Psychological/Medical advice

[Deranged Nasat]

Thanks to everyone who responded to my earlier thread about my current personal issues. I'm sorry to start another, but I wanted to ask this separately because I'm hoping to gain more specific attention: those of you with psychological/medical backgrounds, of which I know there are several of you. I've already made a few initial private inquiries about this, and I should probably confirm right away that, yes, I've arranged an appointment with my doctor. However, in the week and a half before I can see him, it can't hurt to make use of the knowledge base at my disposal here.

In the past few days, I've been reading up on bipolar disorder, and I've come to strongly suspect that I have type-two bipolar, specifically mixed-state (dysphoric mania or agitated depression). I already knew I had severe depressive episodes, but I wasn't aware of the complexities of bipolar (that is to say, I was pretty much only aware of type 1, which I'm guessing is a common state of affairs). My knowledge of current psychological classifications wasn't at all good. Having read up on it, so many of the symptoms of mixed state bipolar II describe me, that while I'm naturally wary of latching on to it as "the answer", I can't help but feel there's a very good chance that I have it.

I'm sorry for how vague this request is, but those of you with better knowledge of the issue, personal or professional, is there anything you could point me to or help me with, or perhaps provide some background from more current sources than whatever's floating around the first few pages of a google search?

 

[Kestra]

I know that this isn't what you want to hear, but I'd actually avoid looking at the internet until after you speak to your doctor. It's way too easy to convince yourself that you have something, especially when it comes to psychological disorders. Definitely bring up your concerns with the doctor though, and if you are diagnosed, the internet might be helpful for finding support groups.

Take care, and message me if you ever need to talk.

 

[Kemaiku]

I'd recommend talking to a mental health professional right away, it usually takes time to diagnose and will probably mean meeting with them regularly and keeping track of any changes in mood, metabolism (bipolar can cause bodily regulation problems) and finding key 'triggers' for the mood swings.

If you do have type 2 then things will be somewhat easier, sufferers are higher functioning and have more regular up/down swings than those with type 1. But I'd still get some professional opinions, as Bipolar disorder and BPD (Borderline Personality Disorder) are quite similar. If it's even one of those.

My previous partner had severe bipolar disorder, my best friend has BPD and I suffer from clinical depression (all of us since we were 5) so yeah, I do think you should take this seriously and definitely find out one way or another if anything's wrong. But do see if stress or anxiety are the cause first and not leap to the worst case senario here.

Either way I hope it all turns out for the best. As for your situation at home, I'm in a similar situation myself and I can tell you that's a big chunk of the problem right there, coping mechanisms are a good idea to look into, stress relieving measures etc

 

[thestrangequark]

^Borderline and bipolar are quite similar? How so? I don't think they're similar at all.

Anyway, here is my input, as someone who has bipolar (1) and has formally studied psychology: definitely talk to you doctor first. Most of what you'll get from the internet, unless you're looking specifically at peer reviewed journal articles and research, is a lot of people talking out of their bums, giving a lot of anecdotal "evidence," and opinions which are highly suspect. Mental illness and disorder is such an emotional and hotly debated issue, that most anyone's advice is going to be tainted (including mine).

Therefore, trust in reason and science-based medicine. Be open-minded but critical.

That being said, here's my tainted advice: you know yourself better than anyone, and should it turn out that you do have a mood disorder, it is extremely important to find a doctor who respects you, and will work with you. I think doing your own research can be good too, but stick to valid sources, like peer-reviewed journals and professionals in the field.

Personally, I am a strong believer in a behavioral approach to treatment. I have taken medications in the past for my bipolar, and I credit them with saving my life. However, I found that, for me, medication wasn't the right option for long-term treatment. I would still consider it for the treatment of acute and severe episodes, but on a day-to-day basis I do better on my own. I do have to work at it, though: I had to get a new job, I worked hard to develop behaviors that help keep my symptoms in check, and that help manage symptoms when they appear, and I have to self-check, to make sure I'm not getting to the point where I can no longer manage my symptoms on my own. To sum up, I think medicine, therapy, and behavior modification (either done with a therapist or on one's own, as I do) can all be very effective. What works best depends on the individual, and how their disorder is affecting them at that particular time.

 

[Locutus of Bored]

Talk to a professional. The internet magnifies neuroses and illnesses by a factor of ten.

It seems like every other week my sister thinks she's coming down with sarcoidosis or lupus because of WebMD (and too much House). WebMD is a useful tool but it can be blown way out of proportion when it's not tempered by the experience and knowledge of a professional and a battery of tests to narrow things down.

 

[Deranged Nasat]

Thank you, all. I certainly acknowledge the recurring point here, that it's unwise to start making assumptions before I've seen a professional. I wouldn't want to convince myself I'd found the answer and then latch onto it unduly, or lead the doctor on somehow. I am pretty certain I have some sort of long-term mood disorder (I've been diagnosed with severe depression in the past, but long-term treatment wasn't really possible, moving between home and university as I was. Managing it enough to get me through university was the issue at the time, and that was successful). I just couldn't help but notice that the mixed-state bipolar descriptions I'd found seem to describe some of my long-term problems better than anything else I've seen. There was a very strong familiarity to it, and that was what provoked me into arranging a doctor's appointment.

Given that I've made some real progress of late in terms of my self-identity and self-regard, it's becoming clearer to me that there's a medical basis for some of my recurring problems as well, and I'll need to tackle that aspect too. I was in fact on medication for the depression a few years back, but I eventually stopped using it (I don't like being on medicinal drugs). I would be reluctant to go back on, but if that's what's required to prevent another relapse, I'll have to grudgingly accept it.

I'm rather embarrassed about the whole affair, to be honest. I know this is likely contributing to the urge to premature self-diagnosis, but it would be quite a relief to actually have a name for my troubles.