Bipolar 1 vs 2

How do you know which is which and which one you have?

Hello Maenad,

I was diagnosed with Bipolar I (rapid-cycling). In my case I was first diagnosed with depression when I was 19 years old and in the army, at that time it looked right. It is natural that when we are young people see us with a lot of energy and people around me didn't noticed the difference from being young filled with energy between being hypomanic or manic.

After the depression diagnose and leaving the army, the Bipolar diagnose came quite easy. Not sleeping for several days/nights (3-5 in a row, 2 or 3 hours sleep then again same 3-5), going around in a motorcycle at 300km/h in the highway with the police after me with other many crazyness with that same motorcycle, issues with others... to a point of being constantly in fights, sex drive completely up to an extreme and all the other classical manic characteristics. Came to a point that something was wrong. I didn't noticed until being with a therapist what was psychosis and that some of my "experiences" weren't exactly real.

When I am depressed, I go rock bottom. I doubt that is harder than the ones with the type 2, but in fact that hits us harder because we come from such a high peak like mania is. Therefore, creating the illusion that is a thougher depression state.

The ridiculous... is that I did so many stupid things in the next 3 years after leaving the army and my country is such a failure in health care... that not even when I tried to commit s*** (I don't want to write that word) I got help.

I digress... Anyway, I know because I go completely psychotic. I go into a state that I really believe that I am going to stop all wars and all the pain in the world... and then... plan beautiful cities and gardens where people can live in peace. During those times I can't stop reading and thinking about this issues, I try to learn as many languages I can and their culture and way of thinking... trying to get a solution for all the mess in the world... Irony... I am now a Landscape Architect...

I have other psychotic symptoms... paranoia... audio hallucinations... I am too messed up to just be "hypomanic" during those times.

I am sorry if it wasn't very clear, but is my side of the story only in a very short way... I need to go get ready for work. Maybe today I'll save the world.

There is talk of BP being on a spectrum but in BP1 you have to have episodes of mania and may or may not have major depression. You may also be psychotic. In BP2 ppl have hypomania and episodes of major depression. That is according to DSM IV

Cracked

I read recently that they were changing (or thinking about) changing the diagnostic criteria of BP2 to include mixed episodes.

I recently found out that my BP2 has Psychotic features.

I know as BP2 I dread my depressions as they are far worse than my hypomania (I'm hypomanic at the moment)

But I'm also more in control than I have been

Personally I prefer the idea of bipolar being on a spectrum - I think it is difficult to classify otherwise. You cannot put ppl in neat boxes - it does not work.

Cracked

CrackedGirl wrote:Personally I prefer the idea of bipolar being on a spectrum - I think it is difficult to classify otherwise. You cannot put ppl in neat boxes - it does not work.

Cracked

I agree. Trying to categorize a spectrum is ultimately going to be fruitless unless one can find a real boundary.

If anything, psychotic symptoms are the only useful difference in kind between Bipolars I and II, since it has real applications in the kinds of medications that are appropriate. However, one can be bipolar I without ever having been psychotic (although not vice versa unless drugs are involved), so the DSM-IV isn't using that as the only boundary (sigh).

Hopefully, this will get better sorted out in the DSM-V. The bipolar I/II distinction is currently a bit of a mess.

can you be bipolar II and have audio/visual hallucinations?

Son wrote:can you be bipolar II and have audio/visual hallucinations?

As far as I am aware no unless drugs of some sort are involved in precipitating it, although I am not a professional. However you could have schizoaffective disorder bipolar type as an alternate to BP1.

Cracked

And schizoaffective type is bipolar plus schizophrenia, right? So unlike BP1 the psychotic symptoms would be continuous without treatment and not cycle like an affective disorder.

Essentially yes, although schizoaffective disorder is an illness in its own right - tho yes it does include psychosis as well as the mood disturbance.

Tho I am not an expert and could be talking nonsense - i hope not but apologies if I am.

Cracked