Bipolar Today

If you suspect that you or someone you love may have bipolar disorder, it is important to seek out a diagnosis for the condition. However, getting a diagnosis can be a tricky process. Often, bipolar disorder is confused with other conditions, and you will need to have an official diagnosis from a psychiatrist before you can be treated for the condition properly. In addition, dealing with the diagnosis can itself be a stressful state. In this article, I will discuss when you should suspect bipolar disorder, how to go about getting a diagnosis, and what to do once you or someone else has been diagnosed.

When to Suspect Bipolar Disorder

People, even psychiatrists, cannot diagnose themselves with bipolar disorder. However, in order to be concerned enough about bipolar disorder to seek a diagnosis from someone else, there are a number of symptoms to look for. Some of these symptoms may be signs of other disorders, but some of them are unique or at least almost unique to bipolar disorder.

Note that drug and alcohol use can simulate the effects of bipolar disorder and other mental illnesses. In fact, it is very difficult to diagnose bipolar disorder in someone with an addiction, because it is almost impossible to separate out which symptoms might be the result of a mental illness and which might be the result of the substances. If you or someone else has addiction problems, it is probably best to work through addiction services, rather than through the medical system as I will suggest below.

The following symptoms may be signs of bipolar disorder, and should raise a “yellow flag”, so to speak:

• Cycling Shifts in Mood: You notice that your or someone else’s mood oscillates widely from elation to depression and in a generally cyclical way.
• Periodic Irritability: You notice that you or someone else is irritable, but only for a few weeks or months at a time, and then it goes away. It will then return weeks or months later.
• Lack of Effect of Antidepressants: Someone who has major depressive episodes and takes antidepressants, but finds that the antidepressants accomplish absolutely nothing may have bipolar disorder rather than unipolar depression.

The following symptoms are more likely to be signs of bipolar disorder, as they are more associated with that condition than with more common conditions:

• Pressured Speech: People with bipolar disorder will start to speak very quickly, as though their mouth is trying to keep up with their brains. They will have the tendency to talk over and interrupt other people.
• Grandiosity and Delusions of Grandeur: People with bipolar disorder tend to overestimate their own abilities, often substantially. This can sometimes lead to delusions, in which people think they are, for instance, a famous person.
• Excessive Involvement in Pleasurable Activities: People with bipolar disorder often spend wildly, gamble, or are sexually promiscuous. However, these behaviors are periodic.
• Extreme response to antidepressants: Someone who has severe elation and even psychotic symptoms as a response to antidepressants is likely to be bipolar.

Please don’t use the above to diagnose yourself. If you observe any serious psychiatric symptoms at all, such as delusions, suicidal thoughts or attempts, or hallucinations, don’t worry about what you have but simply go to the local emergency room and seek treatment.

Getting a Psychiatric Referral

Because people cannot diagnose themselves, you will need to speak to a psychiatrist in order to receive a proper diagnosis of bipolar disorder. However, this can be a tricky situation in itself. In some areas and if you are wealthy enough, you may be able to simply walk into a psychiatrist’s office and pay for an assessment. In other areas and for many people, it will require a referral from another medical specialist. In this article, I will discuss the process of getting referred to a psychiatrist for a diagnosis.

Non-Crisis Situations

If you suspect that you may have bipolar disorder, then the next step is to speak to your family physician and to look for a referral to a psychiatrist. This can actually be something of a hurdle. I have met a few people who have been diagnosed with bipolar disorder and who had trouble convincing their family physician that there was something sufficiently wrong to warrant a referral (given that they were eventually diagnosed, the family physician was obviously mistaken). However, it isn’t that the physician is being malicious or even practicing badly. It may simply be that you are giving them insufficient information.

There are a few things that you should bring up when speaking to your family physician:

• Explain to them exactly the symptoms that you have.
• Be clear that you would like to have an assessment for the possibility of bipolar disorder or other, related mental illnesses.
• If you have a history of bipolar disorder or other mental health problems in your family, let your physician know this as well.
• Discuss with them the effects (or lack of effects) that antidepressants have had on you.
• Be sure to include any cases where you have been suicidal or harmed yourself or others (note, if you are currently suicidal or harming yourself or others, go to emergency, not your family physician).

At this point, your physician will likely provide a referral to a psychiatrist (in fact, he or she will probably be happy that you’ve provided such clear information). In the event that your physician does not provide a referral, you have three choices. First, you could seek another physician’s referral. Second, you could accept your physician’s advice and not seek a further diagnosis. Finally, you could go directly to a psychiatrist yourself.

Crisis Situations

Getting a diagnosis in crisis situations is in some ways easier, but generally a lot more scary. In these cases, you will often be taking yourself or a family member to the emergency room. At that time, the patient (you or another person) will receive some sort of preliminary assessment and either be placed in hospital care or receive some sort of referral to a psychiatrist (if they determine that the patient is not an immediate danger to yourself or others). You should go to the emergency room if you or someone else:

• is suicidal or has attempted suicide.
• has harmed himself, herself or someone else physically, such as cutting.
• is hallucinating.
• is having delusions, defined as irrational thoughts not shared by the community.
• has completely broken down in terms of coherence, is “babbling” or is severely agitated.

In your own case, you can go to the emergency room yourself, unless the situation is severe enough that you worry you will not get there, in which case you can call an ambulance. In the case of other people, the situation is a bit more complicated. You can either persuade the person to go to the emergency room, or, if that doesn’t work, you can call an ambulance for them. Ambulance workers are trained to recognize when they have the right to take a person against his or her will to the hospital.

In these cases, you’re not really “seeking” a diagnosis. You’re seeking immediate help. However, the result is ultimately the same. You or another person will receive an assessment for bipolar disorder and other mental illnesses.

The Diagnostic Process

So how does the diagnosis work? Right now, there is no blood test for bipolar disorder, and they don’t look for it using a CT scan. Instead, a bipolar diagnosis is done using a questionnaire. Since bipolar disorder has quite similar features to other mental illnesses, you won’t usually be tested for bipolar disorder directly. Instead, you will receive a questionnaire that tests for a whole range of mental illnesses. After giving the questionnaire, the physician will look at the answer and try to provide a diagnosis based on the answers that you have given.

The information on that questionnaire is largely self-reported. In other words, you will need to be honest, or you risk having an inaccurate assessment. It can be tempting, if one is really worried that he or she is sick, to stretch the truth in terms of the severity of the symptoms. Conversely, it can be tempting, if one is worried about seeming strong and confident, to underplay the extent of the symptoms. Remember that the goal is to receive an accurate diagnosis so that you can get the best help. Honestly is especially important, and even small fibs can potentially set back treatment for years.

The usual interview that people with suspected bipolar disorder receive is what is called the “Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV Axis I Disorders” or SCID I (and you may occasionally hear psychiatrists call it the “skid one”). The SCIDs were developed so that there would be a standard interview that could be used by multiple therapists. Without such an interview, it would be impossible to compare data or to be sure that one therapist’s diagnoses are reasonably consistent with another therapists diagnosis. For example, when SCIDs were used on identical twins, it was discovered that the correlation was far higher than people had suspected.

There isn’t actually a bipolar disorder test designed for bipolar itself. Instead, the SCID I tests for the entire range of what are called “major mental disorders”, which includes bipolar disorder but also schizoaffective disorder, major depressive disorder, anxiety disorders, ADHD, autism, anorexia, bulimia and schizophrenia (SCID II tests for personality and intellectual disorders). The reason that there is a single test is that there is often a great deal of overlap in the symptoms (and in many cases the associated brain states) of these disorders, and a single test makes it easier to avoid misdiagnosis of one condition as another.

If the test shows that you or your loved one has bipolar disorder, that person will receive a diagnosis of bipolar disorder. Sometimes, the test may show another disorder is actually the cause of the symptoms. In other cases, there might be multiple disorders at the same time, such as the bipolar disorder with ADHD, a quite common combination (someone with features of both bipolar disorder and schizophrenia disorder, however, may be diagnosed with schizoaffective disorder, not both). In some other cases, the results might be inconclusive. Either testing for personality disorders might be done, or the tests might be redone or the results examined by another expert.

What To Do Once You Have a Diagnosis

Once you have a diagnosis of bipolar disorder, there are a few important things to do. First, you’ll need to come to terms with the diagnosis itself. Being diagnosed with an incurable, chronic mental illness is stressful in itself, even if it can be a relief on some levels. Second, you will probably want to learn about the condition so that you can understand what is happening. Third, you’ll need to seek out treatment of various kinds to manage your condition, so that it burdens your life as little as possible. Finally, you’ll need to figure out how and whether to inform others of the condition.

Coming to terms with having bipolar disorder is a difficult process. In many ways it is a lifelong process. Over time, people become more and more aware of the kinds of limitations that arise from bipolar disorder. On the one hand, this is a very good thing, as we become less and less angry with ourselves for our perceived failures. On the other hand, it can be disappointing to discover that certain goals we might have had are no longer within our reach. One of the first and best things to speak with a therapist about after receiving a treatment of bipolar disorder is to speak about the diagnosis itself. The feelings are likely themselves very raw at that point, and it is a good opportunity to learn about the condition.

There are a number of resources available for learning about bipolar disorder. Providing just such a resource is why I started Bipolar Today. There are also a large number of books on bipolar disorder that are available that can get you up to speed about the facts about bipolar disorder and treatment options. However, I would also recommend reading about the experiences of people who have bipolar disorder. Books like An Unquiet Mind by Kay Redfield Jamison or Wishful Drinking by Carrie Fisher provide excellent first-person accounts of the experience.

It is also very important to seek out treatment. A psychiatrist can help you with pharmacological treatment for your bipolar disorder. Most commonly, people with bipolar disorder are given either mood stabilizers or what are called “atypical antipsychotics”. Getting the right combination of medications can be a tricky process and it will be different for each person. This is why it is best to have a psychiatrist who can help with the process of finding this combination.

In addition, there are numerous therapists who can help with bipolar disorder. This person may or may not be your psychiatrist (though there are some conveniences in having it be the same person if you can manage it). Therapy can be expensive, so if you cannot afford it, then there are group therapy sessions available in most communities. Just ask your psychiatrist about local groups, call local mental health centers or even use the internet for searches (I found a group I’ve been attending for years simply by typing “bipolar” and my city). There is nothing wrong with seeking both individual treatment and group support.

Finally, there is the issue of what to do in terms of your family and workplace. While telling family members can be difficult, each person who accepts your condition can be a lifelong support for you. It is especially important to discuss the issue with spouses and partners, because bipolar relationships have their own unique sets of issues, and you and your partner will be better able to deal with them if both of you know what is going on. Workplaces are tricky, and you will just need to use your best judgment. While it is technically illegal to discriminate against those with bipolar disorder in all but a few positions (such as armies and police forces), that doesn’t mean it doesn’t happen. If you think the accommodations that will come from revealing your condition at work will outweigh the possibility of discrimination, then it may be worth revealing the condition to your immediate supervisors.

Summing It Up

Getting a bipolar disorder diagnosis can be a tricky process. However, it usually involves a fairly standard set of steps.

• First, speak to your family doctor or other primary care physician (including the emergency room in the case of an emergency).
• Next, there will be a structured interview, where bipolar disorder and other mental disorders will be considered.
• Finally, once you have a diagnosis of bipolar disorder, try to find out as much as you can, arrange treatment and make decisions about how and whether to let others know about the condition.

If you or someone you love has received a recent diagnosis of bipolar disorder, I wish you all the best on this difficult journey.