Yes, I definately have periods where I'm depressed. Sometimes I can barely get out of bed for a period of time, and then suddenly I'm fine again, or going into this super-happy, very talkive, can't sit still to save my life mode.
It's really weird that you say that, my newest psychiatrist just put me on a new med for ADHD, but she told me that it might not be ADHD but bipolar instead. She said we'd keep looking into it, but doctors have said that before, honestly. I have to admit that I got kind of nervous when she said that and tried to forget about it. I didn't think that was possible. What was it that made you think of it? I know you have bipolar. I have read several of your posts and have always been impressed with your ability to keep going. Would you mind expounding on your thought? I'm not going to be offended. As much as I would rather not be diagnoised with Bipolar, at this point I'm desperate. After having tried so many things for ADHD and have them not work, it's a little depressing. By the by, I know you aren't a doctor, so don't worry about that...I just know you have a lot of personal experience with BiPolar and I know very little about it...
As Bott said, sometimes people with bipolar are misdiagnosed with ADHD. In other cases, it is a co-morbid diagnosis (dual diagnosis).
As far as my bipolar is concerned, I was originally diagnosed as having schizoaffective disorder bipolar type in 2006. This was due to the fact that I was severely manic and heard voices not only when I was manic, but also when I was in a "normal" mood.
12 months later I started having problems with rapid cycling (where my moods change every hour and sometimes every minute), so my diagnosis was changed to rapid cycling bipolar I (one).
In December, my diagnosis was changed yet again (to what my psychiatrist and therapist both think I've had over the past 18 years) to atypical bipolar I (one) disorder with ultradian rapid cycling. All this means is that I have symptoms of mania, hypomania, depression, psychosis, delusions and paranoia. It also means that I hear voices only when I'm manic or depressed (unlike people with schizoaffective who also hear them when they are in a "normal" mood). The "rapid cycling" notation on my diagnosis means that my moods change every hour and sometimes every minute. I can go from feeling manic to severely depressed to extremely irritable during this time. Conversely, I can also go from feeling extremely irritable to manic to severely depressed when the cycle starts all over again, but in a different pattern.
I've been on a combination of mood stabilizers and antipsychotics for the past 3 years. Mood stabilizers help keep my mania under control while antipsychotics address my voices, delusions and paranoia.
I was recently put on an anti-depressant and benzo as well. The former is for depression related to my bipolar and the latter is for my rapid cycling.
It is important that anyone who has bipolar taking an anti-depressant also be put on a mood stabilizer since the use of anti-depressants alone can cause manic episodes.
I wish I wouldn't have deleted my signature because I had 2 informational links about bipolar. One of them explained what bipolar disorder is and the other outlined the different kinds. I'll try to find them in my bookmarks and post them here for your information.
It hasn't been an easy road for me over the past 3 years, but I'm doing alot better now. I was recently put on a new med regimen that is working great so far. Prior to now, I had constant problems with rapid cycling and mania.
Although I will continue to experience mania, depression and rapid cycling (since meds do not "cure" bipolar), my meds help relieve and reduce my symptoms as well as the severity of an episode.
I've just now reached the point where I am coming to terms with my diagnosis. All of these years I thought I truly accepted being bipolar, but the truth is, I haven't. I ended up breaking down and crying for the first time about my diagnosis when I saw my therapist this week. Apparently, I stil have alot I need to discuss in terms of the anger, hurt, frustration, depression and confusion I feel.
That being said, I do not plan to give up. If I've been able to come this far given how difficult rapid cycling bipolar is to treat (rapid cyclers tend to be treatment refractive meaning that sometimes meds do not help), I know I will be just fine in the long run.
If my moods continue to stabilize, I plan to continue my education in September.
According to my psychiatrist, I have a "difficult to treat" case of bipolar, but this does not mean treatment isn't possible. He's right because ever since I started my new med regimen, I've gone from rapid cycling every hour and sometimes every minute to no cycling at all during the day.
If I do feel myself start to cycle into mania, agitation or depression, I have a med that I take and it does an excellent job of stabilizing my mood.
You asked how I was originally diagnosed with bipolar. I ended up having a severe manic/psychotic episode that was the result of several factors. I became severely psychotic and delusional. My sister ended up calling 911 after I called her at 4:30am telling her that my phone line was tapped, I was being followed, people were watching me through video cameras installed in my apartment and the FBI was sending me messages through the TV, radio and e-mail. I also heard up to 20 different voices who told me to harm myself. She ended up calling 911 at which time the police took me to the hospital where I was involuntarily hospitalized for a little over a month. It was at this time that I was given an official diagnosis of bipolar.
I didn't know I had bipolar until that time although when discussing this with my psychiatrist and therapist, they both think I've shown clear signs of bipolar since age 20.
However, bipolar was never suggested as a possible diagnosis since I didn't know what mania was. When people only share their experiences with depression (like I did) without also mentioning periods of mania or hypomania, this can result in a misdiagnosis of major depression like it did for me.
If you believe that you've been misdiagnosed, I recommend that you see a psychiatrist for a full evaluation. I've been misdiagnosed 3 times over the past 18 years (major depressive disorder, schizoaffective bipolar type, rapid cycling bipolar one, atypical bipolar one, PTSD), so it can and does happen.
Sorry for writing a dissertation. LOL. If you have any other questions, feel free to let me know here or via PM.
Good luck to you!
