Bipolar

Sakinah · 02-01-2008, 12:36 AM

Does anyone here have bipolar?
What and how have you treated it?
I really feel like I am crazy!

crazyfatchick · 02-04-2008, 01:58 PM

Sakinah - if you are feeling like you are crazy, then you should definitely seek help. Start with your primary care doctor and they can help you find other help.

I am bipolar - diagnosed 17 years ago. I was very medication resistant until a major tragedy in my life forced me to take a good hard look at myself. Current treatment: talk therapy, medication, acupuncture. I am starting to eat better (which helps) and I am exploring fish oils (but I really don't want to take any more pills).

Nothing can substitute for talking to a professional, but if you want to chat a bit about it, please feel free to PM me.

toshia · 02-04-2008, 10:36 PM

I was diagnosed with bipolar 7 years ago. Right now I'm currently not on any meds but that will be changing next week. I honestly cannot live without my meds. My moods get horrible. Last week I felt like I was going crazy. It's not a good feeling. I agree with the previous poster. If you feel you are going crazy you should definitely seek some kind of help. Feel free to pm me if you want or need to talk.

sharleenia · 02-04-2008, 11:37 PM

I've been bipolar for about three years, and am currently not on meds due to financial issues. I'm very manic and have been for almost two months, which is good and bad. I have all this energy and hardly ever sleep, but my body feels exhausted, and my mind won't stop thinking.

I need to get back on some meds, but....i'm a procrastinator and just can't seem to call the county clinic to get an appointment (where it would be free)

intensity_too · 02-08-2008, 08:42 AM

I'm bipolar. Check my signature for how long and what meds I am taking

I've taken:

Lithium
Seroquel
Lamictal
Depakote
Zyprexa

isenephthys · 02-13-2008, 09:58 AM

i am bipolar, type 2. fairly recently diagnosed. (well, a pcp dx'ed me in 2005 but i didn't see a psychiatrist until this jan.) i've tried to do it without medications, but honestly my mood crashes and swings too low without help. i have been on a number of meds with varying degrees of success. part of the frustration comes from the fact that it takes time and experimentation to find what works best for you.

i am currently on lithium and klonopin.

i've taken seroquel, both for mania and to help me sleep. when i took it for mania, all i did was sleep and gain weight. it was fairly helpful as a sleep aid the first time around, but it didn't help with my last hypomania. many people swear by it, however.

i've been on the prozac/zyprexa combo (which is kind of like the all-in-one pill symbyax). that one did make me feel pretty good. after a while, i got too jittery and hypomanic on the prozac.

i've taken zonegran as a mood stablizer. did well at lower doses, but made me feel a bit stupid at higher doses.

i've been on cymbalta alone, i've been on cymbalta + abilify and most recently cymbalta plus trileptal. i've weaned off the cymbalta b/c antidepressants do tend to exacerbate any underlying bipolar symptoms.

i guess my point is that there a lot of things that you can try but if you're feeling "crazy" then please go see someone. this is one of those diagnoses that you really do need some help to get through to a stable place.

do your research. i love www.crazymeds.us; it's a great med resource. my pdoc has me reading "the bipolar disorder survival guide" by milkowitz. it's been fairly helpful.

tntrailertrash · 02-13-2008, 02:04 PM

Ok. I found the bipolar thread. *smacks self*

I was diagnosed bipolar about 8 years ago. On and off meds, mostly depakote and wellbutrin, but did a run on prozac (eegads) and also on zoloft (even worse.) Have been off meds now for 4 years. I have bad times, and I have good times.

I am in a really bad spot right now but have been told by the physician that whether or not bipolar is the problem with mood will have to wait until my hormones are in a more happy place.

isenephthys · 02-19-2008, 04:33 AM

tn, i am glad that you are not in a bad place mentally at the moment. that's a good thing. however, you should not be forced to wait for your hormonal issues to get under control before you begin to deal with your mental issues. they often go hand-in-hand. do you have a pdoc? i'd look for someone that specializes in treating women with co-existing mood and hormone disorders.

sharleenia · 02-27-2008, 01:17 AM

I've been feeling so worthless and possibly suicidal. I haven't tried anything like...suicidal. I just want to stay in bed all day and cry, and I have this terrific boyfriend that I try to keep pushing away. I tell him to leave me, not to love me, not to treat me like a queen (which he does on a daily basis)....why do I do this and how do I stop!?

I'm not on meds right now, and Matt (DBF) wants me to get back on my meds. He loves me with my PCOS and being bipolar and everything else. Sometimes I wish he didn't so I wouldn't screw his life up......

toshia · 02-28-2008, 12:02 AM

Boy, do I know that feeling. I was finally able to go see a psychiatrist last week. It has been a year since the last time I've been on meds. They needed me to do blood work first before she gave me my meds. It has been over a week and still no call. They just keep telling me they are waiting for the results.

I know I've been off meds for a year but I don't know how much more of this I can take. The mood swings are so bad. I just want my damn meds! DBF just doesn't understand. He thinks I'm just being a *****. I try explaining but it's not good enough. I can't help my moods right now. I can't help the way I'm acting. I just want to curl up in a ball, go to sleep, and not wake up.

sharleenia · 02-28-2008, 12:26 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by toshia

Boy, do I know that feeling. I was finally able to go see a psychiatrist last week. It has been a year since the last time I've been on meds. They needed me to do blood work first before she gave me my meds. It has been over a week and still no call. They just keep telling me they are waiting for the results.

I know I've been off meds for a year but I don't know how much more of this I can take. The mood swings are so bad. I just want my damn meds! DBF just doesn't understand. He thinks I'm just being a *****. I try explaining but it's not good enough. I can't help my moods right now. I can't help the way I'm acting. I just want to curl up in a ball, go to sleep, and not wake up.

Girl, ((((HUGS))))!!! Like I said before, I just want to die sometimes. I see that you have a daughter. If nothing else keeps you sane and alive, think of her. I don't have any children, but I do have three younger brothers, ages 26, 16, and 12...and I can't even imagine if I killed myself how my parents would tell my brothers what happened and why I did what I did. I can't hurt them like that. They would probably think it was their fault which is SO FAR FROM THE TRUTH. I also have such a wonderful boyfriend....he treats me so wonderfully. I can't do that to him. I can't hurt him that way. Those are the things that keep me going even when I want to quit and end it all.

If you EVER need to talk, you can IM me, PM me...however you want.

isenephthys · 02-28-2008, 02:46 AM

*hugs* sharleenia and toshia. bipolar is such a rough dx. it's a constant roller coaster and it's even more difficult when your loved ones don't understand why you are acting so *insert mood of the day here*.

i'm here if ya'll ever need to talk.

sharleenia · 02-29-2008, 12:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by isenephthys

*hugs* sharleenia and toshia. bipolar is such a rough dx. it's a constant roller coaster and it's even more difficult when your loved ones don't understand why you are acting so *insert mood of the day here*.

i'm here if ya'll ever need to talk.

Thank you soooo much for the kind words. I'm having a "*****y" day today lol....seems everything seems to grate on my nerves.

tia_mosley · 03-03-2008, 10:03 AM

Has anyone stopped taking meds for bi polar, once they got their hormones under control?

toshia · 03-03-2008, 02:32 PM

I was dx'd with bipolar way before I was dx'd with PCOS. I was told I have to be on meds for life. You can't just stop taking them because you want to or because you feel better. If you truly are bipolar, you are a lifer. Bipolar has nothing to do with your hormones. It is a chemical inbalance in your brain.