Ten Questions to Ask When Determining A Bipolar Diagnosis

Searching for a diagnosis takes persistence and determination. It is not always easy and implies the need for a professional’s help in pulling together a picture of an illness. Pieces of information from the client are fit with one another like pieces of a jigsaw puzzle, each impression a unique piece of the puzzle taken together and creating a unified whole that presents one image, the diagnosis. These images are symptoms.

You can help your doctor by providing information about what you experience. While your doctor knows what questions to ask, you can help the process by being aware beforehand what he will want to know during your appointment. You have already come to the conclusion there is something wrong or you would not have made an appointment to begin with. By thinking about your concerns ahead of time, you can begin to identify what seems odd or unusual about your behavior. If you have a notion what kind of symptoms to look for, you can help narrow down the data that will make a diagnosis.

Here are ten questions your doctor needs answered in order to make a diagnosis:

1. Are you motivated or anxious more than usual?
2. Do you have a lot of excess energy?
3. How are your sleeping patterns – increased or decreased?
4. Are you irritated or agitated?
5. Are you blue or in a funk; do you feel depressed?
6. Do you gain pleasure from your activities?
7. Are you experiencing behavioral changes?
8. Have you had any recent conflicts that are out of the ordinary?
9. Has your appetite changed?
10. Are you drinking alcohol more than usual?
    

Acquainting yourself with these questions can help your doctor or therapist get a clearer picture of your mental state and how your mind and feelings are being affected. They may not seem related to your initial complaint, but remember that changes in mood are accompanied by physical and behavioral changes. Pinpointing a specific diagnosis relies on ruling out or taking in factors and providing a beginning point.

The doctor may ask questions designed more to access your reaction in the here and now than the actual data requested. The important piece to remember is that you are seeking help to gain closure, to get treatment following a correct diagnosis. The mental health professional can be an ally in that quest. Give her the benefit of the doubt and trust her expertise to help guide you. You and your doctor are a team. Asking the right questions and giving accurate responses will help forge a bond.

Recognizing the Need for Treatment of Bipolar Disorder

Bipolar disorder is one of the most elusive illnesses we know of. Recognizing our thoughts are askew and our judgment is impaired is a risky business for those struggling with a mental illness. It all seems so sensible in our delusional state. We need to come to the conclusion there is an impairment in our functioning that prevents us from living life normally. Sometimes life is the best teacher.

As the morning overcast burned off, I pondered my pending appointment with a psychiatrist. Up until his point I had been able to work and take care of myself. I stood on the sidewalk in front of a shabby hotel. I had been offered a job painting a room in exchange for rent. Prepared to paint the room, my thoughts raced as I worked. I became less and less able to function. Lost in thought, I could not seem to retrieve my focusing ability. My mind wandered. At the end of the day, I had less than one wall painted. I had cause for alarm as I realized I could not concentrate enough to work.

I never did finish painting that room. I knew that something major had happened to me, but I didn’t understand the ramifications. Part of me felt disbelief at the thought I had a major illness, a major mental illness. It would be a long time and further episodes before my denial would give way to a desire to understand the illness.

Fifteen Ways to Recognize It’s Time For Treatment

1. Lack of focus.
2. A decrease in ability to do activities of daily living.
3. Difficulty expressing oneself.
4. Distrust of those around you.
5. Ignoring stressors.
6. Perseveration----Constant going over thoughts.
7. Avoidance of contact with others.
8. Questioning the motives of others.
9. Irritability.
10. Extended periods of sleeplessness.
11. Decrease in self-care.
12. Inability to do work.
13. Isolating yourself.
14. Excessive energy.
15. Inability to relax.