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    Just found out...

    Good morning everyone. I just found out my daughter, who is 28 and lives far away, has been diagnosed with Bipolar 2. You might find this strange but I am happy about this. Actually a better way of putting it is I'm relieved. You see I could have told you years ago that she had BP. i encouraged her frequently to see a psychiatrist. I felt that she could be saved a great deal of turmoil if she learned from my experience and got help sooner rather than later. I'm happy she finally sought the help of a psychiatrist and I'm happy she has been put on mood stabilizers. She is lucky it was caught relatively early before she had any major episodes. The psychiatrist was very reassuring telling her that if she made it to 28 without any hospitalizations or running into trouble functioning at college or work, she was likely going to be fine. I'm sure she worried about ending up like me. I believe she has been saved years of misdiagnosis and ineffective meds by sharing the family history of bipolar. I am so grateful to this psychiatrist for recognizing what she has been dealing with but at the same time being reassuring rather than alarming.

    On another level, I'm so relieved that she was able to see a psychiatrist and has been taken on as a patient. Where I live (Ontario) there is real shortage and wait times after a referral are very, very long.

    Neli

    #2
    Hi Neli. I can understand why you would be relieved. Having a diagnosis means putting a name and a reference to what has been going on. It is so important to get an accurate diagnosis for appropriate treatment to be given. It sounds like she has a good psychiatrist that she can work with.
    AJ

    Humans punish themselves endlessly
    for not being what they believe they should be.
    -Don Miguel Ruiz-

    Comment


      #3
      Hi Neli ..


      AWARENESS is the magic word .. And it does apply on you ..


      It's good to know that you're seeing things from a positive point of view ..


      On the other hand DENIAL is the most common known problem associated with mental illness .. Maybe associated with any illness ..
      The first step in solving any problem we face in our lives is admitting having that problem ..

      This is step number one .. You can't start at number two instead ..

      other people should learn this from you , Neli .. & from anyone who starts in step number one

      Comment


        #4
        Hello Neli. I'm glad that your daughter is getting help. You are correct that the earlier proper measures can be taken, then the better the long term prognosis.

        A couple of hints that you might want to pass on to her.

        1) If she is the time to keep mood charts, the docs usually love them, especially when appts get 2 and 3 mths apart. It's hard to remember just how I felt 10 wks ago etc , a mood chart helps.

        2) If she tries a medication and it doesn't seem to be working in 30-60 days once maximum dosage is reached(sooner in many cases), it isn't ever going to work, some docs have a favourite cocktail or med and they sometimes wouldn't believe it isn't working.

        3) her pharmacist can help explain the meds to her and advise her on what side effects may last and what to take to counter those side effects. I've always found that it was worth paying the $3 extra bucks to be able to have a significant amount of time with a smaller pharmacy then a lessor amount and have to put up with a rushed big box store pharmacy.

        And of course learning everything about her illness will help, triggers, early warning signs, mixed states, how diet and exercise can play a large role, but this last part can come along latter.

        Wish her luck for me. Take Care. paul m
        "Alone we can do so little;
        Together we can do so much"
        Helen Keller

        Comment


          #5
          Thanks for your input and kind words. I think you've made some excellent suggestions for her paul m. Jafar, you talked about denial and in all honesty I think she is a little in denial but willing to take the meds and see how it goes. The reason I say this is that she went to see the psychiatrist for anxiety and came away with the BP diagnosis but understands it to be "a very mild form of bipolar." She is clearly in a bit of denial but so long as she is aware and can learn more about it as she goes along it's a good start. She knows she can always ask me and I'm sure she'll read up on it when she is experiencing symptoms. As far as the anxiety goes...well she got that from me as well. I'm encouraging her to get a therapist who does CBT. It has really helped me. But a mom can only make suggestions. I hope her psychiatrist suggests the same thing. I'm sure she'll listen more to him. Right now I'm just so relieved she will be seeing someone consistently instead of dealing with family physicians and more often than not walk-in clinics.

          Comment


            #6
            Same for me and my son he is 17 and it is coming and he knows it and we work with it everyday so he is ready. Having a living parent that has the same condition makes understanding easier. I wish I had of had a dad that understood me like i understand him, i would be a different person today having that wisdom under my belt.
            "If we new what we were doing we wouldn't call it research......" Albert Einstein

            Comment


              #7
              Stenacorn Man
              I wish EVERY parent would understand this .. not only your father .. I know at least one parent who does NOT understand his son .. & does not understand how painful mental illness can be ..

              Comment


                #8
                Buddy Mack, I'm glad your son and my daughter will be saved some of the turmoil we went through because we can share our experiences and hard-earned wisdom with them. I struggle with a lot of guilt over what I put my kids and ex husband through when I was really sick and undiagnosed. This at least is something positive that I am able to do for my sweet girl.

                Comment


                  #9
                  Hello Neli. I put my family through a lot too and that fact still brings up a lot of guilt in me. However my kids seem to adjusted ok and my wife is still with me, although she still has the occasional nightmare about those times.

                  My doctor has told me repeatedly that a) I had a serious illness and that was just bad luck, it wasn't like I tried to make myself ill. 2) Once they finally diagnosed me properly, I did everything I could to get better 3) The fact that some of the treatments that I rec'd after my diagnosis actually made my illness worse (and my behaviours worse) were the fault of the medical system and not my fault. 4) it is an exceedingly difficult illness to battle by both the patient and the doctor as no two people react the same to treatment and because the illness itself can cause us to have unrealistic thoughts.

                  However the guilt part is something that I still have to work very hard at overcoming.

                  However I will tell you the same thing my doc tells me. You didn't ask to become ill. You didn't deliberately try to put your loved ones through heck and it's a difficult illness with a lot of unknowns. So don't feel so guilty. Take Care. paul m P.S. remember you are a good person with a bad illness , not a bad person with good excuses and there is a heck of a difference.
                  "Alone we can do so little;
                  Together we can do so much"
                  Helen Keller

                  Comment


                    #10
                    Thanks paul m. It's always good to be reminded of that.

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