Posted by Elizabeth on November 10, 2001, at 22:01:33
In reply to Re: Atypical Depression Actually Very Typical » Elizabeth, posted by SLS on November 10, 2001, at 7:29:03
> I have been vascilating for quite some time regarding the issue of whether drug-induced mania indicates a bipolar diathesis.
Me too. FWIW, there's no history of bipolar disorder in my family -- only unipolar depression (and some alcoholism on my mom's side).As I mentioned (I think), my parents have both had clinical depression, but it took different forms. My mom has had episodes of atypical depression, and I think she's the atypical depressive/maybe soft bipolar personality type, if you know what I mean: anxious, occasional situational panic attacks, generally very cheerful when not depressed but often oversensitive, needs a lot of sleep, uses "comfort foods" (ironically, she's much thinner than I am -- I think the bupe is making me hungry), etc. Sort of the "hysteroid dysphoric" type that Klein described (although I wouldn't say she's histrionic, she is bubbly and very emotionally expressive).
My father, on the other hand, is dysthymic. My mother used to say that you could always tell when he entered a room because of the black cloud that always hangs over his head. I don't know how it affects his appetite, but my chronic sleep problems are obviously inherited from him. He gets anxious about all sorts of things. He worries a lot about me and my sister, and my half-brother and half-sister (his two other kids) say he was like that with them too. He's often socially isolated; his life is his career, and he has few close friends. He shares a lot of my attentional traits, too -- sometimes he will sit and do one thing for hours, but other times he can't concentrate. He's often tired, which presumably has something to do with his trouble sleeping at night.
> To answer this, it might be necessary to use a more detailed set of criteria to differentiate bipolar mania from other presentations of psychosis or hyperarousal that might look similar.
Yes, I think so.
> For instance, it is not uncommon that corticosteroids produce mental aberrations that include psychosis. The word mania is also used. Is this a true mania or a psychosis that includes hyperarousal? I don't know.
FWIW: I have a friend who takes prednisone occasionally (ulcerative colitis) and has a family history of BP although he doesn't have it himself. He definitely becomes hypomanic on prednisone. (He also gets acne, and his face puffs up.)
> I thought that you had experienced multiple instances of mania.
Well, one definite mania, a couple of possible hypomanias.
> That you have not would seem to indicate that it is likely that the altered state that was produced in association with the SS was idiosyncratic of the syndrome and not indicative of a bipolar mania.
Yes, that's how I feel also.
> The reason I poked you with a stick
Feel free, but be warned that I sometimes poke back. :-)
> was to have you look more closely at the possibility that your ailments include a bipolar diathesis, which would indicate a more thorough exploration of using multiple mood-stabilizers and other treatment strategies currently employed for treating bipolar depression.
Thank you. I really appreciate that you've taken an interest in my problems. I can always use a second, third, fourth, ... opinion. When I was first hospitalized (at McLean), they pursued the bipolar possibility and tried giving me Depakote. That was after Nardil pooped out. What I was going through was really a state of hyperreactive mood -- a withdrawal symptom resulting from tolerance to the Nardil -- not hypomania, IMO.
> My gut feeling is that you are not bipolar. However, I would not rely on my gut for much more than an occasional indigestion of peanut butter.
I'd rely on your gut before I'd rely on most people's brains. < g >
BTW: I'd be interested in meeting you in person, if you are willing. Can you give me an idea of where you are geographically? I seem to recall something you said that made me think we might be neighbors....
-elizabeth
poster:Elizabeth
thread:83164
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20011104/msgs/83844.html