because I didn't know what it was and at the time it wasn't so bad that it was causing major issues in my life but it progressed by time I was in my late teens.

i was misdiagnosed for 20 years with dysthymia and major depressive disorder. I have tried so many SSRI's without success. My recent Pdoc just diagnosed me with Bipolar Depression II and has me on other types of medications which seem to be working better. Just because I didn't have the hyper mania I was told I didn't have Bipolar. But with Bipolar II I have hypomania which isn't as prevalent as the hypermania. Alot of people get misdiagnosed for that reason

I was diagnosed with BPD, MDD, and anxiety for over twenty years. After I had a nervous breakdown and on yet another antidepressant my psychiatrist put me on a mood stabilizer. It worked for a while, so she changed diagnosis from MDD to BP 1. I kind of thought I had bipolar before but with borderline it can be harder to tell. I also had PPD after my daughter but still had issues after that. It’s only been in the past year or so that I’m more stable but still struggling.