Bipolar

[jant22]

I was diagnosed with depression and anxiety 1 year ago (im 22).I have been on a total of 13 meds for depression, anxiety, mood fluctuations, insomnia etc.. Is this normal? I am worried I might be Bipolar...

[Crystlas]

Not a lost cause, you just have not found your "groove" with your depression and anxiety.  Work with your doctors and tell them EVERYTHING!!  The more they know the quicker they can give you a correct diagnosis. I was not very educated on bipolar to know what it really was.  I though bipolar was an illness that crazy people get, and I am not crazy.  I felt like such a fool when I learned about it.  Here I am with the crazy people illness that is not true, just ordinary folks that have a different biochemical brain make up than other people.  Big deal... find the right meds, stay off drugs, limited caffeine and no alcohol.  Continue therapy and have a good psychiatrist.  I found my "groove" so now I can deal with it! :0)  

[jant22]

Thats quite a story and im sorry you had to go through all that. I hope your happier now. I also hope that i dont have to wait 8 years to get the right meds combo. At the moment I feel a bit like a lost cause

[Crystlas]

Your post made me laugh at my situation because it has been an eight year battle for me!!  Crazy madness the whole time.  Here is my story..... I knew I was different, even from childhood.  I always felt different and was always a moody person and when I was a child I would be scolded for being too talkative and I had rapid speech.  It all makes sense now.  When I went through a divorce from an abusive husband I fell into a very deep depression and my PCP diagnosed me with depression.  He put me on Wellbutrin 300mg a day.  About six weeks later I felt fabulous and over the year and a 1/2 late I dropped all my depression weight of 60 pounds.  Then I thought I did not need such a strong anti-depressent and wanted to quit Wellbutrin.  My doctor then put me on 40mg of Prozac and here came MANIA!!  Yeah!  Actually, it was small spells, only lasting about a week at the longest.  I just new that it was my "up" time and I would get all my stuff done because I knew after that I would fell down and tired all the time.  Welcome to the beginning stages of bipolar disorder, but of course I did not know what it was.  I felt "ok" and thought I was not really depressed and tapered off of the Prozac.  I was off of prozac for a little over a year when BAM  a huge mania stage hit me.  That was November of 2006.  I was bonkers, not sleeping at all, feeling anxious, hypersexual, racing thoughts all the time...typical manic symptoms.  Anyhow, right after the holidays my boyfriend encouraged me to go see a counselor about it.  It runs in his family and he recognized the symptoms, but knew if he told me I would freak out.  So, I followed his advice and ended up being referred from the counselor to a psychiatrist.  A very good one at that!  I was tested for Thyroid disorder and it was found that my thyriod was functioning normally.  Then I was put through the bipolar tests and passed..in a bad way.  So, then she gave me my diagnosis.  I was put on Lithium and then began my journey to find the right meds.  By mid March 07 I started getting some sleep again and thought I was on the right track.  I had to change psychiatrists due to the fact that the one I was seeing was on my college campus and students are referred out after one semester.  I transferred to a different practice and have been through three doctors to find the right one and she is an awsome psychatric nurse practitioner.  After the doctors tried 10 different medications, that were not working correctly, I tried committing suicide due to being so out of wack with my meds.  Then I ended up with an amazing doctor at the hospital I stayed at and she put me on Wellbutrin along with my Lithium.  Amazing combo for me and doing a wonderful job so far.  So here I am mid March again and finally getting stable.  Hope you enjoyed story hour!!!!  :0)    Hope this helps you to learn more about this crazy illness!!  Take care.

[jant22]

Well the seroquel is for insomnia and also to calm me. The beta blockers are to stop the physical side of anxiety (restlessness etc). Also when he took my pulse, it was 95 as opposed to about 70 I think.
Yea I told him I stopped taking the Lamictal, he said that I was an adult and that was my decision!!
My uncle (hes 31) is bipolar, so its in my family. My doc knows this.
How long did it take people here to get an accurate diagnosis? And how many docs have you been to?

[Crystlas]

Even though he has not diagnosed you bipolar you are on bipolar medications (Lamictal and Seroquel).  Does he know you quit taking the Lamictal?  I wonder why he has you on those if you are not diagnosed BP?  Also, why Beta Blockers?  Is that supposed to help your anxiety?  Have you contacted someone to get a second opinion yet?  There are good psychiatrist and bad ones as well.  Trust me, I had a really bad one and it almost cost me my life!  Keep up posted!

[jant22]

I have been seeing the same psychiatrist since i became unwell. He didnt diagnose me with bipolar, he diagnosed me with depression and associated anxiety and insomnia. No i wasnt on all 13 meds at the same time heehee. he kept changing them. The antidepressants either didnt work or they worked for a while and then stopped. Iv also been on a mood stabiliser (Lamictal) which i stopped taking myself (a mistake i think).
Iv been on a lot of sleep meds to sedate me at night and to help with the anxiety. But they are addictive and my problem seems to be more chronic. So I am now on 100mg Seroquel, 15mg Remeron and Beta Blockers all taken at night. I have been taking this combo for 4 days. I feel like a human pharmacy and I dont know what to do anymore..

[xanweaner]

Did your psychiatrist diagnose you with bipolar disorder? Do you like your first psychiatrist? Were you on 13 medications all at the same time?
Hope I'm not asking you too many questions - it wasn't clear from your first post.

Good luck with finding the right answers...

[Crystlas]

I would get that second opinion!  A lot of people with mood disorders stop taking their medications when they feel better.  The medications are why they are feeling better.  Mood disorders are chemical imbalances in the brain that requires medication in order to be corrected, because it does not happen naturally in our brains.  Good luck finding the right med combo for you and stay on your meds even if you feel better.  

[jant22]

Tanks for your advice. I was on a mood stabiliser (Lamictal) before along with an antidepressant. I foolishly decided to stop taking them as I felt much better and thought I was better off without them! I realise that was a mistake. I may seek a second opinion from another Doc.

[Crystlas]

Sounds like you are under the care of a psychiatrist.  Have your doctor test you for bipolar disorder!  Anxiety and insomnia are two of the manic symptoms.  Of course mood fluctuations are a red flag!  I would get tested, especially if your medications are not helping at all.  You might need a mood stabilizer along with your anti-depressent, to help with the manic symptoms.  Bipolar II is a lower level of bipolar disorder where you have  more depression and hypomania.  Talk to your doctor!  good luck.