Borderline PD and bipolar type 2 ?

I know I said I would post here more but due to the stuff I talk about in this thread I somehow don't feel qualified to comment on bipolar related threads any more.
Also not sure if this should be in the bpd forum or the bipolar forum?

This is kind of a rant but also I would appreciate some support or advice if that's ok.

Basically I learnt, about 2 weeks ago, that in the past I had been diagnosed with a borderline personality disorder.

Resently about 6months ago I was diagnosed bipolar type 2. My team started to treat me as bipolar with mood stabilizers and it worked really well. I felt really stable for the first time. It sounds odd but I was quite pleased to get this diagnosis because I fit the criteria exactly and I was just glad to finally know what I was faced with.

But then my team requested my old note and found out that a psych in the past had diagnosed me borderline. Last week I got a letter of my psych saying that my diagnosis was: bipolar type 2 with likely borderline personality disorder. I look at the criteria for borderlineand realised I did not fit any of the criteria. So as you can imagine I was a bit like wtf? I asked my CPN and she said that she agreed and would speak to my psych team.

Anyway this morning I got another letter from my psych team saying my diagnosis was borderline personality disorder with possible bipolar disorder.

So I fit all of the criteria for bipolar but none of the criteria for borderline. Yet I'm diagnosed borderline now.
I am obviously going to speak to my psych about this. But I can't talk to her till Tuesday and it is really doing my head in.

I literally just called my CPN and she said that it could be because they were still quirying my bipolar diagnosis because I had not had that many high episodes.
I keep a lot of mood diaries and I have had 4 highs in the last 12months. All of which fully met the criteria for hypomania. 2 were medications induced (so maybe they don't count) but the other 2 were when I was on no medication, no drugs, no alcohol or anything. I had blood tests and they confirmed that I didn't have any medical condition causing the high.either way that is 2 hypomanias a year. The criteria says you just have to have one in a lifetime to fit the bipolar diagnosis.

In terms of the borderline diagnosis: I have no abandonment issues, I don't feel emptiness, I am not highly reactive( of course if someone dies I willbe up set but I don't feel suicidal because the car would not start - sorry if that is offensive and really generalised but you get my point). I don't have trouble in forming or keeping relationships (Infact I'm quite the opposite). I don't have anger issues and I don't get paranoid or dellutional.
Unless of course I do have all of the above traits and I don't see it? Is there a possibility that I won't see it?


I don't really know what I want from this thread. Just maybe some insight or experiences?

Also when I talk to my psych and mention this stuff do you think there is any chance she will change/get rid of the borderline diagnosis or will she just be like "don't tell me how to do my job". Has anyone ever challenged a diagnosis before? What was the result?

Hey Betty, I just wanted to say hi and thx for sharing. I can imagine having your dx tossed around like this is frustrating or unsettling.

I questioned my bipolar dx recently, blamed it on the antidepresssants that I was taking without a mood stabilizer... I tried to reason I wasn't bipolar when I wasn't medicated. My very nice doc just smiled and said she didn't see it that way lol. But want to add I know BPD can be very different in some ways... the politics of that dx vs bipolar (though they're both intense in their own way to be dx with)

Talk to your doc. Maybe write down the symptoms for BPD and bring it in with you to talk about how you don't match any of the criteria. See what she/he says to that...

Hi Betty!

It must be frustrating when only 6 months ago you were diagnosed and Bipolar, and now they want to diagnose you as BPD instead!

Back when I was diagnosed with Bipolar II AND Borderline Personality Disorder I had symptoms for both, but now I identify with a lot less of the BPD symptoms.

I was told that often Bipolar Disorder and BPD are diagnosed together because it is so hard to distinguish between the two. I believe the mood swings with BPD are shorter, lasting only hours or days. But then again, every person with Bipolar Disorder is different, and nothing is black and white, as we all know too well!!

If you feel you have been misdiagnosed with Borderline Personality Disorder, it may be a good idea to show your psych your mood diary and she can judge for herself?

I hope this helps.

Hi Betty

I really feel for you on this. I have BP1 but my psych also keeps trying to push a BPD diagnosis on me which I disagree with, mainly because I have a history of self harm. I also dont fit other diagnostic criteria for it and do meet those for BP1. She is not denying the BP1 but she is trying to label me with PD and it is frustrating. I think that the best thing to do is to keep a mood diary to show her that you are having mood disturbance that correlates with BP and also to list calmly the BPD symtoms that you dont think you have to show that you have insight into what is going on but also are standing up for yourself. I think it does not help that in the UK PD is so heavily stigmatised that being labeled with it is totally unhelpful.

Please keep us posted

Many hugs

Cracked

I can feel for you. I had kinda the same problem. My past therapist insisted, very strongly, that I was BPD. While all my psychiatrists, quite a few, said I was Bipolar. I knew inside that I wasn't BPD at all, it just didn't fit. I had gone on the BPD forum on here at first, but I quickly realized that I simply couldn't relate to any of them. I don't have a reactive personality, I'm actually quite subdued.

I guess it was rather easy for me, because my therapist was not qualified to make a diagnosis, while the 5 psychiatrists I saw were. So it was easy for me to see what my true diagnosis was, but it still infuriated me that my therapist pushed it on me, ignoring my own insight.

It sounds like that is what is happening, they are ignoring your own insights into yourself. We know ourselves best. That's not to say that there might not be something you aren't seeing yourself, but I just think if this is seriously disturbing you, be forceful with the topic and make it clear what you think. Then maybe they will make it clear what they are thinking and you can go from there.

But know that whatever diagnosis you end up having, the main thing of importance is that you get the treatment that is appropriate for you and works.

- EGD.

Thank you so much for replying to this. I really appriciate it.

I think I am currently having a mixed episode(or something similar) and I was really aggitated and angry when I wrote this thread and was struggling to organise it in my head.

I still feel annoyed about the diagnosis but I have written a letter to my psych explaining why I don't have bpd.

It angers me that bpd diagnosis are just thrown around like that. I feel like saying to my psych "did you actually look at the criteria or did you just think we will diagnose her bpd just because we can't think of anything else". I havnt said that. I actually think the letter is quite good considering how many racing thoughts I have. It seems quite organised.

I guess my big problem is that I will be offered theraputic communities and DBT if I get a Bpd diagnosis. I have done stuff like that before and I litteraly assosiated with no one there. And the stuff they were talking about was not what I struggled with. That's why I know it is wrong.

Anyways thank you so much.
I have an appointment on Tuesday so I will keep you updated.
X

Yeah def keep us updated and please keep pushing your pov over

Hugs

Cracked

good luck from me also! sounds like you have a very clear understanding of the situation and have a great concrete plan to tackle it.

My meet with the consultant left me feeling better and worse. Mixed feeling but mostly bad.

I gave her my letter at the beginning which she read, which I was quite impressed by because it was 5pages long.lol
long story short I'm on 150mg of quietapine and 20mg flouoxatine. She said my letter was really helpful in term of diagnosis. She went over a lot of stuff from the way back in past. She said that currently the best diagnosis for my current symptoms and my history is bipolar type 2, traits of borderline personality disorder, Psychosis, PTSD and EDNOS.
I was quite shocked about the reason for the PTSD stuff because I only ever (in my whole life) spoke about it once about 5 years ago to one therapist in one session, yet it was in my notes. I was honestly quite impressed that my psychiatrist had read that far back into my history. I mean i have never even spoke about it on any forum or any other person. Bringing it up today did trigger me a bit. However, Knowing that she has looked so far back in my history makes me more confident about my diagnosis.
she said that i was right and a full diagnosis of borderline was not appropriate for me but she said I do have traits (possible 2 traits). I wasn't sure which ones but I think I could guess.
Gah so that is like 4-5 diagnosises.
So that all the ok stuff that kind of made me feel a bit better.

Then she said that she needed to talk a little about moving to london/ my course/ my current job.
Basically even though I appeared to be doing quite well in the last week that is not enough to let go back.
Apparently the overdoses I took where really serious, which I find hard to believe because they didn't keep me in the medical hospital very long. Anyway, yea that was "serious" and if has only been 4weeks since I had my last psychotic episode and been discharged from hospital. Anyway I need to be stable for longer before I can go back to work and I have to stay in day patient for at least the next month.
Then she said that there could be a chance that I will not be allowed to study nursing in September. This has totally thrown me because when I told my mum she agreed. My psych and my mum (she wasn't in the appointment but I told her after) both want me to stay in newcastle for the next year to stabilize me. I am suppose to be going house hunting in london with my bf on saturday. Tonight I am going to have to tell him that I may not be able to live with him in 2months time.
im really upset about this.
I don't think I am that ill and I feel like everyone else is deciding my future. It's like being under ###$ section again. At least when I was under section I could see that I was a danger to myself and other now I just don't understand? I do not think I'm that ill
Any advice or insight would be good if you guys have any.

Huge hugs honey

I know how awful it feels to have your future feeling like it is out of your hands because of other ppl and their perceptions of how you are doing and whether or not you are a risk to yourself. One thing I would say is that a career in a health care profession and studying for that whilst not stable are a nightmare - I know this from experience. If I had my time again I would have taken time off before uni, got well and then gone to study and work. Another thing I would say about nursing in the UK is whilst Drs have Drs Support Network and Sick Drs Foundation there is nothing similar for nurses - I have friends who are nurses who are mentally ill and the peer to peer support is just not there according to the unions and registering body. This means you may well feel very alone in trying to get well whilst studying and on placement. I know it does not feel good to have to take some time out but it might be the best thing to do. However is there anyway you could take this time out in London as then you could move as planned and take a year out to get fully well. Another thing I wanted to mention is risk. I have stolen iv drugs from the hospital before to shoot up and to do a suicide attempt as well as blades to cut. It is easy to and that is a big big risk if you are not fully well. I am extremely lucky to be alive. The other thing is if you get unwell and you steal things and you get caught you likely lose your registration which is all you have worked for so in my opinion it is better to be away from risk until you are well. I am being really honest with you about things as I want to make sure that I give you good advice. I am happy to go into more details if you want to PM me - just give me a shout.

Hugs

Cracked