Bi-Polar?

[Zed85]

ABout a year ago I was diagnosed with Depression and was put on a course of cytalopram. things were getting better, but I was feelign more and more lethargic to the point where i could barely get out of bed in the mornings and was getting into trouble for turnign up late at work. So a decision was made around Christmas time to take me off and things got better and for a while my mood didn't suffer but eventually it did. However, this time, having been through it once before i'm more atune to how i feel and more aware of how i have felt before.

One of the things i've noticed is that i'm not feelign constantly depressed. there are times when i'm feeling 'normal' and even times when i'm actually really rather happy. Looking back on things i have always had peaks and troughs rather than a continual low mood, unless something has triggered off a period like that (as happened last year), I've looked into it and i feel like i share some of the symptoms of Bi-Polar disorder. I'm just worried now, do i really have something to worry about with this or am i just worrying about nothing and panicking myself for no reason?

[Edie]

Hi Zed,

It's normal for depression to go in cycles, so having periods of happiness aren't unusual.

People with bipolar disorder shouldn't normally take antidepressants by themselves, as they can push them into a manic episode. But the opposite happened to you, so that makes it less likely.

You haven't said so much about your happier episodes, so it's hard to know whether they might indicate bipolar. Hypomania is a less severe type of mania. In a hypomanic episode you would get symptoms like being very restless and distractible, sleeping less, risk-taking (things like overspending, reckless driving, oversexualised behaviour), having racing thoughts, sometimes people feel like they have to speak really fast to get their thoughts out.

Unless you're having symptoms like that, you're probably just having cyclic episodes where you get periods of feeling actually just how normal people feel.

[Zed85]

Thanks.

I do feel more energetic in my happier episodes, have to start exerising and still have energy to spare. I wouldn't say i feel arrogant or invincible, but i do feel so much more confident in everything about myself and the things i do.

I have had plenty of ideas and projects which i've started which i've never followed through on. I do get very easily agitated and irriated. I do have periods where i do act a lot more reckless than i usually do.

[rooby]

have you looked up bipolar 2? while there are periods of hypomania they are not as extreme as to be manic, and depression is the predominant symptom, this type of depression can be harder to treat and this is why once the dr diagnoses bipolar 2 you would be put on a mood stabilizer to help the depression but also stop you from entering a hyper state. It can take a while and lots of different medications before you may get an actual diagnosis of bipolar you may have to even see a psychiatrist, but if you think it sounds like what you have then don't be afraid to ask for a referral especially if any antidepressants you have tend to send you a bit hyper. All the best

[PanchoGoz]

Sounds like normal depression to me. I have the odd day where I feel normal but I get so thrilled about being normal I get too happy.

[ElizabethJane]

Dear Zed it is up to the skilled diagnosis of a psychiatrist to tell whether you are bi-polar or not? Sometimes it takes years to get a proper diagnosis. Your 'depression' might fit in somewhere on the bi-polar spectrum but that doesn't mean you are bi-polar. I have responded well to lithium treatment although I am not bi-polar I used to have extreme mood swings which have responded well to the drug. EJ