Diagnosis

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GoldenPsych

Well-Known Member
#1
A few people have mentioned to me that they see signs of being bi=polar in me.

I am not so sure. I don't know what I can do.

I don't know if I am twisting things I have done and thinking that could be mania or hypomania or is it just personality traits in me.

I have written on my blog a bit about this in the last few posts.

Also. I am on facebook now as Golden Psych. If you add me let me know what your nickname is on here.

The thoughts are still with me. I don't know how to turn them off. I keep trying to distract myself but it's not really working. I feel the need to self harm also. I am trying to distract myself but it's just not happening!
 

ali 56

Well-Known Member
#2
keep distracting I am listening to david bowie on utube, I know it's hard I failed last night just keep hanging on in there - take deep breaths and take care Ali xx
 

itmahanh

Senior Member & Antiquities Friend
#3
Have yourself diagnosed by a professional. There are meds that can help stablize the mood swings. It is very important that you get the right diagnoses so that you have a place to start from.
 

GoldenPsych

Well-Known Member
#4
They haven't diagnosed anything just said there is traits of PD. I refuse to have that diagnosis as I don't believe it is it. I have written many posts on it and blogs. I just feel because I am female and self harm that that's it. So I am written off.

They have not actually said anything other than that. So I can rule it out I may say a friend who is a psych nurse has said possibly Bipolar. I am not sure. I don't think so. Tests tell you you have everything. I did some online ones earlier and apparently I am schizophrenic, bipolar, have erectile dysfunction (I am female, it didn't think to ask what gender you were...it killed me doing it though, it was so funny), GAD, PTSD, depression, dissociative disorder and a few more. No wonder why Docs hate Dr Google.
 

starryeyed

Well-Known Member
#5
I was told I was bi polar and then I was schziophrenic .Now Im off my meds and fine other than my life is hell atm.I wouldnt listen to diagnosis really .But if you have been psychotic in the past and have been admitted to hospital there could be a chance you do have something.If you have never been that bad then maybe you have mild strains of something .Which if you medicate will wipe out anything you have left inside yourself.I wouldnt go on meds unless I was actually psychotic or unable to live a normal life .
Im obv not a doctor but have a lot of experience with all this .To be fair bi polar individuals at their worst like maniac or down ,need help.Theres no way it would go unnoticed by people if you were bi polar ,it would be pretty obvious there was something seriously wrong .Ive seen women tied down and others tearing their hair out ,its not a pretty sight.
 

itmahanh

Senior Member & Antiquities Friend
#6
To be fair bi polar individuals at their worst like maniac or down ,need help.Theres no way it would go unnoticed by people if you were bi polar ,it would be pretty obvious there was something seriously wrong .Ive seen women tied down and others tearing their hair out ,its not a pretty sight.
Well I'm bipolar and your observations scare me personally. I still have all my hair and no one has ever had to tie me down. I get extremely manic then slide right into deep depression. Now hair pulling and being tied down is going to be thrown in the mix????? God help me.
 

starryeyed

Well-Known Member
#7
Those observations are based on what I have seen as an inpatient.These people had never been medicated and got to the stage where they were signed in .Im not saying everyone with bi polar has this.But I asked the psych if a person had bi polar how would you know.She said they wouldnt be able to live a normal life or hold down a job and would need help definately.Im going to go with her and say that someone with bi polar would eventually need help and meds .It would not go unnoticed .You would stand out as being unwell at some stage .Like being psychotic ,its going to get noticed .
 
#8
i think what your psych said is pretty offensive, speaking as another person with bipolar. it is possible to manage this disease and have regular relationships, work, and stay out of the hospital. yes, you will end up in difficulty if you don't take your meds and ignore self-care (good sleep patterns being the most important thing). but it's not as bleak as you are making it sound.
 

GoldenPsych

Well-Known Member
#9
I've worked with lots of bipolar people before. While I have seen a couple who were very manic and possibly psychotic. While they had to be restrained it wasn't very common. It is possible to live a normal life with bipolar. Look at Stephen Fry!
 

solutions

Well-Known Member
#11
There's absolutely no way to get an accurate diagnosis without a complete psychological evaluation, preferably taken over the span of several days.

Now, if you were manic-depressive, you would definitely know it. By definition, manic-depression requires that you have had a manic episode. Manic episodes aren't something that can be subjugated or hidden. Even those with major depression are capable of masking their symptoms, but a manic episode is impossible to keep covert. Not that you'd want to hide it, anyway. Inappropriate sociability is a sign of mania. As are excessive spending, racing thoughts, pressured or rapid speech, grandiosity, significantly less need for sleep, and inflated self-esteem.

Unless you've had an experience like that for at least a week, a diagnosis of manic-depression type 1 is highly unlikely. Type 2 is still possible if you've experienced hypomania, but revolves less around hypomania and more around depressive episodes.

Anyway, to return to my original point, all the online tests you'll find are crap, like that stupid 4degreez thing everyone throws around. A doctor needs to sit with you, ask you questions about your history, observe how you behave during the interview, and utilize any other objective information they can attain to make an accurate diagnosis. It's best if it's done over several days, since one person's behavior can change from day to day, corrupting the results.
 

starryeyed

Well-Known Member
#12
I agree .Its very hard to diagnose someone.I have been seeing doctors for five years and they had chance to observe me in hospital and they still dont really know what was or is wrong with me.
 

Sadeyes

Staff Alumni
#13
Diagnoses are ranges of mental states and therefore require a more intense investigation of a person's behavior over varying experiences...self-report, observation and empirical tests are a battery of evaluative tools, and a skilled practioner will know what to use and when...as RP said, there are several axises of bipolar disorder, each treated differently, with differing medications and prognoses...but more critical than formal testing is what someone does with what s/he has and this is not usually captured effectively in a diagnostic battery...I think the client/patient should be his/her advocate and make sure the provider knows his/her chief concerns and what negatively and positively effects his/her life...J
 

solutions

Well-Known Member
#14
To add to what sadeyes said, clinicians who try to treat you focus on symptoms, not diagnoses. Few people fall into the neat little categories the DSM-IV has for us. For the huge number of us that are in-between diagnoses (and really, for anyone), the symptoms are treated, not the diagnoses. The "Not Otherwise Specified" label is becoming increasingly popular. If you have symptoms of several diagnoses, it won't mean anything. You'll just get treated for the symptoms that most get in your way of functioning.
 
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