People with bipolar disorder?

Question

What does it feel like? I've read lists of symptoms and a few people (including ones on this site) have said that I may very well be bipolar. But I think I need to know exactly how it feels from the perspective of someone who is bipolar to know.

I do know that I have Seasonal Affective Disorder and I read that SAD can lead into bipolar disorder, so if you know anything about that, please explain as well.

In the manic stage, do you ever just feel like something is really funny when it's quite obvious nothing is, but you can't stop laughing or at least grinning? And does a racing pulse go with it? Mine was 101 last night for no apparent reason.

Answer 1

Yeup, I definitly believe in that SAD leading to bipolar because I have both. Really i never notice that I'm that bad until people say something about how scary I am from my anger or how i'm an asshole and really I don't view this of myself at all. I do notice occasionally the small things that send me into rage and I occasionally am really short with people.

Answer 2

I am a rapid-cycling bipolar. I go through mood changes very quickly. I can literally be depressed and unable to move one day and going 100 mph the next.
When I feel depressed I sleep a lot and can barely bring myself to leave the house. I can't see the point of living and don't want to speak to my family and friends. There have been a few times that it has gotten to the point where I am suicidal and have made attempts.
My manic phases are not as severe as they could be for bipolar people. I don't get the usual "up" that comes with a manic cycle. Instead my mind races, I get angry and frustrated easily, I am very impulsive to just say what I am thinking and I can go for days with no sleep.
Thankfully medication has made my symptoms far far less severe.
I don't know about SAD leading to bipolar. As far as I know there are no manic stages of SAD so I'm not sure how one can lead to the other.
Hope that helps and good luck!!

Answer 3

Hi,
I have Bipolar. For most of the time I feel quite normal, sometimes I feel depressed, tired,ratty,quick tempered, irritable, aggitated, I swear a lot, throw things, break things, kick things, curse everything, and generally feel that no matter what I go to do or touch it doesn't work, and then I get angry all over again. Maybe a week or two later, I am energetic, happy, full of enthusiasm, friendly, calm, raring to go, talk a lot, and then talk a lot more, because I cant stop talking and talking really really fast, to anyone and everyone, even to myself when no~ones around. Then next swing is the horrible things all of the above again for another while.

I take tablets (a range of them) they are working but I still swing between my two worlds.

Answer 4

Hi Niki,

When I am depressed I feel totally numb, sometimes don't sleep at night, then sleep during the day, feel like dying, get obsessed with fear of being ill can also be irritable when I'm depressed. When manic/hypo manic I can be very irritable, talk too much/too loud/too fast, be aggressive (stare at people) be aggressive in traffic, have temper tantrums(yell, swear, throw things) be hypersexual, very goal oriented (not always good, can lead to addictions). That pretty much says it all, I am 43 was diagnosed 2 moths ago. Good luck.

Answer 5

Bipolar is kind of like always being really high but never being able to stop. A lot of times you don't even know like what you're doing, you lose control of things, particularly your judgement. And then sometimes it's like everything bothers you enormously. Like it's like someone's always tapping you on the shoulder but in a really annoying way.
And then you have low times as well.

I think Seasonal Affective Disorder is more like just getting depressed because of the change of weather.

Answer 6

I (think) I have Bipolar after seeing a programme about it hosted by Stephen Fry (he has bipolar), I suppose it varies from person to person, but I think bipolar, as its name implies, means sufferers can go from feeling rock bottom to absolute euphoria, Fry mentioned to cope with his rock bottom phases, he often 'self medicated', in other words drinking and taking cocaine to cope with his depression, he also mentioned feelings of self-importance and the need to buy things in the hope of it somehow making him feel better, if you can find it, I really recommend watching the programme, it's called 'Stephen Fry: The Secret Life of the Manic Depressive', and is a real eye-opener into Bi-Polar.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/health/tv_and_radio/secretlife_documentary.shtml

Answer 7

www.nami.org National Alliance for Mental Illness. Go there and you can talk to all the bipolars you want.

I have SAD, too, but not bipolar. Just regular chronic depression with anxiety disorder.

TX Mom

Answer 8

I have it, but nobody in real life knows. I KNOW i have it. Last friday I brought a knife to school and almost sliced my neck, but did ont. then i felt i do not wanna commit suicide. then right now I wanna.