Re: [PanicZone] Trigger siI'm bipolar
On 11/22/2011 04:28 PM, Ericka Morgan wrote:
> Hi, I'm concerned about this post. Many people with manic depressive illness
> (also called bipolar disorder) are in denial as to their diagnosis. So if
> they see something like this, saying bipolar is being over diagnosed, it
> might give them an excuse. Bipolar Disorder is a very potentially deadly
> disease. I too do not know your situation but I am just speaking from my
> personal experience. Bipolar does run in families-it does in mine. I am one
> of three cousins I know of who were clearly diagnosed with bipolar disorder.
> Of the three, I am the only one left alive. Both of my cousins went off
> their medications, and soon after that they both committed suicide. It is
> also very common for the first visible incidence of bipolar disorder-the
> first full blown manic phase-to be brought on by a stressful life event. I
> think that there is a lot of wisdom in what Dave says and no one has to
> accept a diagnosis blindly. For me, the more I learn about bipolar disorder
> the more clearly I see why I have the diagnosis. I have been blessed with a
> great combo of meds and some very good medical care. I hope that you end up
> getting what you need!-Ericka
>
> "I went crazy. Not stupid."-House M.D.
I am sorry to hear about your cousins. I was going to bring up that Bipolar
(I, especially), runs in families, but my reply was already turning into a
novel. I got mine from my "father", who, as it turned out, was also an
alcoholic. I used the quotes since the ONLY thing he ever gave me was Bipolar
I, though thankfully not the addictive traits. He died rather young, and I
never did find out how, so it could have been suicide. I know he was
hospitalized many times for Bipolar symptoms and that he came from money (I did
find statistics a while ago that showed that people with money were more likely
to receive the diagnosis of Manic-Depressive Disorder thank those without).
I would also have brought up that the therapist who initially diagnosed me with
this holds a Ph.D. in psychology and works for a university. She told me, a
number of years ago that the committee working on the next revision of the
Diagnostic Statistical Manual (DSM) were strongly considering removing Bipolar
I (at least, others maybe), due to strong evidence of a genetic/biological
connection, and schizophrenia (due to the discovery of a gene that they were
fairly certain causes it) from the next revision (DSM-V).
She didn't know what specialist area of medicine would be in charge of treating
these conditions, if they were removed from the DSM, only that they would be
considered more neurological conditions than psychiatric problems.
Back to my reply to your post. I can see where the raising of concerns of over
diagnosis of Bipolar by the person you are replying to would be. While I am
not in denial of my condition (anymore, at least), there are times when I
forget to take my medications - usually during a manic or depressive episode
which only makes things worse.
Denial is not only an issue for Bipolar in my experience. A lot of people I
have met with psychiatric diagnoses tend to enter a state of denial. There
could be many reasons for this, but I think that one of the main ones is the
stigma attached to such diagnoses, and the perception, by society at large,
that psychiatric problems are "character flaws" that can be overcome by the
force of will power. These judgments can make a person who suffers from a
biological illness feel very isolated and misunderstood (my own experience).
Yes, I do believe that all so-called "mental" illness does have a
biological/physiological cause and that, often, the "problem" is a symptom of
the true problem, which medical science still lacks the tools to diagnose.
Chris
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have a panic attack is that it will pass
whether it passes quickly or slowly
depends whether I drop the idea of it
being dangerous or not.
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