Hypomanic, or just normal 'good' mood?

This. Sometimes I think I developed ADHD as a coping mechanism. I have no memory of a time when I wasn't depressed. I don't think I could have lived without it.

For what it's worth, more anecdotal accounts here, I feel similarly to the way you describe, lasting hours or days, sometimes more or less frequent, mostly in reaction to outer events in my life (the events / triggers behind the mood changes can often be subtle & hard to pinpoint). I do not have bipolar, but I have BPD traits, including the strong and shifting emotions. So when I am happy, I am often ecstatic. My happiness fills the room, bursts my heart, comes with an incredible dose of energy.

You might want to consider keeping a daily mood log. When I did that over a long period, I was able to see just how much my monthly cycle affected my moods.

I can say that I felt something resembling hypomania when I first started an SSRI, and I feel similarly hypomanic when I start a new relationship. This really only felt different in degree to me than my more accustomed happy-energy state. I suspect that the mood issues of BPD & the mood issues of bipolar (particularly the more rapid cycling types) must be very difficult for even trained professionals to disentangle. (I say this as someone whose boyfriend is both bipolar II & borderline. Frankly, I can't tell where one ends and the other begins.)

I totally agree with what MM just said.

IG, it sounds to me like it's emotional dysregulation.
Like others said, it could be from BPD traits.

The important thing to watch for, imo, is escalation; that is when you'll really know if you need a change in treatment. Otherwise, if you go to a psychiatrist, they would likely put you on mood stabilizers whether or not it's from bipolar or borderline or anything else. I'm not sure about the Sui as being escalation from a BP perspective, but maybe it would be a good idea to get another evaluation?

I have had many 'bipolar' episodes over the years. Racing thoughts, dysphoria, hypomania/euphoria, hyposexuality, flights of ideas. So many mixed moods too. I always think I am getting some type of psychosis, but never do. T says even with bipolar, there is emotional triggers, but it is more subtle. The more and more i learn about this stuff, the more i agree with the psychoanalytic views...

So if I went to a psychiatrist, i'd probably be dx'd with bipolar II, as that is the one that seems to be a catch-all for those with these mood issues when caused by PD traits. But for me, I think i have more histrionic-dependent and BPD traits than anything else. And I think why would I want to take lithium or Depakote for the rest of my life? I think when meds can really help people, it can be amazing, but that's not how it is for most people.

So I should add that CPTSD symptoms give me emotional dysregulation too. The emotional memories/re-experiencing is so destabilizing....

Just some things to think about.... I'm glad you are doing better than the weekend. I'm quietly cheering for you.

I know my view isn't in line with the current trend, but I still think that rapid mood swings, as in hours or a day or two, are not indicative of bipolar disorder. If you look at the DSM criteria it always mentioned prolonged periods of time. In other words I don't believe in ultra cycling bipolar disorder at all and a lot of people with a bipolar disorder diagnoses actually have BPD.

This said I am not a medical professional and it's really just an uneducated opinion.

This is the best information about bipolar I've ever found.

http://www.webring.org/l/rd?ring=med...central%2Ehtml

But I don't agree with all of it. I also agree with what Akama just said....

But people in the field have all different views. Some are more like my therapist, where everything has some emotional component to it (psychoanalytic), where as the MD in the link seems to prefer the biological take on it. There might be a medium in between. Who knows. It's good to ask these questions and look out for yourself.

The link opens but then changes to an ad page.

Medicine

see if that works

It works now. Thanks.