Posted by fallsfall on June 28, 2003, at 15:37:19
In reply to Cyclothymia/BPll? Avoidant Personality/SAD ( long, posted by Saltmarsh Rose on June 28, 2003, at 14:20:36
Hi Rose,
First, don't put TOOO much stock in the online diagnostics. I have Borderline Personality Disorder, and the online test said that I had 3 other Personality Disorders, but not Borderline. The tests are fun, but I wouldn't bet too much money on them.
Personally, I think it is more accurate to find a copy of the DSM-IV diagnosis criteria and see if you think that you fit that.
I think that the diagnosis are for the therapist and pdoc's benefit. A particular illness may be known to respond to a particular therapy or drug. So if you know you have that illness it is easier and faster to know what will work.
Are you on meds? How long have you been on them?
You say that your time with your psychologist is short - am I right to assume that this means that you have a (insurance) limited number of sessions? If it is a small number then I think it is likely that your psychologist will be addressing the issues that you think are most pressing (i.e. the "crisis") rather than underlying structures. As such, the method that he uses for you won't be that different from other people - there isn't time for it to be much different.
I certainly think that it would be worth your while to say that you were looking online and wondered about the Avoidant Personality Disorder. Then maybe he would think about it, and tell you what he thought.
The way I read it (and I am NOT a professional), Cyclothymia has the ups and downs like BPII, but the highs are not as high, and the lows are not as low, and (maybe?) there is less middle time. My guess is that if they diagnosed you with BPII, they thought your mania and depression were significant enough. But it does say you can have both, so maybe I'm not understanding it right.
poster:fallsfall
thread:237722
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/psycho/20030529/msgs/237733.html