Bipolar disorder + borderline traits. I got a few questions

Ok. I've seen many bipolar people here with borderline traits in their diagnosis.
I have a few questions for you guys.

1 - What are your borderline traits? How do they affect your relationships?
2 - Bipolar and BPD, or BPD traits. Do your bipolar symptoms and borderline symptoms overlap?
3 - I suspect I've got borderline traits, how do I explain my doctor what they are in a clear way and without explicitly mentioning BPD (I don't want to look like I want to diagnose myself)? I just want to get a clearer picture of myself and what happened to past friendships with girls I used to like
4 - Do you experience paranoia? Does it happen during mania/hypomania or during depression?
If you do, do you find it more related to bipolar disorder or BPD?
5 - Does BPD contribute to moods swings, resulting in a combination of bipolar + BPD mood swings?

I would just see if I can relate, and I'm also asking for ideas about how to better discuss about my situation with my psychiatrist, without mentioning I suspect I have borderline traits.

ElKahn wrote: - What are your borderline traits? How do they affect your relationships?

Just about all of them listed in the diagnostic criteria. My relationships are typically very emotional and have a lot of drama.

ElKahn wrote: - Bipolar and BPD, or BPD traits. Do your bipolar symptoms and borderline symptoms overlap?

Sometimes. I've always explained it that my bipolar symptoms are longer where as my BPD symptoms, have shorter spikes of highs and lows and are usually triggered by something where as my bipolar moods are not necessarily triggered by anything

ElKahn wrote:3 - I suspect I've got borderline traits, how do I explain my doctor what they are in a clear way and without explicitly mentioning BPD (I don't want to look like I want to diagnose myself)? I just want to get a clearer picture of myself and what happened to past friendships with girls I used to like

Many people have found typing out something and handing it to their doctor explaining what their everyday experiences are to be helpful. Perhaps you could try this?

ElKahn wrote:4 - Do you experience paranoia? Does it happen during mania/hypomania or during depression?
If you do, do you find it more related to bipolar disorder or BPD?

Yes, I experience paranoia. Typically it is related to my mania. I do not find this to be related to BPD, but more of my bipolar diagnosis.

ElKahn wrote:5 - Does BPD contribute to moods swings, resulting in a combination of bipolar + BPD mood swings?

Yes! I will have larger overarching mood swings with lots of smaller spikes in between.

ElKahn wrote: - What are your borderline traits? How do they affect your relationships?

Identity disturbance, such as a significant and persistent unstable self-image or sense of self
Impulsivity in at least two areas that are potentially self-damaging (e.g., spending, sex, substance abuse, reckless driving, binge eating)
RARE suicidal behavior, gestures, or threats, or self-mutilating behavior
Emotional instability due to significant reactivity of mood (e.g., intense episodic dysphoria, irritability, or anxiety usually lasting a few hours and only rarely more than a few days)
RARE feelings of emptiness
RARE inappropriate, intense anger or difficulty controlling anger (e.g., frequent displays of temper, constant anger, recurrent physical fights)
Transient, stress-related paranoid thoughts or NOT severe dissociative symptoms

So basically I have a dash of BPD but not enough to diagnose me with the full-on version.

ElKahn wrote: - Bipolar and BPD, or BPD traits. Do your bipolar symptoms and borderline symptoms overlap?

Well, the suicidality/self-harm and emotional instability do. My mood swings are sometimes clearly triggered (BPD) but sometimes not (BP).

ElKahn wrote:3 - I suspect I've got borderline traits, how do I explain my doctor what they are in a clear way and without explicitly mentioning BPD (I don't want to look like I want to diagnose myself)? I just want to get a clearer picture of myself and what happened to past friendships with girls I used to like

Other than what Cheze said... what happened to me was that during my hospital stay the doctor has performed a lot of personality tests to ensure I don't have comorbid BP+BPD and ended with exactly the diagnosis I expected, bipolar + BPD traits.

ElKahn wrote:4 - Do you experience paranoia? Does it happen during mania/hypomania or during depression?
If you do, do you find it more related to bipolar disorder or BPD?

Yes I do. It's not really related to mania or depression. If anything, it's related to anxiety which I suppose makes sense.

ElKahn wrote:5 - Does BPD contribute to moods swings, resulting in a combination of bipolar + BPD mood swings?

It's hard to say for me since I don't have two Oliveiras to experiment on, but I imagine it does.

Cheze2 wrote:Just about all of them listed in the diagnostic criteria. My relationships are typically very emotional and have a lot of drama.

This. I have it. That happened a lot when I was younger and in love with some girls. A lot of drama, paranoia, intense emotions, opposite feelings etc. etc., and excessive jealousy

Sometimes. I've always explained it that my bipolar symptoms are longer where as my BPD symptoms, have shorter spikes of highs and lows and are usually triggered by something where as my bipolar moods are not necessarily triggered by anything

This. I experienced severe, strong, sudden depression triggered by something, and then ended in a few hours, while bipolar phases last longer (from 2 days to one week, or one month)

Cheze2 wrote:Many people have found typing out something and handing it to their doctor explaining what their everyday experiences are to be helpful. Perhaps you could try this?

I can try, but when I see my psychiatric I stay there for like 30 minutes, so I think speaking about things can be faster...dunno...

Cheze2 wrote:Yes, I experience paranoia. Typically it is related to my mania. I do not find this to be related to BPD, but more of my bipolar diagnosis.

Oh ok, I see. Mine tends to be related to relationships with people. When you get paranoid during a manic episode, what are your experiences?

Cheze2 wrote:Yes! I will have larger overarching mood swings with lots of smaller spikes in between.

Hmm yeah, it happens to me too, more or less.

Oliveira wrote:Transient, stress-related paranoid thoughts or NOT severe dissociative symptoms

Could you tell me what kind of dissociative symptoms? Because I get dissociated too from time to time, sometimes I actually experience derealization. Longest derealization episode lasted for 4 hours or something.

Oliveira wrote:Well, the suicidality/self-harm and emotional instability do. My mood swings are sometimes clearly triggered (BPD) but sometimes not (BP).

Same here. I think it's worth talking about this distinction to my psychiatrist, because I also experience reactive depressions.
Not going to talk to her about my very recent self-harming though. I don't feel ready.

Oliveira wrote:what happened to me was that during my hospital stay the doctor has performed a lot of personality tests to ensure I don't have comorbid BP+BPD and ended with exactly the diagnosis I expected, bipolar + BPD traits.

Too bad my doctor doesn't perform tests of any kind. I was thinking about telling her "Ok, there's a big chaos in my mind and I don't know where to start. Maybe we should analyze many other things besides depression and euphoria".

Oliveira wrote:Yes I do. It's not really related to mania or depression. If anything, it's related to anxiety which I suppose makes sense.

Makes sense, yes. It's more similar to my experience.

Thank you Cheze2 and Oliveira for your helpful replies.

Could you tell me what kind of dissociative symptoms? Because I get dissociated too from time to time, sometimes I actually experience derealization. Longest derealization episode lasted for 4 hours or something.

For me, mostly sense of being detached from myself, which is not a very good explanation of how it feels... also memory problems, things happen apparently and then I find out. In my manic episode I remember maybe three days of a certain behaviour but I have been told by people who had no reasons to lie it was over a week.

Too bad my doctor doesn't perform tests of any kind. I was thinking about telling her "Ok, there's a big chaos in my mind and I don't know where to start. Maybe we should analyze many other things besides depression and euphoria".

How about saying: "I have been wondering many times whether my diagnosis is correct as I have read about other possible options and they sounded to me like good explanations of some of my actions. Could we perhaps look at this closer?" If she asks you if you have something specific in mind, just say "I'd rather not tell because I don't want to seem like I am diagnosing myself". Does that make sense?

Big hug!

Oliveira wrote:How about saying: "I have been wondering many times whether my diagnosis is correct as I have read about other possible options and they sounded to me like good explanations of some of my actions. Could we perhaps look at this closer?" If she asks you if you have something specific in mind, just say "I'd rather not tell because I don't want to seem like I am diagnosing myself". Does that make sense?

Big hug!

The problem is that she didn't tell me the official diagnosis.

I have never doubted I'm bipolar, and I'm sure my psychiatrist has this diagnosis in mind: Bipolar II.
The key word she said was hypomania, and racing thoughts being part of my "psychological disorder" as she called it. She probably doesn't mention the specific disorder because she thinks it might be scary for me to hear it, probably because I'm young, or maybe to make me avoid social stigma. But I already know what it is and I'm not scared. So she just keeps it in general terms, and simply calls it mood disorder. Or maybe she's trying to figure out whether it's bipolar I, II or other things because she asked me to check if my moods change with seasons.
But she openly talked about hypomania, so my guess is: she thinks I have bipolar II. Hypomania is part of bipolar II.
This was also my self diagnosis before seeing her.
I have never doubted I'm bipolar. It's way too evident. I'm just not sure whether I have borderline traits or not.