Me: I wait a week to see if I can resolve symptoms on my own through self care (e.g., proper rest, proper eating, etc.). You?

[FluffyDinosaur]

I see my therapist regularly and I generally just mention right away how I've been doing. I try not to focus too much on whether I'm going through an episode of a particular kind. Rather I just talk about how I feel, and then later we can decide whether or not it was an episode. That approach is helpful for me because if I wait until I'm sure I'm having an episode, I tend to underreport symptoms. Also, this way my therapist can kind of anticipate what's going to happen since my early warning signs are often fairly consistent.

[Miss Laura]

Tbh... I don't. Depression is very rare for me so I generally wait until I'm quite depressed before I say anything. Mania haha no way. I actually wait until I'm pretty ill. Mostly due to stopping my meds. I don't generally see it as a problem unless I'm in psychosis. Or I'm pretty dangerous/risky. Never mention when I'm hypo manic.

To sum up.... they are never told. No-one is ever told. If you've read my current posts i mention i have been off my meds since Nov and i only let my Therapist in as it slipped out (I was angry with myself for this slip up)

Yeah, I really don't either. I wait until my scheduled appointments. I see my T every two weeks and my NP right now every two months. sometimes my t will get me into to to see my NP if she thinks I need a med change. I'll be open and honest in my appts but I don't call for earlier appointments

[bpcyclist]

I try to judge how bad it is looking. If I think it's just a blip, then I just ride it. If it seems like something fairly significant, say, getting really psychotic like I just was, I let him know right away. Mania, same thing. Depression, I woefully underreport. Same with SI. It just gets so old saying the same thing again and again. I get tired of it and ti never changes or goes away.

[~Christina]

I have heavy hitter meds I could start taking on my own and hopefully it will pull me out of it , but honestly I tend to wait 3-4 weeks.

[*Beth*]

I see my pdoc every 10 days, unless I need an appointment sooner. Then I call to see if there are any openings for me to come in. I'm very frightened of the influence BP has over me, so I don't wait for more than 2 or 3 days.

Depression: It usually always waits until I see my psychiatrist next. I see him, on average, every three weeks. Even if I tell him I'm having a downswing, he usually doesn't do anything with my medications until/unless the downswing worsens and starts to last a long time. Frankly, I haven't had a severe pure depression in ages. The only time he takes more urgent action is when it includes mixed features, though I've been able to manage them quickly using my prn Seroquel and/or Ativan. If not, he makes a medication change. If the mixed episode is severe very quickly, I call him and he either increases my Seroquel XR via phone, or gives me an emergency appointment.

Hypomania/Mania: I can usually calm hypomania once it is realized, usually by my husband and/or pdoc or tdoc. Or, something happens in public (cops or threats of cops, etc.) that turns it into an emergency. Prn Seroquel often does the trick. If the hypomania is just a "blip", sometimes my evening meds, themselves, help. If the hypomania starts to last for days or develops into full blown mania, my Seroquel XR is increased either by phone or emergency appointment. Unlike depression, my manias can occasionally go from mild to full blown very quickly (hours to a couple days). My husband has called my psychiatrist, at times, and taken me to emergency appointments. Even I have called him a couple times, if the episode developed mixed features. I have been psychotic with pure mania, but more often with mania with mixed features.

[Fuzzybear]

I wait as long as possible since they have not proved trustworthy
I also do not share much information (due to having been bitten by them many times )
(that is just my personal experience in my forest)

[HALLIEBETH87]

I see my t every two weeks usually so he used knows when I’m not myself as soon as I walk in. He usually convinces me to call pdoc

[cashart10]

Depending on the severity, no more than a week.