Do I Have Bipolar Disorder?

From a teen in the Phillipines: I am diagnosed with Adjustment disorder with depressed mood for a year and am still currently taking medications for it. Sometimes I feel that the medications do not work at all and still feel depressed. However, there are also times that I feel like I am getting over it.

The issue is, I feel these in an alternate manner. A couple of weeks ago, I felt my usual feeling of worthlessness, lethargic, empty. I have no interest with things I used to love and feel my mind cannot process anything completely.

But at this moment, I feel as if I can do everything and I feel confident about myself. I feel like my mind is extremely sharp and I suddenly thought of a bunch of ideas and plots for the stories I am writing. I appreciate music so much more than before and I cannot focus on what other people are telling me. I also noticed that my hands cannot stop from fidgeting or doing random things. I also suddenly feel like I have a lot of stories to tell my friends.

I felt the opposite of this just a few weeks ago which weirds me out. There are also instances that I feel happy and motivated today and then feel so off and tired later on. Sometimes, I also get to be optimistic of my works but later on, I would think otherwise. I am also having a really hard time on deciding into things but there are also times that I get surprise of myself for I just decide things so rapidly without thinking it through very well, like my cutting and perming of hair.

I also tend to save money for a greater purpose but would spend it later on with some thing I just recently thought of buying and forgetting my first purpose of having that saved money. I don’t quite know if I am just being overreacting. I am soon going to revisit my psychiatrist to further discuss about this but for now, I just want to know if there is an apparent possibility with my suspicion of my having a bipolar disorder. Thank you very much for taking your time reading my concern!

A: Please do talk this over with your psychiatrist. I can’t offer you a diagnosis on the basis of a letter. Your psychiatrist is in the position to do so.

You may be correct that you haven’t been properly diagnosed. It’s also possible that you are reacting to your medication.

You are an important member of your treatment team. Your doctor only has what you tell him or her to work with. To be really helpful, your doctor needs concrete information, not just your impressions about how you have been feeling and acting since your last visit.

Keep a careful journal of your emotions and impulses between now and when you see your doctor. Record when you take your medications and your impression of the effect. Also, be sure to record how much you are sleeping each night. Write this information down every day. Take the journal to your appointment.

Solid information will give your prescriber the information that is needed to assess your situation.

I wish you well.
Dr. Marie

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