Posted by Dinah on October 9, 2002, at 15:51:10
In reply to Wondering about Ups and Downs, posted by shar on October 9, 2002, at 11:58:47
I've been diagnosed with cyclothymia, and I can only describe what mine feels like. It's mostly feeling not great but not horrible with a fair amount of anxiety, a week or two or three at a time of feeling way too good (accompanied by decreased need for sleep, increased spending, and feeling very quick witted), a week or two at a time of feeling groggy and unable to wake up at all, and about every eight weeks or so a nasty meltdown that is full of anxiety, agitation, and suicidal or self injury urges.
I have had long periods of feeling depressed in my life, the sort of depression that you think of as being depresssed. The longest was postpartum. But normally I'm not what I would consider depressed, although personality testing and depression tests show depression.
There is also a fair amount of interpersonal sensitivity that also seems to have a cyclical component.
That's just my experience, and I don't know how typical it is. But I hope that helps. What you describe doesn't "sound" like cyclothymia to me, but I'm no expert.
Dinah
poster:Dinah
thread:30869
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/social/20020924/msgs/30981.html