Do I have bipolar disorder?

[whatisforteamum]

I've had anxiety and depression all my life and an eating disorder in my 20s.Every winter my mood is lower due to seasonal affective disorder then come march my mood lifts consider ably.
This made me wonder if I have bipolar.People say I'm weird or crazy as I love working and do have hyper active times.I can start lots of tasks at once at home and work.
I often say inappropriate things.I had an affair years ago and had a huge sex drive and lived a double life for two years.
I wake early and can instantly start the chores.
I talk fast and a lot
I can become restless.
Equally recently I've been low
Struggled to do much except work....I do work long hours
Lost interest in most things
Slept loads and felt exhausted.
I feel like I have more energy and enthusiasm than people half my age.I'm 51.
Any replies from people with this appreciated.

The season cycling sounds more like Seasonal Affective Disorder than bipolar. Bipolar is disabling. Not loads of energy one day and down the next. There are patterns. Depression suicidal and bedbound, high taking massive risks, loans, debts, jobs, everything.
Bipolar doesn't make you 'weird or crazy'. Hyperactivity can be normal.
Hypersexuality can be an aspect of mania but you wouldn't have a double life. You'd be so turned on you could hump anything and then some, dressing provocatively and not hiding it from anyone as you just don't care, it feels so good. This would not be a one off occurrence, but consistent with high mood. It would probably go along with spending money you haven't got.
Bipolar worsens with age. The longer it is untreated, the worse it gets, as the highs and lows damage the brain.
The fact you had an eating disorder makes me think that much of what you describe is emotional. Being hyperactive is a defence against depression but not maintainable, so inevitably, you crash. Bipolar is disabling, many people cannot work due to it, it damages relationships, wrecks lives with the risky behaviour. It requires informing the DVLA as you are too dangerous to drive in certain mood states.
If your tasks are grandiose, you think you will change the world, they involve emailing important people ramblings about your genius then this is mania. If it is being high achieving, this is high achieving.
Basically, both mania and depression cause severe impacting on day to day living.
So does that help you work things out?
Regarding medication antidepressants tend to induce mania. You would need mood stabilisers as opposed to anti depressants. Mania and depression both cause psychosis in some people, either grandiose beliefs of greatness, hearing voices, having delusions. Psychotic depression also brings with it feelings of guilt, being guilty of things you aren't, that you are evil, others are going to get you etc.
May be worth talking to a GP?

Seasonality can be a soft marker for bipolar disorder. If you were in the US where they diagnose a LOT of bipolar disorder I am sure you likely would be given that diagnosis (bipolar 2 not 1, because you don’t describe anything that sounds like mania, only hypomania). Another possibility is adult ADHD, which (research increasingly shows) presents with a lot of emotional/ ‘mood’ symptoms. In fact there is a lot of comborbidity between the two and, even when there isn’t, they can be hard to tell apart.

My best clue: how often does the hyperactivity / excess energy occur? If it’s pretty often — eg you’re getting stuck into work projects in an obsessive hyperfocused way every week — it’s probably ADHD. (Depression is MUCH more common than mania in bipolar 2.) Are there periods of remission where you feel a lot more stable for no apparent reason? In that case, more likely to be bipolar, because ADHD is pretty enduring/ constant over a long time period.

The Nightingale hospital has some really good psychiatrists with experience in distinguishing the two things, if you can afford to go privately.

Thank you both.yes I did risk a lot in my affair .It was if I were on a high.People.have told me I'm overtly sexual however I do work in a male dominated trade.
Perhaps some of it is adrenaline highs....working long hours and rushing around.All of my siblings have MH issues and two can't work.One has paranoid schizophrenia. and we all have some kind of depression or anxiety.even the non blood related CSIS.

You could well have bipolar 2 or cyclothymia

What you describe sounds like hypomania

The only person who can diagnose you is a psychiatrist, not someone over the internet!! Could you ask to be referred?

I have hypomania not full on bipolar 2 and untreated it has a huge impact on my life

Hi how does it present itself in you dirtypretty thing.I must apologise to anyone offend by me saying I'm crazy or weird .I meant about myself not my perception of MH issues.

OP I was diagnosed with bipolar (don't know which type my notes just say bipolar) a year ago. I too go into hypomania rather than full on mania. It is disabling. I now take lithium and it has stabilised my moods so much. I tried mitazapine (excuse the spelling) and olanzapine before being put on lithium. Both just increased my moods.