My husband may be bipolar

[familystone]

He is actually the one that brought this to my attention when I got home tonight.  It shocked the hell out of me because he is not a guy that would readily admit a "flaw".  I am so glad that he did and we want to do all that we can to find out what the next step is for us.  Already I feel like we are going in a better direction because I was almost to the point where something had to give or I was ready to leave him.  What I realized like I always do is that the part of him that behaves so irratical and negative is not all of who he is, but it's scary because he is unreachable when he is in this "mode".  When he comes out of it (like the next day) he feels so much remorse and guilt and this furthers the bigger problem.....I love my husband and I will do everything to help him/us through this, we would love some insight.

I found an online test and we went ahead and answered them together, it diagnosed him as bipolar depression.  We are going to get in touch with our doc, does this mean he will immediately go on medication?  Will there be an assessment?  therapy?  I just want to know what's ahead for us.

Thanks!

[familystone]

Thank you so much for your feedback.  We have Kaiser Permanente (West Coast) and I called the advice nurse yesterday and she referred me right over to the psychiatry dept. they are closed on the weekends, but they gave me the direct line to make on appt. so I am going to cal again Monday.  They are pretty good about getting immediate appt's, so we should be moving on to the next step by the end of the week.  I know my husband is anxious to find out more about all this and get some answers.  I told him to use this sight as well for blogging, questions and overall support.  He has a lot of anxiety too that he is starting to really acknowledge, which is good too.

I will keep you posted on how things go and hopefully get him involved in this community as well.  Thanks again!

[Germur]

I agree completely with Bulldozer.  Make sure that the pdoc that you are referred to is experienced in the area of bp.  Move quickly so that your husband's healing will start soon.

Take care

[bernie40]

I'm not 100% sure of the procedures in your health service.  However, yes the first step is to see the general doctor.  However, only a psychiatrist can accurately diagnose a mood disorder, and which one.  He is also the best person to recommend and monitor possible medications.

Ask your Dr if he knows of any good psychiatrists that he would be happy to recommend.  

Once you get a psychiatrist appointment your husband will be asked for a very full and detailed medical history.  From there the psychiatrist will evaluate your husband.

In the meantime I would suggest clicking on the links on our health pages (top right).  The mcman website is a very informative and straightforward site which explains bipolar and other mood disorders.

Bipolar is all about educating yourself as best you can in order to facilitate your own well being.  

Good luck and don't hesitate to come on here for support as you and your husband go through this journey.