Posted by Utopia on December 28, 2003, at 19:26:28
In reply to Re: ---- I think I might have the wrong diagnosis-----, posted by sailor on December 28, 2003, at 10:08:19
Hi Jeff
I don't want to sound pseudo-intellectual purely because I've been through the same frustrations. My condition is almost identical to yours and mimicks the symptoms almost identically.
I venture to say that it is refractory Bipolar II, however your frustration is that the mood shifts are unpredicatable. Although one could say that it is the nature of beast, it does not solve the problem.
Being more helpful however, there is a further complication to Bipolar II and that is measuring how many times the mood shifts, including the irritability. This obviously helps treatment. Generally what you have is termed as "Rapid Cycling" meaning the amount of shifts of a mood. Usually it can change once a week, once every three weeks and is part of Bipolar II Disorder. Should these cycles be long as in months then it wouldn't fall under rapid cycling and the condition is generally Bipolar I. However, it can go to "Ultra-Rapid" or "Ultra Ultra-Rapid Cycling". This means the mood can even change 3-4 times in a day. The more rapid, the more difficult to treat and stabilize. An Ultra Rapid Cycler can have a cup of coffee and it will destabilize his mood and make his condition closer to remaining refractory.
Obviously the treatment revolves around mood stabilizers and appropriate anti-depressants which won't make you 'switch' to another mood state or make you more irritable.
It's a fine path to walk.
I hope I was some help. Good luck.
P.S. A good indication if you are a Rapid Cycler is to notice just how sensitive and responsive you are to excitory chemicals like caffeine and nicotine. If after a cup of coffee the response is almost immediate and perks you up a ton, it means you are "exquisitively sensitive" to stimulants (and probably depressants like alcohol as well). People who respond this way and have Bipolar II are usually rapid cyclers because their mood destabilizes so easily. This is however just a rule of thumb.
poster:Utopia
thread:293938
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20031225/msgs/294150.html