More threads by usnsc

usnsc

Member
About 2 and 1/2 years ago I was diagnosed with bipolar disorder. I never really had problems except for a year in 8th grade when I went through a "goth" stage and it was "cool" to act depressed. The summer before my junior year in high school I starting dating a girl. Things were going fine...until she informed me that she sometime's hurt herself when she got upset. We talked about it and everything seemed to be okay.

But a few months later, my grandmother died. And I figured I would try dealing with it the way that she did. I didn't do it much. Maybe 4 times, but my mom found out and off we went to the doctor. It was just your regular family physician. He asked me typical question that you would find on an online survey then told me that I had bipolar disorder. He prescribed me Paxil. Which was within a month suppose to make me happy. My mom even had "happy day" marked on the calender.

The paxil didn't seem to do much but spark manic episodes. So we went back to the doctor. Where he prescribed me an antiseizure pill...Topamax. A while went by, and not much was changing. But the problem only seemed to be when I was with my girlfriend. We would just fight. When we were apart, I was fine. When I started dating her, I pretty much cut all of my friends off and made her my "world" I had convinced myself that I couldn't live without her.

After the Topamax wasn't doing anything, we decided to go see a psychiatrist. I went in and he asked me the same questions and said "yup, you're bipolar" But at this time, something happened to the company Paxil, so he started prescribing me Wellbutrin.

Nothing seemed to work. I was still starting fights with my girlfriend over the smallest things...then going to her and crying later.

Then my senior year starts. As said before, I had cut all my friends pretty much off because she didn't like them. Once school started, I started talking to them more and wanting to hang out. Before that, when my girlfriend would go to work...I would just sit around and wait for her phone call. But since I had friends again, I could do things with them.

She didn't like that, so after a few months I got to the point were I felt like I would rather have friends than a girlfriend. So I brokeup with her. Within the next few months are when I started feeling changes. I wasn't ever getting mad or having any episodes. Small changes use to freak me out...like my exgirlfriend getting a new car. But since I broke up with her...I have moved out of the state and am going to school. I moved from a small town to a big city and not once have I had any signs of an episode, felt depressed or anything.

It seems I was having problems...the medicine wasn't helping at all, until we broke up. Then, I have litterally not had one episode and it's been over a year.

So my question is. Is it possible that some how, some way, it was this girl making me act this way. I know that sounds childish. Or is it just coincidence that the week I break up with her is the week my medication kicked in?

If you took the time to read this, I thank you.
 

David Baxter PhD

Late Founder
That's hard to say. It's possible, but the fact that Paxil triggered what you describe as manic episodes is certainly consistent with the diagnosis of bipolar disorder.
 

usnsc

Member
The doctor called them manic episodes. I would seem to get mad at little things alot easier. I would throw phones in the heat of an argument. I think I went threw 3 cell phones in that relationship. I would yell alot. And all of that continued even after I was taking the medication. Like I said. It seriously all stopped after we broke up. I was fine before we dated and now I'm fine after. I just can't figure out if I'm fine because of the medication or not. I'm taking what my doctor says "enough to be licking the pill" Not really much to be doing anything. 300mg of Wellbutrin and 150mg of the Topamax.
 

David Baxter PhD

Late Founder
Well, as I said, I don't try to diagnose someone online because there's simply not enough information to go on.

Is it possible you were misdiagnosed? Yes.

Is it possible you were not misdiagnosed? Yes.

If you are concerned, the best advice I can give you is to consult another psychiatrist or psychologist and get a second opinion.
 
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