My Mom thinks I'm Bipolar I dont know what to do help!!!!!!!?

Question

Neither of us really trust doctors so thats a problem but I can't really afford to waste money on a doc anyways.

Well I guess I have a 85% chance of survival

Answer 1

Well, if you are bipolar (and never ever, trust internet or non-psychiatrist diagnosis), then you're going to have to learn to trust doctors because you will be seeing a lot of them.

Bipolar is lifelong, and if you are bipolar then work out whether the cost of a doctor is worth it or not: untreated, bipolar sufferers have a 20-25% risk of suicide and 15% of them succeed.

That's right, read it again. If you ARE bipolar, and choose to do nothing about it, then you have a 1 in 6 chance of killing yourself. It's your call, but maybe, just maybe that doctor's appointment may be worthwhile.

Answer 2

Well, if you feel you're not bipolar and she thinks you are, then you're best bet is to show her the DSM-IV-TR (Diagnostic Statistic Manual - 4 - Text Revision) criteria and see if you fit or not. A lot of people think bipolar applies when someone just is moody or has a lot of up and down days, but that couldn't be further front the truth. I'm going to include a link to the criteria for the DSM-IV-R.

Look at it and see if it fits you. Note that you don't have to meet all the criteria -- just a certain number. If it does, of course, you'd want to see a psychiatrist so that an expert can help decide and treat you. You wouldn't want to try to live your life without being treated if you truly are bipolar -- trust me on this; my mom was bipolar.

If it doesn't fit you, you have scientific proof to show your Mom that her non-expert "diagnosis" holds no weight and that she's wrong. And you can do it in a calm, non-confrontational way. If you don't meet the experts' definition of bipolar, then she can't argue that you do. =)

There are several different types of Bipolar disorder (labeled Bipolar I, Bipolar II, etc.), so there's more than one link. I wish you the best of luck either way and here's the links:

http://www.psychologynet.org/bipolar1.html
http://www.psychologynet.org/bipolar2.html

Look under the diagnostic criteria (the second list just under the ad) for each one. I think you must meet 5 of the 9 listed criteria to receive the diagnosis.

There are also related diagnoses of cyclothymia and Bipolar Disorder NOS (Not Otherwise Specified) which it might be interesting for you to look at.

for a little more information on bipolar disorder and more links, here's the Wikipedia link:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bipolar_disorder

One last thing -- a diagnosis (or non-diagnosis) is not the end of the world and "by the book" is not always right. This is just a guideline to help. Ultimately, you have to make the decisions that are best for you. There's nothing wrong with getting help, whether you have a "named disorder" or not ... and there's nothing wrong with telling your Mom that she's not an expert and can't diagnose you. At least now you're armed with some facts.

Best wishes,

Nathan

Answer 3

If you don't trust doctors and don't want to waste money... getting help. Then I'm not sure what your other options are now.

Try keeping a mood journal for now. Where you write down your feelings each day and give the day a "rating" sorta like 1-5...5 is feeling very manic, 4 would be pre-manic/hypomanic 3 is normal, stable 2 is slightly depressed, 1 is very depressed/can't get out of bed. I'd also encourage you to have your Mom write down her assessment of your mood (1-5) each day too. It helps to get an outside perspective at times.

Answer 4

You need to do a little research.

Bipolar illness is a cycling between moods of mania and depression. Often they exist at the same time. It usually occurs over the course of several weeks. (August into September, coincidentally, is a month when bipolar kicks in for some people) . Often, there is a manic episode, followed by a huge crash of depression. Stress can bring on the bipolar episode.

Symptoms of the manic (severe mood uptick) portion of the disease:

Euphoria (deep sense of happiness, everything is wonderful, like your thoughts are a gift from God)
High energy levels, frenetic activity
Rapid thinking, rapid speech
Thoughts jumping from topic to topic, a feeling like you're way ahead of people in your thoughts and views on life.
Grandiose ideas (solving the problems of the world, taking on or creating huge projects)
Loud speech, talking over people or interrupting
Lack of proper amount of sleep, staying up to 3 or 4 am, sleeping for a few hours, getting up for the day at 7 or 8
Overspending, no self restraint in spending habits
Heightened sexual activity and behavior, sometimes inappropriate
speech attached to those thoughts

As it gets worse:

Extreme irritability
Irrational arguing
Efforts to intimidate the other person
Abnormal swearing, cursing

Major Depression (severe downtick in mood, lasting more than a couple of days, lasting for several weeks, not due to situational loss/grief)

Feelings of worthlessness, suicide
Low energy level
More sleeping or less sleeping, whatever is abnormal from normal sleep habits
No sense of hope


Treatment may require hospitalization.

You would need to be assessed by a doctor or psychiatrist (mental illness doctor).

Sometimes other diseases masquerade as bipolar:

Substance-induced (illegal drugs) mood disorder
ADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder)
Borderline personality
Cyclothymic disorder (rapid cycling of moods)
Schizophrenia (sim. to bipolar, severe extremes, totally out of touch with reality, paranoia)
Recurrent major depression

Answer 5

Get a good psychiatric evaluation, and maybe even a second opinion before you start any medications. Questionairres aren't accurate, and there are a lot of mental illnesses that can be misdiagnosed as bipolar. Psychiatric drugs can be dangerous if prescribed for the wrong thing, so the diagnosis is the most important thing to get.

Answer 6

I would urge you to talk with your family doctor. If you are bipolar there are things you can do to keep it "in check". My family has suffered badly because of a relative who is bipolar, but refuses any treatment. Being bipolar wouldn't be anything to be embarrassed about and nobody really even needs to know. If left untreated, it only gets worse with age.

Answer 7

Unless your mom is a doc. Go to a real one and find out.

Answer 8

If you are swinging between emotional highs and lows you may be bi-polar. But the only one who can diagnose you is a doctor. Please make an appointment.
You may or may not have this condition, but if your life could be made better and more stable... wouldn't that be wonderful?

Answer 9

Go to bipolar.com, Answer the questions honestly. Then find a doctor and therapist to go too.

Answer 10

What does your mom want to do about it? If she wants to take you to a psyciatrist, go and be honest with him or her. A professional will be able to make an accurate diagnosis and if you are get you the help you need. If you're not, they will talk with your mom about it.