Are you bipolar?

Basically, I go through periods (usually lasting a few months at a time) where I am either abnormally depressed and do stupid things because of the depressions such as have suicidal ideations, stay in bed all the time, self injure etc. and then after a few months will have a period of abnormal….I wouldn’t call it “happiness” per se, but hyperactivity where I might do reckless things such as overspend, overeat, etc.

I used to take medications but I stopped. I’ve tried various cocktails of just about every med for this that there is. I will not take medication for it (or for depression or anxiety) ever again due to the weight gain side effects. I now keep it under control with therapy.

Also, and I’m sure some will be skeptical of this, but the fear of having to go back on the meds is a good motivator for keeping me aware of what I’m doing and changing my behavior before I do something stupid. Thinking about cutting myself? Usually I’ll stop because I don’t want to go back on the meds and gain back all the weight I lost. Thinking of spending $500 on crap I don’t need? Nope. Not gonna do it because they’ll make me take the meds. The fear of those meds works wonders for me.

wow, awesome....wish I had more fear of this meds **** than in being this wreck for some weeks again and again....
:frown:

Basically, I go through periods (usually lasting a few months at a time) where I am either abnormally depressed and do stupid things because of the depressions such as have suicidal ideations, stay in bed all the time, self injure etc. and then after a few months will have a period of abnormal….I wouldn’t call it “happiness” per se, but hyperactivity where I might do reckless things such as overspend, overeat, etc.

I used to take medications but I stopped. I’ve tried various cocktails of just about every med for this that there is. I will not take medication for it (or for depression or anxiety) ever again due to the weight gain side effects. I now keep it under control with therapy.

Also, and I’m sure some will be skeptical of this, but the fear of having to go back on the meds is a good motivator for keeping me aware of what I’m doing and changing my behavior before I do something stupid. Thinking about cutting myself? Usually I’ll stop because I don’t want to go back on the meds and gain back all the weight I lost. Thinking of spending $500 on crap I don’t need? Nope. Not gonna do it because they’ll make me take the meds. The fear of those meds works wonders for me.

wow, awesome....wish I had more fear of this meds **** than in being this wreck for some weeks again and again....
:frown:

Oh don't get me wrong. If I injure myself or do anything that indicates I can't control it without meds, they are going to force me to go back on them. Though, to be honest, if they do that, I probably will just stop going for therapy, period.

There aren't words for how much I hate these medications and what they do to people.

Bipolar II here. I don't do meds. When I tried a few years ago they made things MUCH worse. I felt like there was another voice in my head that was telling me to do things that I would never think of doing on my own. When I got off the meds (tried a few different ones) the symptoms stopped. I've learned to cope with the swings on my own. It's' not always easy, but at least I feel like I am in control.

It is absolutely essential that you take medication

No, it's not. Not for everyone. It is a chemical disorder, yes. But it has many behavioral symptoms and if you can recognize the symptoms and control them without medication, like I do, you will be just fine.

Being on meds ruined my life. I strongly caution anyone against taking them without very seriously sitting down and discussing the side effects with a doctor. Aside from the weight gain, I was constantly sick, and felt like a zombie most of the time.

It does effect people differently. I would recommend everyone to talk to a doctor... but, I would never caution people to not take meds. I am on meds, and I feel 100x better with them. I felt like a zombie at first... but, I stuck it out until the doctors found the right combination for me.

No, but I know people who are that I am very close with.... let's just say it's not fun, even as an outsider. The person I know has Type 2, so it's not the stereotypical outbursts that we always see on tv as the "typical" bipolar. But it is very helpful to be seeing a psychiatrist, having medications and learning what your triggers are (or if you are close with someone with bipolar disorder to learn what their triggers are and help them through it) and learning how to avoid them or deal with them if you can't avoid it. The person I know becomes a workaholic when they are in their manic state. Constantly working, doing something, anything. Then the depressive state, will be mostly sleeping... the most irritable... just has no interest in anything.

I have an appt at the end of October and I will bring it up. I am just going to try to read up as much as possible until then.

Can't you get in sooner?

OMG a lot of psych drs are backed up the wazzoo in appointments and if you don't have good insurance or are on state/govt insurance there is up to a 2-3 month wait for new pt appt unless you go to the pysch emergency. I know a low-income clinic in Dallas has a 4 month wait.

I am Bipolar II as many are here at MFP. (Hmmm, wonder if we are a higher percent of the population trying to lose weight due to manic behaviors or emotional eating.....anyway, back to post)

I see a Psychiatrist for Meds amd minimal counseling. I see a marriage counselor with my wife to help me recalibrate my behaviors and understand our relationship from my wife's point of view.

I take lithium (cheap stuff) and Wellbutrin (not too expensive either). I learned a lot about Psych meds from WWW.crazymeds.com
You can end up trying them and going through a lot of bad experiences/side effects until you get the right ones. I had very bad experiences with my anti-depressants (very compulsive behavior, feelings of invincibility, overactive sex drive) until I did my own research (see website above) and I recommended the med for my Psych to prescribe to me. He asked me for my reasons, I responded with what I learned, and he said "OK!."

Being bipolar does not go away. You are not cured. You manage. You manage your behavior day to day. Meds alone do not always solve all the behavior problems. But that also means the good aspects of being bipolar: the energy, the creativity, the things you do and say that make people laugh or be inspired by you, that gets diminished as well. The trick is to find the balance in the meds and behavior mods that mitigates the unwanted behaviors ans still leaves enough of your personal "sparkle" to make you feel like you are still "you" and not a drugged zombie.

I'm bipolar. There are extremely different levels and types of bipolar disorder, though. There's rapid cycling, bipolar I, bipolar II . . . you get the idea. Unfortunately for me, I don't get the ecstatic "highs" that some people get when manic. Instead, my manic cycles tend to consist of extreme anxiety rather than happiness. I HAVE had some cases of extreme ecstasy in the past, though.

Be careful, because bipolar disorder and borderline personality disorder are often diagnosed for each other.

I have been on antidepressants AND mood stabilizers, but, to be honest, there is no "magic pill." Mood stabilizers can help make your ups and downs less extreme, but you will still have ups and downs that are probably more extreme than the average person.

I have been off prescription meds for the past several months, though, and have found that doing yoga + other exercises EVERY day helps me just as much as my low-dose mood stabilizer ever did. Also, natural compounds like L-Theanine are helpful. (Look it up; it's been proven to help with bipolar disorder and with anxiety, and his way less side-effects than a lot of the stuff doctors have prescribed me. It's naturally found in green tea, but you need capsules to get a high enough dose to be effective; at least, I do.)

I strongly encourage you to explore exercise, acupuncture, breathing methods, herbal remedies, and all kinds of "alternative therapies" even if you ARE on a prescribed mood stabilizer (just be careful of drug interactions), though, because one pill from the doctor alone is NOT going to be enough. You have to change your lifestyle. It took me years to realize this.

Therapy helps, too. But, for me, yoga and natural remedies are the way to go. Nothing has ever just been like "WOW! I FEEL TOTALLY NORMAL NOW! YAY!" But there are ways to lessen your severe episodes of depression/anxiety/mania.

I could go on and on about this, but I hope you find some relief! Ask me any specific thing you're curious about and I'd be glad to answer!