High anxiety: GAD, bipolar depression or something else?

Hi everyone,

I'm going through something at the moment which I'd really like some feedback on, if possible. First of all, sorry to all of you for not being around recently. I've been attempting to up my activity levels in real life generally, and especially socially- I've now joined a couple of groups related to my interests in my city, and also went to my first anxiety support group two weeks or so ago (I have a diagnosis of Generalised Anxiety Disorder as well as the Bipolar one).

When it comes to my mood, for the last 12 days or so, I've been extremely anxious and a bit low, if I think about it. I'm repeatedly seeking reassurance from those close to me, mainly my mum and sister, and I know I'm getting on their nerves as my mum's told me (she doesn't hold back!)

I'm not sure whether it's 'just' my GAD playing up, mild bipolar depression or something else. I tapered off my Seroquel/Quetiapine slowly and came off it completely just over a month ago, and I'm wondering if that could be having an effect. I felt fine at first, if anxious, but around 12 days ago, things ramped up a notch.

It's been affecting my sleep, too... I usually get to sleep fine as my meds (800mg Tegretol/Carbamazepine and 15mg Zyprexa/Olanzapine) knock me out, but I'm waking earlier than usual- today it was at 7.50am- feeling extremely anxious and unable to get back to sleep.

As I mentioned, I feel a bit low and very anxious but so far have no other bipolar symptoms. In addition, I can't identify an obvious trigger, apart from my usual worries about my situation. I haven't contacted my pdoc as yet because I'm still sleeping a 'normal' number of hours (9 or 10) and don't have any other obvious symptoms.

I'm not looking for a 'diagnosis' of my current issues but if anyone can relate that would be really helpful. If you've felt like this in the past, did you ride through it or was it necessary to get your pdoc involved for a meds change?

Hugs to all those who would like them. I've missed you guys a lot! Thanks in advance for all your help.

I like to take between 2-3 weeks time to see if the symptoms remain the same or get worse to hopefully see where my mood is headed. For me, when it doesn't last that long, it seems to just be mood swings and they may either become stabilized or maybe even get worse. If they get worse, I seriously think about seeing a pdoc again so that I don't get worse and it's difficult to bring me back up to becoming stable.

Also, great to see you here, Hugs!

Hey Ennui,

Congratulations on getting out there to engage in new activities and meet people. That is not easy to do with anxiety and bipolar. Personally I had a difficult time withdrawing from Seroquel years ago. It could be that your brain is still adjusting from that... depending on how long you were taking it and your dose. What type of reassurances are you seeking?

A couple weeks ago I had some horrible anxiety for about a week. I wasn't eating, I was always sick to my stomach, and was trembling an awful lot. That, paired with some questionable things I was doing, my counselor thought I was becoming hypomanic. But it eventually passed and I'm fine now.

So like quietgirl said, I also wait it out, and keep an eye on my mood.

It's nice to see you again, Ennui, but I'm sorry to hear you are still struggling with this. Hugs to you!

Thanks so much for all your replies. Having your support really means so much to me. My mood and sleep are still no different and I'm still waking up earlier than usual (about 8am), feeling sick to my stomach with anxiety, but I'm trying to push through it.

quietgirl: Thanks for your advice. I think I'm going to wait a bit longer to see if my anxiety will hopefully drop. I've been like this for about 2 weeks now and it's getting old, but I'm not sure what my pdoc could do even if I did contact him, as so far it's 'just' anxiety and I'm still sleeping a 'normal' amount. It's great to see you again, too. Huge hugs!

freyja: Thanks for your input and kind words. Yes, it can be hard putting myself out there socially, but I think it's something I have to do if I'm ever going to get back to living a 'normal' life. As for the Seroquel, I'd been back on it for 3 years or so and my highest dosage during my big mixed episode/psychosis in '16 was 800mg, so it could be that the anxiety is because of withdrawal from that.

The reassurance I'm seeking is based around questions such as 'Am I getting ill again?', 'Will I be like this (highly anxious) forever?', 'Am I ever going to get my life back?' etc. It gets irritating for those around me but I can't help asking those type of questions when I'm so anxious.

Jellybeanery: Thanks for sharing your experience. I'm sorry to hear you recently had to go through a similar thing, but I'm so glad it passed and you're feeling better now. I'll take the great advice you've both given here and wait it out while monitoring my mood. Lovely to see you again, too, though I'm sorry my first post in a long while had to be one about me struggling! Sending lots of hugs your way.

If I wake up early, I sometimes just lay there and meditate for a while to keep relaxing and try to fall back asleep. That or go to bed a little later. As you get older, you need less sleep apparently. I also find jogging at least a mile every morning does wonders for anxiety and energizes you for the day. .5 mg Klonopin helps me sleep deeply too. Missed you Ennui but glad you got a life I am still working on getting one too.

Thanks for your input, z7z. It's very much appreciated. Today I woke up really anxious at 7.15am, and listened to a meditation video, but couldn't fall back asleep. However, I'd fallen asleep early at 10pm last night, so got just over 9 hours sleep, which is obviously a 'normal' amount. Part of me wants to put in a call to my pdoc about the anxiety but I think I'll try and ride it through for one more week and see what happens. I've got my anxiety support group tonight so that might help. Thanks again for all the support. Hugs!

If you feel really bad, Ennui, just put in a call. Suffering through anxiety when you don't need to is terrible. I know because I've been through it once.

Thanks for your support and kind words, quietgirl. I haven't yet called my pdoc because I think things are slowly returning to 'normal', with less anxiety and I'm also sleeping more (11 hours last night). I still don't feel 100% back to my usual self but hopefully it's going that way. Thanks again... Huge hugs!

Glad to hear you're on the upswing, Ennui! Hope your "feeling better" trend continues and you can put all this bullcrap behind you! ((((Hugs))))