I have bipolar but they won't diagnose me!

peterpan01

Since 2003 I've been to the GP on and off. The last 5 years I am going to a mental clinic and am seen by different consultants.

I have a diagnoses of depression. Now I am not always depressed I can go months feel normal or higher. I have only had one or two manic episodes but these were years ago.


6 months ago I read about bipolar and everything fitted. I know I have bipolar 2, my mental health makes sense to me now.


But the consultant does think so, she thinks I have recurring depression! It does not help as past appointments were not well documented!!

faerielight

it can take a long time to get diagnosed with something. Are you seeing a psychiatrist as they are the onbly ones who can officially diagnose mantal health conditions. I'm having similar trouble regarding PTSD, I'm being told it's something else when I know I'm suffering PTSD following medical negligence which left me fighting for my life in ICU for a month but I'm having trouble getting diagnosed. I've just asked for a 2nd opinion and I have been granted it. Why not get a mind advocate to help you, if you have a Mind in your area. They are brilliant. Best of luck.

McKneff

Surely the consultant knows better than you. She has spent years being educated in mental
health. She wont have come to this conclusion lightly


Does your actual 'diagnosis' make any difference to you

kaya

Funny, I can search the Internet and find several conditions that the descriptions of fit me, but I don't have any of them! I'm fairly confident that if you were bi-polar one of the "different consultants" you see at the "mental clinic" regularly would have picked up on it by now. After all they are trained, experienced qualified people who do this for a living every day of their lives and with the greatest of respect to yourself you are a depressed patient who has read too much on the Internet

Prinzessilein

peterpan01, I can understand your frustration, but really you do need to try and trust your mental-health specialist.


Some years ago, my mother/carer and I became aware that Autism explained a lot of things about me. We had to pretty much fight to get to see a specialist who was prepared to diagnose my condition.


The very first thing he did when I saw him was to arrange a number of blood tests and then took a VERY thorough health-history...there were a few conditions that present in a very similar way to Autism....I had a thyroid test done twice because the specialist wanted to be absolutely sure he was not missing a possible diagnosis.


In the end, the specialist made his diagnosis - and agreed I am autistic....but it took a number of sessions and a large panel of blood tests! (Autism doesn't show up in any blood test, but other conditions do, and they needed to be eliminated from a list of possible diagnoses)


Be honest with your consultant. Take a printout from the computer to show why you think Bipolar is an option....but if the consultant insists it is not Bipolar, then maybe they are right?

poppy12345

peterpan01 wrote: »

Since 2003 I've been to the GP on and off. The last 5 years I am going to a mental clinic and am seen by different consultants.

I have a diagnoses of depression. Now I am not always depressed I can go months feel normal or higher. I have only had one or two manic episodes but these were years ago.


6 months ago I read about bipolar and everything fitted. I know I have bipolar 2, my mental health makes sense to me now.


But the consultant does think so, she thinks I have recurring depression! It does not help as past appointments were not well documented!!

A consultant has had many many years of college, uni, training and exams to get where they are now, if they didn't know what they were talking about then they wouldn't be a consultant. It's all too easy to look something up on the internet and think "yup that's me, i've got that" I would think if you've been seen by many different consultants and they've all said no to Bipolar then i doubt you have it. Maybe it's time you stopped looking at the internet and start believing your consultants....

Indie_Kid

Not everyone with depression is depressed 24/7. I never was. The majority of the time I was.

I'm with the others on this - it's possible to have symptoms of many disorders.

If you're that certain you have it, then seek a different opinion, which you are entitled to.

skintbuthappy81

I was diagnosed with bi polar a few months ago, the anti depressants I'm on don't work so am currently looking into a mood stabiliser. However difficult it is OP trust the consultant, I understand your frustration but they do know what they are talking about.

poppy12345

I've also suffered with depression for the past 20 years but i'm certainly not depressed 24/7. Yes i have my bad times but i also have times where i'm ok (with my depression that it)

tomtom256

peterpan01 wrote: »

Since 2003 I've been to the GP on and off. The last 5 years I am going to a mental clinic and am seen by different consultants.

I have a diagnoses of depression. Now I am not always depressed I can go months feel normal or higher. I have only had one or two manic episodes but these were years ago.


6 months ago I read about bipolar and everything fitted. I know I have bipolar 2, my mental health makes sense to me now.


But the consultant does think so, she thinks I have recurring depression! It does not help as past appointments were not well documented!!

I had flu and a high temperature last week, I looked up the symptons for ebola, they matched.

Google, confirms whats wrong with you when trained people can't.

poppy12345

tomtom256 wrote: »

I had flu and a high temperature last week, I looked up the symptons for ebola, they matched.

Google, confirms whats wrong with you when trained people can't.

Search Google and become a hypochondriac!
Hypochondriacs love Google!