| Topic: |
Sociology > Depression |
| User: |
"Jamie" |
| Date: |
15 Jul 2003 09:16:41 PM |
| Object: |
bipolar? Please help! |
I have been going to a public hospital here since January, and have my
outpatient therapist telling me it's Major Depressive Disorder
Recurrent, my pdoc telling me it's Dysthymia, and now the therapist
telling me I'm probably bipolar (I was hyper at my last appointment).
She can't prescribe, and obviously they don't talk to each other, so
even if I need it I probably won't get lithium...
Are they quacks? Has anyone else ever had three diagnoses at once
from the same institution? Even if I am bipolar (maybe cyclothymia or
bipolar II) I've never completely lost control, so it isn't harming
the quality of my life. I'm so confused!
When I found out I'd spent 10 days inpatient for a diagnosis of
Dysthymia (I feel like that's a problem I would have been able to cope
with by myself) I didn't know what to think. I'm trying to organize
my treatment around what makes me healthier, and since they can't even
agree on what my symptoms are I feel very lost. And my pdoc just cut
my Lexapro down to 10 mg, and while I'm not going to jump off the
nearest balcony I felt a lot more *lovable* with 20. :p
Sidetracked, sorry. I guess my question is, should I let this bother
me, that my therapist practically thinks I need to be hospitalized for
the rest of my life and my pdoc thinks I need to develop a spine?
(Combine them, and they're right on target.) Should I try to get a
new doctor, or should I just figure psychology is a very inexact
science and as long as I haven't killed myself they're probably doing
something right?
Thanks for any advice -
Jamie
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| User: "lisa in mass." |
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| Title: Re: bipolar? Please help! |
16 Jul 2003 01:13:54 AM |
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Jamie wrote...
I have been going to a public hospital here since January,
and have my outpatient therapist telling me it's Major
Depressive Disorder Recurrent, my pdoc telling me it's
Dysthymia, and now the therapist telling me I'm probably
bipolar (I was hyper at my last appointment). She can't
prescribe, and obviously they don't talk to each other, so
even if I need it I probably won't get lithium...
Are they quacks? Has anyone else ever had three diagnoses
at once from the same institution? Even if I am bipolar
(maybe cyclothymia or bipolar II) I've never completely
lost control, so it isn't harming the quality of my life.
I'm so confused!
When I found out I'd spent 10 days inpatient for a
diagnosis of Dysthymia (I feel like that's a problem I
would have been able to cope with by myself) I didn't know
what to think. I'm trying to organize my treatment around
what makes me healthier, and since they can't even agree on
what my symptoms are I feel very lost. And my pdoc just
cut my Lexapro down to 10 mg, and while I'm not going to
jump off the nearest balcony I felt a lot more *lovable*
with 20. :p
Sidetracked, sorry. I guess my question is, should I let
this bother me, that my therapist practically thinks I need
to be hospitalized for the rest of my life and my pdoc
thinks I need to develop a spine? (Combine them, and
they're right on target.) Should I try to get a new
doctor, or should I just figure psychology is a very
inexact science and as long as I haven't killed myself
they're probably doing something right?
Thanks for any advice -
Jamie
i suggest you don't worry about the diagnosis. have your
therapist help you find a good way to live with yourself, and
if you want to, let the pdoc help find a med that works for you.
it doesn't much matter whether it's called a 'mood stabiliser'
or 'antidepressant'. as far as being unipolar or bipolar, if
antidepressants make you too hyped up and jittery, your pdoc
should try something else. some depressed people do well on mood
stabilisers (like me), and some bipolar folks favor
antidep's. all that matters is whether things are improving for
you.
the labels are mostly there for insurance purposes, anyway.
across the board, x number with diagnosis a will have it for y
number of years, and it will recur in z percentage of cases.
they just want to know the liklihood that they'll have to cover
someone for a given period. if the people you're seeing seem to
care less about how you're doing than which cubbyhole you should
be filed in, they're only invested in the moneymaking side of
their jobs.
jmo,
-lisa
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| User: "Jamie" |
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| Title: Re: bipolar? Please help! |
16 Jul 2003 07:17:40 AM |
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"lisa in mass." <mccats@rcn.com> wrote in message news:<Xns93BA169E47DD9mccatsjavanetcom@130.133.1.4>...
Thanks for any advice -
Jamie
i suggest you don't worry about the diagnosis. have your
therapist help you find a good way to live with yourself, and
if you want to, let the pdoc help find a med that works for you.
it doesn't much matter whether it's called a 'mood stabiliser'
or 'antidepressant'. as far as being unipolar or bipolar, if
antidepressants make you too hyped up and jittery, your pdoc
should try something else. some depressed people do well on mood
stabilisers (like me), and some bipolar folks favor
antidep's. all that matters is whether things are improving for
you.
the labels are mostly there for insurance purposes, anyway.
across the board, x number with diagnosis a will have it for y
number of years, and it will recur in z percentage of cases.
they just want to know the liklihood that they'll have to cover
someone for a given period. if the people you're seeing seem to
care less about how you're doing than which cubbyhole you should
be filed in, they're only invested in the moneymaking side of
their jobs.
jmo,
-lisa
Thanks - that's exactly what I needed to hear/know!
Jamie <smiles>
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| User: "Just Ginny" |
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| Title: Re: bipolar? Please help! |
16 Jul 2003 09:37:02 PM |
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On 15 Jul 2003 19:16:41 -0700, (Jamie) wrote:
I have been going to a public hospital here since January, and have my
outpatient therapist telling me it's Major Depressive Disorder
Recurrent, my pdoc telling me it's Dysthymia, and now the therapist
telling me I'm probably bipolar (I was hyper at my last appointment).
She can't prescribe, and obviously they don't talk to each other, so
even if I need it I probably won't get lithium...
Are they quacks? Has anyone else ever had three diagnoses at once
from the same institution? Even if I am bipolar (maybe cyclothymia or
bipolar II) I've never completely lost control, so it isn't harming
the quality of my life. I'm so confused!
My therapist thought I was bipolar. (My original diagnosis was Major
Depression.) She could prescribe meds, and she put me on lithium
briefly. It wasn't any fun. I developed bad tremors, and she let me
stop taking it. Eventually I was able to convince her that my previous
medication (Effexor) had made me bipolar (I think they call that
Bipolar III). Now I don't take a mood stabilizer; I just take
Wellbutrin.
When I found out I'd spent 10 days inpatient for a diagnosis of
Dysthymia (I feel like that's a problem I would have been able to cope
with by myself) I didn't know what to think. I'm trying to organize
my treatment around what makes me healthier, and since they can't even
agree on what my symptoms are I feel very lost. And my pdoc just cut
my Lexapro down to 10 mg, and while I'm not going to jump off the
nearest balcony I felt a lot more *lovable* with 20. :p
Heh - more men were attracted to me when I was on Effexor. I guess
being bipolar III made me irresistible...
Sidetracked, sorry. I guess my question is, should I let this bother
me, that my therapist practically thinks I need to be hospitalized for
the rest of my life and my pdoc thinks I need to develop a spine?
(Combine them, and they're right on target.) Should I try to get a
new doctor, or should I just figure psychology is a very inexact
science and as long as I haven't killed myself they're probably doing
something right?
Is your therapist helping you, or does she make you feel sicker than
you really are? Does your psychiatrist make you feel as if he's not
taking your illness seriously? Remember, we are in charge of our
illnesses, not the medical profession! You don't have to accept their
diagnoses (especially since they're so different from each other).
Thanks for any advice -
Jamie
--
Ginny
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