The H in ADHD? Or Bipolar traits?

[Lovemusic33]

So, I am undiagnosed (by choice) but pretty sure I have ADHD but some tell me I have Bipolar traits. At the moment I’m going through what I call a ‘hyper’ few days/weeks but I’m unsure if this is just my ADHD or if it’s more a bipolar episode? Just wondering if anyone else experiences what I do.

I have periods of being extremely active, sometimes it’s fuelled by a interest and other times by me just feeling I need to keep busy, I can go days (sometimes a few weeks) with being unable to sit down and relax, I keep very active, usually by walking miles, cleaning, gardening or doing a interest. During this time I find it hard to be sociable with anyone (unless they want to talk about my interest) and I can’t seem to be interested in what others are doing, I tend not to visit friends or family and I spend most things time on my own. Yesterday I went on 4 walks and probably walked around 20-25k 😬 and did some gardening. I feel full of energy that I feel I need to use, struggling to sleep and struggling to relax. Usually it ends up with me crashing and sleeping for a couple days before it starts again. I don’t feel depressed so I don’t think it’s can be a bipolar trait? I don’t really have highs and lows as such, just exhaustion after a couple weeks of moving around non stop.

Is this just a part of ADHD?

That doesn't sound like adhd to me. I have inattentive type.

I have adhd and can get like this. Not so much now that I'm getting older, but certainly when I was younger. Sometimes I go mad cleaning or gardening and then crash for a few days. Also, my hyperfocus comes into play during those busy times.

I am no expert on either condition but I do know that bipolar can affect people differently- some people are more depressed and some more manic. I don't know enough about ADHD but it does sound a bit like a manic episode - presumably you haven't lost touch with reality during these phases though?

No loss of reality, I kind of know that I’m doing it (being a bit manic), I worry what others must think, I’m sure it must be noticeable to people around me. I know eventually I will crash but it doesn’t really bother me as I know after a day or 2 I will be back to being hyper again. I really struggle if I have to stay at home for a couple days, being unwell really does make me feel depressed because I have to force myself to rest. I find it hard to focus on one thing unless it’s something I’m obsessed with (one of my interests) and I think the warmer weather makes me want to be outside either exercising or gardening. It often means important things get put to one side and forgotten about, I do try and set aside a day each week to do the things I have forgotten to do 🤣.

Sometimes I seem to forget that other people like to rest or have a day/half day watching tv, I struggle to do this, I think my teenagers get fed up with me dragging them out to do things when they really want to stay at home and relax, although dd2 is very similar to me and likes to keep busy, possibly my fault.