bipolar 2?

[cHiNa_dOlli3]

I have been told twice I was bipolar 2 I have no idea what this means when I go to a psychiatris I never go pass the evaluation I guess my anxieties get the best of me!!

[cHiNa_dOlli3]

thank u for this information Im going to try my best to go through with my treatment!

[Anonymouse88]

Bipolar II means that you've had at least one major depressive episode and one hypomanic episode, and never had a full manic episode.  The disease often involves more depression (downs) than hypomania (ups).  Anxiety can certainly be part of it or occur alongside it.  Wikipedia has a decent general overview of the condition.

As far as the practicalities of medication treatment go, it means that you shouldn't take any antidepressants (especially SSRIs) without having a mood stabilizer on board (usually an anti-epileptic like lamictal or an atypical antipsychotic like seroquel, or good old lithium), and it might be better to avoid antidepressants at all.  The crazymeds website has a lot of information about different treatments (and I mean a LOT.  Don't freak yourself out over it).

If you're bipolar II, you should really try to get to a psychiatrist and keep going.  Maybe even ask them for a prescription for a single dose of an anti-anxiety drug to get you in the door if you're too nervous (just make sure to get someone else to drive you to the appointment).  Or maybe you can get a friend who will come with you to the appointment and make sure you go who will give you a reward only if you go through with it (I know I'm terrible about holding myself to rewards for behavior).