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Original poster

Anyone have bipolar?

12 replies

MadMommaMemoo · 29/03/2011 22:53

after years of being treated for depression and periods of anxiety my psychiatrist today has said that she suspects I have bipolar. Part of me is relived that I might finally have a proper diagnosis but the other part of me is really scared. I have no idea what to expect or what the implications of such a diagnosis. I feel like I should be doing something but I basically now just feel like I don't know what to do next.

OP posts:
Gahsickofit · 29/03/2011 22:57

Hi,
I have Bipolar.
i'm probably not much help tonight tbh, but I will reply when i can.
It's not the end of the world though, it just means that ADepressants are maybe not a good idea bcasuse they might send you high, so you are more likely to have eith ADs and soemthign else or mood stbilisers

Original poster
MadMommaMemoo · 29/03/2011 23:12

They ate keep me in ad's but have also started me on 'olanzapine' just taken the first dose tonight. Think its a mood stabiliser.

You having a bad night? Hope you feel better soon x

OP posts:
midnightservant · 29/03/2011 23:22

Many bi-polar people spend the first part of their illness being depressed and getting medication which doesn't work like it would for straightforward (sort of!) depression. Sometimes their diagnosis comes only when they've had a manic episode which can cause considerable mayhem. (I speak from experience!) (Although these days you can be diagnosed with bi-polar even if never manic).

There are several drugs which can be prescribed for bi-polar depression, which may be more effective than the usual ad's, because the underlying biochemistry is different for bi-polar (that's the theory anyway). In practise it seems that people with bi-polar often have to try different drugs/drug combinations to find what suits best.

One thing you could try is to keep a simple mood chart. Particularly when depressed it is hard to remember times when you felt better, and having information about how you vary can be very helpful to your health care professionals. There is tremendous variation between people as to how often and how mild their symptoms are.

midnightservant · 29/03/2011 23:26

At what time did you take your olanzapine?

I ask this because when I first went on it, in hospital, I was told to take it at night. I then couldn't wake up in the morning - took hours to not feel groggy.

I asked my psychiatrist about this, eventually, almost as an aside, and he said I should be taking it at tea time. Overnight improvement resulted.

Original poster
MadMommaMemoo · 30/03/2011 19:16

Hi, I took it at bedtime at it knocked me out til lunch time today. So I've just taken it now so hopefully i'll feel a lot less groggy in the morning.

OP posts:
Original poster
MadMommaMemoo · 30/03/2011 19:22

Posted too soon.

I've spent 10 years being treated for depression and anxiety. Nothing ever really worked. It's only this passed 18 months that I've been having episodes of mania. Although there have been at least two times every year in the past 10 years when I've been to the Gp in a highly agitated state.

I can't believe I am bipolar, how do you get your head around it

OP posts:
midnightservant · 31/03/2011 00:19

I'm trying to think what to say that will help.
Here are my suggestions:

First, you are still the same MadMommaMemoo Wink

Second, keep life as unstressful as you can - stress can often be a trigger.

Third, look back over your life with a kindly eye, noting how your moods changed and if they were normal reactions to events - everyone's mood varies, but in addition people with bi-polar have moods more extreme than others, or not related to life stuff.

Keep a gentle eye on yourself.

This is partly drawn from my own and friends' experience, partly from quite a good course I'm on, run by the local MH Trust.

Hope it doesn't sound too vague. It's just my take on how someone might begin to get their head around it, and is really a suggestion of how to reflect on the situation, by gathering information.

Have you got a hectic life?

midnightservant · 31/03/2011 00:22

Quick follow up - I asked the last question because what your life is like has some bearing on how you can manage your condition, which is the next step in the process.

Oh dear, am I sounding like a know-it-all cow?

dontrunwithscissors · 31/03/2011 14:10

I've been told I might/probably have bipolar II, after suffering god-awful PND after DD2, and going high when I took AD's (both citalopram and sertraline). (There are other things, but I won't go into them here.) I took olanzapine whilst in hospital. I found it gave me the munchies very badly. I subsequently took quetiapine (also an anti-psychotic, used as a mood stabiliser). I found that it actually made me more depressed, as if it were slowing me down too much. It also affected my memory. I'm now on lamotrigine, an anti-convulsant, as a mood stabiliser. It's supposed to be very good for depression. I'm hopeful.

As to how to deal with the diagnosis - I don't know. I'm still where you are, really. I'm having counselling, and I'm hoping that will help me get my head around everything. I think that, when I'm feeling well, I can accept the thought of being bipolar as simply a label, but also that having the right diagnosis will help me get back to normality. When I feel low it feels like it's devastating.

MissTired · 31/03/2011 14:31

hi, ive recently been diagnosed with bipolar - well last november but that feels recent!! i go on this forum sometimes which is good -
www.mentalhealthforum.net/forum/forumdisplay.php?37-Bipolar-Disorder-Manic-Depression-Forum

Celibin · 03/04/2011 17:24

I have a friend and a colleague who both have bipolar : about 1% of the population has it The first is under gp the second under a psychiatrist.The first Gp must be amazing as few GPs can diagnose She does not take any meds The second told me she has had problems since her diagnosis e.g she has to pay more for her travel insurance I gather the implications such a diagnosis MAY have on your life are significant esp if you are young I think this is why the GP did not send the first one to the psychiatrist. There is prejudice against mental health patients although the travel firm would in any case exclude any preexisting conditions not just mental health as this would be discrinatory.I do know not where you can find out any more info. I have another friend in the medical field who told me Mental Health is often a money making business with patients forced to go on 6 monthly psychiatric visits or face sectionning. Why not contact an INDEPENDENT CHARITY for help: there are plenty who are not linked to NHS or hospitals so you will not be forced into anything. Hospitals have groups for people for bi-polar to join but you may be obliged to take meds if you go there. If the psychiatrist is any good he/she will explore the reasons for your illness get to the bottom of things not merely dump you on medicines but if you feel meds are helping you then that is your choice. This is a mine field, this mental health

manicinsomniac · 06/04/2011 00:47

I have cylothymia. It'a basically a mild bipolar (though lots of people with it don't like it being put like that!)

I'm very rapid cycling. Not really sure I can say anything to help, I don't control mine too well. Available if you need to vent though.

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