So, your Doctor said you were bipolar... but how do you really know? What evidence do they have to prove you are Bipolar? After all, Bipolar is one of those "major" mental illnesses. And sometimes you are fine, so you can't possible have Bipolar, right?
Wrong. The thing with Bipolar Disorder is that it is tricky. It is extremely difficult to diagnose, and there are periods of time where people with Bipolar Disorder feel good, stable, even great! Not exactly what you would expect a mental illness to feel like, right? To read the full diagnostic criteria for Bipolar, check out this pdf: https://media.mycme.com/documents/168/dsm-5_bipolar_and_related_diso_41789.pdf First off, there are different types of Bipolar Disorder. We will start with Bipolar One...
BIPOLAR ONE DISORDER 1. Have you had a distinct period in your life where your mood was elevated/up, or particularly irritable, or much grander and open than before? Did this period last most of the day, every day, for at least a week? If yes, move onto number 2. 2. During this period in your life did you experience 3-4 of the following?
a) Inflated self-esteem or even grandiosity. You thought you were all that and a bag of chips! Perhaps you even felt god-like! b) You slept less. Not because you were experiencing insomnia... instead, you just didn't need sleep. Maybe only a couple of hours a night for weeks, and yet you didn't feel a bit tired! c) You were more talkative than you were normally, and you just felt this need to keep talking. People around you found the amount you were talking overwhelming, and they couldn't get a word in edgewise!
d) Your thoughts were racing, and you kept thinking of one idea and then would distracted with a different ideat. The thoughts made sense to you, but people around you couldn't keep up with it.
e) You were really distracted, and couldn't focus even when you really wanted to. You kept noticing things all around you, and it felt like the whole word was connected, but you couldn't bring your attention back to where it was supposed to be.
f) You were suddenly extremely focused on reaching your goals (work/school/sex, whatever). Everything you did had to be focused towards whatever goal it was, even if it was one you just thought of... OR you were physically agitated and you couldn't stop moving around, even though you didn't know what to do or where to go.
g) You were involved in activities that would lead you down a bad path... excessive sex, buying sprees (often with money you don't have), investing in business deals without any thought, etc. Did you nod your head to at least 3-4 of the above situations? Go to #3.
3. Did this cause a major problem with your family, school, or your career? Or did you require hospitalization? Or did you experience psychosis during this time (hearing voices, seeing things, believing things that weren't true)? If so, Go to #4.
4. Were you one drugs, including anti-depressants? If no, see the next point. If yes, Did these symptoms stop once you stopped the drugs? If no, see the next point. So if you experienced at least one of these expansive, huge, fast-moving, crazy acting periods in your life, and it cause major issues with your family/career and you weren't on drugs, then you probaby have Bipolar 1. Bipolar 1 does NOT require you to have a depressive episode... but they usually do have depressive episodes. We will talk about those more in Bipolar 2.
BIPOLAR 2 DISORDER
1. Have you had a distinct period in your life where your mood was elevated/up, or particularly irritable, or much grander and open than before? Did this period last most of the day, every day, for at least 4 days in a row? If yes, move onto number 2. 2. During this period in your life did you experience 3-4 of the following?
a) Inflated self-esteem or even grandiosity. You thought you were all that and a bag of chips! Perhaps you even felt god-like! b) You slept less. Not because you were experiencing insomnia... instead, you just didn't need sleep. Maybe only a couple of hours a night for weeks, and yet you didn't feel a bit tired! c) You were more talkative than you were normally, and you just felt this need to keep talking. People around you found the amount you were talking overwhelming, and they couldn't get a word in edgewise!
d) Your thoughts were racing, and you kept thinking of one idea and then would distracted with a different ideat. The thoughts made sense to you, but people around you couldn't keep up with it.
e) You were really distracted, and couldn't focus even when you really wanted to. You kept noticing things all around you, and it felt like the whole word was connected, but you couldn't bring your attention back to where it was supposed to be.
f) You were suddenly extremely focused on reaching your goals (work/school/sex, whatever). Everything you did had to be focused towards whatever goal it was, even if it was one you just thought of... OR you were physically agitated and you couldn't stop moving around, even though you didn't know what to do or where to go.
g) You were involved in activities that would lead you down a bad path... excessive sex, buying sprees (often with money you don't have), investing in business deals without any thought, etc. Did you nod your head to at least 3-4 of the above situations? Go to #3.
3. Were you still able to go to work most days, hang out with your family, do your school assignments? Basically, could you keep up with real life? If yes, go to #4. If no, maybe check out Bipolar 1 disorder.
4. Was the above change in mood and behaviuor noticable to your friends and family? Could they see something was different from the "Normal you"? Was it definitely different from the way you usually behave? If so, go to #5
5. Were you high? Were you on any medication, including antidepressants? Did this mood and these behaviours stick around once you weren't on the medications/drugs anymore? If Yes, see the final point. These are all symptoms of Hypomania. It isn't as severe as mania (discussed under Bipolar 1) because you can still function while hypomanic. Hypomania can be amazing, and often people don't go to the doctor with hypomania, and they just get diagnosed with depression. Unfortunately, the same medications that treat depression can cause people with Bipolar 2 to experience mania, rapid-cycling or they can have no effect at all. To be diagnosed with Bipolar 2, you have to have experienced depression. Depression is common in both Bipolar 1 and Bipolar 2, but is only required for diagnosis in Bipolar 2. I won't go into the details here, but basically you have to feel pretty depressed for a full period of 2 weeks.
So are you bipolar? Are you still wondering? Here are a few quizzes that can help you see if Bipolar is possibility for you. Take the results to your physician, and ask about seeing a psychiatrist.
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