Bipolar Survey - Please take a minute!

**Edited by mod.
Sorry, all surveys must be approved before being posted on the forums.

Lone wolf or social butterfly, if you had to pick one? (introvert or extrovert?)
Social butterfly, though many times I have trouble being that way although I prefer it.

Do you isolate? If so, why?
Sometimes. Usually if my depression/psychosis is getting to be too much.

Are you a creative person?
Sometimes. Depends on my mood.

How do you express your creativity?
I try to paint a lot, and fail miserably. I try to draw, with the same result.
I have more success painting lawn ornaments, decorating the house and doing sewing projects.

When you’re at your most creative, what kind of mood are you generally in?
Depends. Sometimes in a good mood, sometimes during a mixed episode.

Do you read often?
Not as often as I'd like. School takes away the "fun" reading time!

Do you write often?
Pretty often, yes.

How do you feel your social awareness (how well you perceive others thoughts and emotions) is in comparison to an average person? Scale: 1 -2 - 3 -4 -5 with 1 being completely socially unaware, 5 being extremely socially aware, and 3 being an average person.
I would say I'm at a 5.....sometimes I feel like I'm a little "too" aware, but that could be the paranoia kicking in too =/

Do you have/experience social anxiety?
On occasion. Depends on my mood/symptoms that day.

How are your social interaction skills? (Communication skills?)
When I'm level or manic, extremely good. When I'm depressed or psychotic, horrible.

Are you an emotional person? Scale: 1 -2 - 3 -4 -5 with 1 being completely unemotional, 5 being extremely emotional, and 3 being an average person.
Currently, about at a 4. Meds Sometimes I'm at a 1, sometimes at a 5 or higher, lol

Do you consider yourself to be an empathic person? Empathy: to understand the feelings of another.
Extremely. Unless you're yanking my chain, then the empathy disappears.

Thank you very much!

Lone wolf or social butterfly, if you had to pick one? (introvert or extrovert?) introvert

Do you isolate? If so, why? Yes, from everyone except my family. I just don't like dealing with people. I could make a long list

Are you a creative person? Yes

How do you express your creativity? Woodworking.

When you’re at your most creative, what kind of mood are you generally in? Intrigued.

Do you read often? I used to read all teh time before I went on medication.

Do you write often? Yes.

How do you feel your social awareness (how well you perceive others thoughts and emotions) is in comparison to an average person? Scale: 1 -2 - 3 -4 -5 with 1 being completely socially unaware, 5 being extremely socially aware, and 3 being an average person. 2

Do you have/experience social anxiety? Not really.

How are your social interaction skills? (Communication skills?) Good

Are you an emotional person? Scale: 1 -2 - 3 -4 -5 with 1 being completely unemotional, 5 being extremely emotional, and 3 being an average person. 2

Do you consider yourself to be an empathic person? Empathy: to understand the feelings of another. Less than average.

Thank you Moses!

Lone wolf or social butterfly, if you had to pick one? (introvert or extrovert?)
Used to be very social, not so much lately.

Do you isolate? If so, why?
-I do sometimes. Expecially when I'm feeling deppressed

Are you a creative person?
-Yes, very.

How do you express your creativity?
-I write music. Sometimes I draw too.

When you’re at your most creative, what kind of mood are you generally in?
-I'm usually very motivated and focused

Do you read often?
-No

Do you write often?
-No

How do you feel your social awareness (how well you perceive others thoughts and emotions) is in comparison to an average person? Scale: 1 -2 - 3 -4 -5 with 1 being completely socially unaware, 5 being extremely socially aware, and 3 being an average person.
-I'd say about 4.5

Do you have/experience social anxiety?
-Only recently, and only a bit

How are your social interaction skills? (Communication skills?)
-Gosh I don't know lately! Sometimes people don't understand what I say at all. But that's mostly when things I say are implied. I do struggle to tell jokes or stories. The punchline gets lost somewhere in my timing or tone of voice. Interacting wasn't a problem before.

Are you an emotional person? Scale: 1 -2 - 3 -4 -5 with 1 being completely unemotional, 5 being extremely emotional, and 3 being an average person.
-I'll pass on this one, because I differs from time to time.

Do you consider yourself to be an empathic person? Empathy: to understand the feelings of another.
-Yes, mostly

Type of Bipolar disorder? (Bipolar I, Bopolar II, rapid cycle?)
-Bipolar 1

Please just note that I was diagnosed and started treatment only two months ago and added to that recovering from a bad breakup. So my answers may be skewed.
Hope I helped at least!

Lone wolf or social butterfly, if you had to pick one? (introvert or extrovert?) Lone wolf (but hardly introverted!!!)

Do you isolate? If so, why? Yes, because I can't sustain relationships, I feel too much pain and can't relate properly - I have to isolate to manage my mood.

Are you a creative person? In some ways but not good at art... creative in that I am a lateral thinker, and am a good conduit.

How do you express your creativity? Writing, talking, community development, (design social programs), sometimes I colour in - it relaxes me heaps for some reason , I like working out challenging problems.

When you’re at your most creative, what kind of mood are you generally in? hypomanic

Do you read often? yes, but mainly online forums - I'm addicted to them... they are my happy place... this is my main one and there is one other.

Do you write often? yes, I cooked the boards with my responses. I am so interested in other people, I can't help myself

How do you feel your social awareness (how well you perceive others thoughts and emotions) is in comparison to an average person? Scale: 1 -2 - 3 -4 -5 with 1 being completely socially unaware, 5 being extremely socially aware, and 3 being an average person.
I think I am a 2. I'm clunky in my capacity to relate with others. (I also have borderline personality disorder and post traumatic stress disorder). Sometimes managing my own intense emotions well enough to stay alive is the only thing I can do. Active suicidality 40% of the time, makes it hard to relax and go with the flow in social awareness - focus has to be on survival.

Do you have/experience social anxiety? No... love people... no matter how much I have been hurt, I see every new person as how I am inside and then get disappointed when they don't match my projected image of them. I am starting to learn how to let the right people close and avoid the harmful types for me.

How are your social interaction skills? (Communication skills?) Not very good. I struggle to be assertive, because underneath I fear that someone is going to kill themselves or kill me. (Mother threatening to suicide over very minor every day type things on a regular basis and a very violent brother with homocidal ideations.) So standing up for myself over small things still triggers a world of intense terror and panic in me. I think I am healing and growing but the progress is slow.

Are you an emotional person? Scale: 1 -2 - 3 -4 -5 with 1 being completely unemotional, 5 being extremely emotional, and 3 being an average person. Is there a 6?.. I'm off the richter scale with emotion..a psychologist once described it as psychological 3rd degree burns - often I still feel I am being "burnt alive" by emotional pain. Okay I'll behave - rating 5

Do you consider yourself to be an empathic person? Empathy: to understand the feelings of another.
I do, but I can also be terribly destructive in dyphoric hypomanic rages. I am not someone to cross. I was dragged up, and had to fight hard to survive; once that is triggered well... I can't remember ever coming off second best. BUT I do really care about people and when I feel safe, I feel the pain of others so deeply. I tear up often (as in watery eyes) when I read the deep pain, desperation on these boards and I am also buoyed by the courageous fight for life and healing on these boards. Many heroes and heroines here... Their struggles maybe private and secret but their achievements and personal attributes are no less significant that people we idolise at the "peak" of society.


Type of Bipolar disorder? (Bipolar I, Bopolar II, rapid cycle?) I have bipolar 2. I was only diagnosed this year after having the illness for 39 years undiagnosed.... 20 of those years, I was presenting for diagnosis and treatment but was turned away.

Personality traits amongst people who manage their bipolar - persistence, courage, determination, acceptance of what is, realism, strength, more courage, integrity, resilience, commitment to heal, determination to survive, undertaking to be the best people they can be, despite their symptoms, un wavering resolve to live as fully as they can despite the unavoidable restrictions placed on them by their illness, humility (it takes a lot of guts to get over the intrinsic denial aspect of bipolar), not necessarily "forgiveness" but possibly an understanding of times we haven't been treated as well as we have deserved. My expression of my bipolar might help you draw out those personality traits you are looking for poetry-corner/topic72044.html

Good luck with your term paper! The more people who take an interest in bipolar the better!!

Jade