Posted by ricker on May 22, 2009, at 18:44:51
In reply to How do you know if you are bi-polar?, posted by Cseagraves on May 21, 2009, at 19:20:57
Courtney, I just wanted to add that prior to the internet era...late 80', most patients were prescribed meds with little, or no understanding of there intentional use. Unless you went to the library and looked through a ton of books, you would take the med and hope for the best. Today, many of us have the luxury of researching there potential use, side-effects and opinions/reviews of pretty much any med,or combo there of, via sites like this or revolutionary health etc.
By reading posters reactions to a certain med and what they have been diagnosed with can be helpful for many as well as a roadblock for some.
Labeling oneself with a certain diagnosis still leaves the door wide open as each diagnosis can vary.... BP2, well some may cycle every 2 months, some every 2 weeks and some every 2 hours (ultradian). You can see that having a p/doc with a sound understanding of your "symptoms" is crucial.
Heck, depression itself has so many variants that may require unique treatments. I'm not saying one should be ignorant as to a diagnosis, rather, knowing that your p/doc fully understands your symptoms, response to a certain drug or group of drugs, is most crucial. Some BP1'S require A/D's and to others it's their poison, a finding usually through trial and error.
So that's my take on the whole "what are you diagnosed with" dilemma.
Treat the symptoms and hope for the best, it doesn't matter if you're taking a med commonly prescribed for a certain group.My major complaint is depression with anxiety and find A/P'S provide some relief. I've never been diagnose as "psychotic", but they work! :-)
Hope you feel well soon..... Rick
poster:ricker
thread:897028
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20090515/msgs/897152.html