Do you have bipolar?
- Thread starter aivzdog
- Start date
No but my friend is and do is the sister of my other friend. You can tell the difference between someone on medication and someone who is not. My friend's sister will refuse to take her meds and is absolutely evil to my friend. My friend who is bipolar is quite nice and does not have mood swings often at all unless she forgot to take her meds.
Labels do as much harm as good so some people...
Diagnosing chicken pox is easy - you get the same symptoms every time.. that's how we know it is chicken pox.
Show me 2 people with exactly the same symptoms for most mental illnesses and I'll be suprised!
I don't know if anyone knew this, but being gay was a mental illness a few years ago.... not any more
And post traumatic stress disorder never existed till a few years ago!
Mental illnesses, depression, and other symptoms of mental illness are so individual, so personal.... It's just so easy to lump people into a category...
Some people do VERY well having a "diagnosis" and some people it destroys forever....
And it is AMAZING how suddenly everything that occurs in their life is because of their mental illness.
There was a FANTASTIC study done (which I think I have posted before now...) about a group of "normal" people who went to a psychiatrist and stated symptoms....
Hang on I shall find it......
Diagnosing chicken pox is easy - you get the same symptoms every time.. that's how we know it is chicken pox.
Show me 2 people with exactly the same symptoms for most mental illnesses and I'll be suprised!
I don't know if anyone knew this, but being gay was a mental illness a few years ago.... not any more
And post traumatic stress disorder never existed till a few years ago!
Mental illnesses, depression, and other symptoms of mental illness are so individual, so personal.... It's just so easy to lump people into a category...
Some people do VERY well having a "diagnosis" and some people it destroys forever....
And it is AMAZING how suddenly everything that occurs in their life is because of their mental illness.
There was a FANTASTIC study done (which I think I have posted before now...) about a group of "normal" people who went to a psychiatrist and stated symptoms....
Hang on I shall find it......
AHA! I found my old post... which I shall paste here Makes more sense.
Had SUCH an interesting lecture today. I thought I would waffle about it.
We looked at mental illness, and all the labels (eg, ADHD, PTSD, schizophrenia etc etc etc) and discussed whether they are real diagnoses or absolute boll-hocks (not the state of distress - the label, the diagnosis).
We looked at a study called "Being sane in insane places".
And we looked at whether psychiatrists are really capable of "diagnosing" mental illnesses, and the implications of being labelled as having an "illness".
Our lecturer was keen to stress that she does not dispute that people suffer mental distress, and hear voices, are depressed etc etc - people clearly have mental distress, but her point was that she does not necessarily believe that these are mental illnesses that can be categorised and labelled.
I'll try and explain...
There is..
no biological origin for mental illness
no genetic componant for mental illness
you can't catch one
and no proven chemical changes.
Fact is, people don't understand WHAT causes them.
Some quotes:
They are "complex creations brought about by a variety of factors"
"Are psychiatric diagnoses real, or do they exist only in the minds of the observer?"
The study we looked at by Rosenhan was interesting.
He basically asked some of his pychologist mates to go to a hospital and explain they were hearing voices. ALL other info they gave about themselves was true.
He doubted psychiatrists can tell the difference between mentally ill, or mentally healthy people.
All but 1 of the 8 people were admitted to hospital and diagnosed as schizophrenic.
Once admitted the "patients" acted totally normally, and "stopped" hearing voices.
Their normal behaviour was seen as a "symptom" of their illness - so..everything they said and did, was in context to them being "ill" from then on.
In a 2nd study (I missed some of this part, I needed a wee ) I think they sent some REAL "patients" back, and they were turned away.
Sooo - diagnosis...
People with supposedly the "same" disorder, often display TOTALLY different symptoms, and everything someone does is interpreted in accordance to the diagnosis.
Basically, the lecturer (and MANY other professionals) are arguing that these "illnesses" are socially constructed disorders.
For example!
Homosexuality.
Originally, it was a sin.
Psychiatrists then decided, homosexuality was an ILLNESS. A MENTAL ILLNESS. Like bi-polar, or schizophrenia.
Then... a POLITICAL decision was made, and homosexualty is no longer an illness, it is social diversity.
Crazy huh? All these people regarded as mentally ill, suddenly cured?!
Thats a pretty crude example, but it's just to illustrate the point.
ANYWAY (are you bored yet???)
Someone else decided to copy the Rosenhan study - EXACTLY the same.
She was not admitted once. Was spoken to on average for 12 mins each session.
Instead she was diagnosed as depressed with psychotic features!! Not schizophrenia?! So - what changed??
And she was prescribed 25 anti-psychotics and some other crap I forget about.
This also demonstrates the TREND in diagnoses.
I'm getting bored of typing now.
Another point.
PSTD, ADHD etc are more prevelant in the USA that anywhere else - if these are MEDICAL conditions - how could that be? Again, not saying people aren't feeling something, going through something, but how can we be so quick to judge that they are all feeling a set ILLNESS, one specific condition?? I mean, when you break your leg, you can diagnose that - its the same for everyone...
I think she was basically trying to say, that mental illnesses, aren't necessarily illnesses, but different ways people cope with certain things. Some people may be predisposed to behaving in a certain way (hallucinations etc), but each person is INDIVIDUAL, and we should treat them as such, not label with them socially constructed, and infact, demeaning illnesses that are a hindrence, which probably has more of an impact that not being labelled....
Well - the lecture certainly gave me food for thought today.
I hope some of that makes sense.......
http://www.chazhound.com/forums/showthread.php?t=49522&highlight=mental+illness
Makes more sense.Had SUCH an interesting lecture today. I thought I would waffle about it.
We looked at mental illness, and all the labels (eg, ADHD, PTSD, schizophrenia etc etc etc) and discussed whether they are real diagnoses or absolute boll-hocks (not the state of distress - the label, the diagnosis).
We looked at a study called "Being sane in insane places".
And we looked at whether psychiatrists are really capable of "diagnosing" mental illnesses, and the implications of being labelled as having an "illness".
Our lecturer was keen to stress that she does not dispute that people suffer mental distress, and hear voices, are depressed etc etc - people clearly have mental distress, but her point was that she does not necessarily believe that these are mental illnesses that can be categorised and labelled.
I'll try and explain...
There is..
no biological origin for mental illness
no genetic componant for mental illness
you can't catch one
and no proven chemical changes.
Fact is, people don't understand WHAT causes them.
Some quotes:
They are "complex creations brought about by a variety of factors"
"Are psychiatric diagnoses real, or do they exist only in the minds of the observer?"
The study we looked at by Rosenhan was interesting.
He basically asked some of his pychologist mates to go to a hospital and explain they were hearing voices. ALL other info they gave about themselves was true.
He doubted psychiatrists can tell the difference between mentally ill, or mentally healthy people.
All but 1 of the 8 people were admitted to hospital and diagnosed as schizophrenic.
Once admitted the "patients" acted totally normally, and "stopped" hearing voices.
Their normal behaviour was seen as a "symptom" of their illness - so..everything they said and did, was in context to them being "ill" from then on.
In a 2nd study (I missed some of this part, I needed a wee ) I think they sent some REAL "patients" back, and they were turned away.
Sooo - diagnosis...
People with supposedly the "same" disorder, often display TOTALLY different symptoms, and everything someone does is interpreted in accordance to the diagnosis.
Basically, the lecturer (and MANY other professionals) are arguing that these "illnesses" are socially constructed disorders.
For example!
Homosexuality.
Originally, it was a sin.
Psychiatrists then decided, homosexuality was an ILLNESS. A MENTAL ILLNESS. Like bi-polar, or schizophrenia.
Then... a POLITICAL decision was made, and homosexualty is no longer an illness, it is social diversity.
Crazy huh? All these people regarded as mentally ill, suddenly cured?!
Thats a pretty crude example, but it's just to illustrate the point.
ANYWAY (are you bored yet???)
Someone else decided to copy the Rosenhan study - EXACTLY the same.
She was not admitted once. Was spoken to on average for 12 mins each session.
Instead she was diagnosed as depressed with psychotic features!! Not schizophrenia?! So - what changed??
And she was prescribed 25 anti-psychotics and some other crap I forget about.
This also demonstrates the TREND in diagnoses.
I'm getting bored of typing now.
Another point.
PSTD, ADHD etc are more prevelant in the USA that anywhere else - if these are MEDICAL conditions - how could that be? Again, not saying people aren't feeling something, going through something, but how can we be so quick to judge that they are all feeling a set ILLNESS, one specific condition?? I mean, when you break your leg, you can diagnose that - its the same for everyone...
I think she was basically trying to say, that mental illnesses, aren't necessarily illnesses, but different ways people cope with certain things. Some people may be predisposed to behaving in a certain way (hallucinations etc), but each person is INDIVIDUAL, and we should treat them as such, not label with them socially constructed, and infact, demeaning illnesses that are a hindrence, which probably has more of an impact that not being labelled....
Well - the lecture certainly gave me food for thought today.
I hope some of that makes sense.......
http://www.chazhound.com/forums/showthread.php?t=49522&highlight=mental+illness
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Just to add - I remember this lecture clearly, and she did state many people might not agree with this thinking - but it certainly struck a cord with me, and personally, I'd prefer to look at this route than instantly labelling with whatever is fashionable this season. Bwhahaha - be afraid, very afraid, I think I might go into mental health
I'm glad this thread came up and I could re-read that - very interesting
I'm glad this thread came up and I could re-read that - very interesting
"And it is AMAZING how suddenly everything that occurs in their life is because of their mental illness."
i 100% agree with you...
bipolar or depression "illenesses" seem to be the In thing in this area in the 16-30 yr od crowd...
ill give an example...
theres one girl i simply have never liked, you kwo that simple bad vibe...since then shes proven to me she deserves that vibe...
anywho...she claims she goes to a "therapist" and is Bipolar and "on meds" (when asked what meds she cant answer...)
she is however a great actor and mos tpeople whe first meeting her like her...however it quickly becomes aparent shes just a mean vindictive SPOILT person with drama queen tendencies...when something happens that would cause someone to see the real her she blames it on "being bipolar"
it drives me crazy because she gives those of us who ARE a bad name, ive had peoepl say to me "your bipolar? but your not a psyco drama queen!" and i have to explain that most people claiing to be bipolar are acutaly self diagnosed, and NOT actually bipolar.
personally im unmedicated for the bipolar depression, ive been unmedicated for about 5 years now and doing well, i do have some sever swings but ive learnt how to protect myself and others, yoga has been real good for me...
but i regress,...
and agree, its amazing how many people use being bipolar (or nay other "trendy mood disorder") as an excuse for pretty much everything stupid they do...
i 100% agree with you...
bipolar or depression "illenesses" seem to be the In thing in this area in the 16-30 yr od crowd...
ill give an example...
theres one girl i simply have never liked, you kwo that simple bad vibe...since then shes proven to me she deserves that vibe...
anywho...she claims she goes to a "therapist" and is Bipolar and "on meds" (when asked what meds she cant answer...)
she is however a great actor and mos tpeople whe first meeting her like her...however it quickly becomes aparent shes just a mean vindictive SPOILT person with drama queen tendencies...when something happens that would cause someone to see the real her she blames it on "being bipolar"
it drives me crazy because she gives those of us who ARE a bad name, ive had peoepl say to me "your bipolar? but your not a psyco drama queen!" and i have to explain that most people claiing to be bipolar are acutaly self diagnosed, and NOT actually bipolar.
personally im unmedicated for the bipolar depression, ive been unmedicated for about 5 years now and doing well, i do have some sever swings but ive learnt how to protect myself and others, yoga has been real good for me...
but i regress,...
and agree, its amazing how many people use being bipolar (or nay other "trendy mood disorder") as an excuse for pretty much everything stupid they do...
Well - in this particular study, I believe that, one of the people who had been "diagnosed" and institutionalised was having a normal conversation about his wife - and in his notes I believe it was interpreted that certain things happened because of his "illlnes"... As in - he argued with his wife because he was schizo'. When in fact - he was nothing of the sort.
This kind of thing happens daily....
And the point about the numbers of diagnoses in the US is to demonstrate the irregularity in "diagnoses" around the globe - and even WITHING counties IN countries... All depends on the local take on it at the time.
Again - this is not saying that people do not suffer from mental problems... it is discussing whether there is such a thing as a SPECIFIC mental illness, and highlighting the DANGER in how EASILY people diagnose these things and medicate for them.
This kind of thing happens daily....
And the point about the numbers of diagnoses in the US is to demonstrate the irregularity in "diagnoses" around the globe - and even WITHING counties IN countries... All depends on the local take on it at the time.
Again - this is not saying that people do not suffer from mental problems... it is discussing whether there is such a thing as a SPECIFIC mental illness, and highlighting the DANGER in how EASILY people diagnose these things and medicate for them.
Here is the actual study if anyone wants to read it. I must confess I haven't looked at it in about a year so can't remember it perfectly.
I know there was some dispute about how it was conducted - was it ethical etc etc - but it's still very interesting. If you like that kind of thing
http://www.stanford.edu/~kocabas/onbeingsane.pdf
ETA - it was done in a time when the terms "sane" and "insane" weren't un-PC
I know there was some dispute about how it was conducted - was it ethical etc etc - but it's still very interesting. If you like that kind of thing
http://www.stanford.edu/~kocabas/onbeingsane.pdf
ETA - it was done in a time when the terms "sane" and "insane" weren't un-PC
THis is what i have learned after 25 years of trying to understand it..there are two types of bi-polar disorder. THey are often combined with other disorders. It is the most misdiagnosed disorder of all. IT is the hard to understand, some have happy sad...some as my daughter have happy mad. TOO HAPPY--TOO MAD. Incredible people can have this...it is often associated with brilliance as well. A person who is responsible and seeks treatment can live a full life and not destroy their families in the process. A person that is not responible can wreck havoc on everyone around them. I have called it the disease of bad decisions. Personality disorder is the memememe syndrome...borderline is "i want you to love me but have to do something to make you hate me because i cannot accept your love because i do not deserve it" otherwise known as marriage hell. People that have this disorder and take responsiblity for it (like a diabetic does) hats off to you! People that don't like the meds because it causes weight gain and takes off that manic edge...you know not what you do. When in a manic state...you can talk until your blue in the face, your reason will not be what is heard by the person that has this. THey will hear something all together different. IT is passed down with the genes. IT is a chemical based illness, a missing element, of lithium. Copper high females will show bi-polar tendencies, they will also get incredibly stretch marks. BI-polar females do great while pg..the increased estrogen somehow balances it out...but beware when the birthing harmone hits...make SURE your doctor knows your are bipolar so every one around you can ensure your safety and that of the baby during the post partum as well. THey cannot treat with estrogen because of the increased cancer risk. DEpo shots do help quite a bit. TEenage years are total hell for girls that have bipolar, it seems at least in what i have seen to simmer down a bit with increased age.
LIfe on the RollerCOaster is an excellent book for trying to understand if you know someone that has this. IN all these years, i still don't fully comprehend any of it. The person that is affected needs love and understanding as anyone that has a hurdle in life. THat is not easy when you have someone that is ANGRY about EVERYTHING and wants you to be ANGRY Too! ANd makes decisions that destroy everything around them. THen they wonder what happened and why it happened to them. IT is an awful thing to have to deal with.
LIfe on the RollerCOaster is an excellent book for trying to understand if you know someone that has this. IN all these years, i still don't fully comprehend any of it. The person that is affected needs love and understanding as anyone that has a hurdle in life. THat is not easy when you have someone that is ANGRY about EVERYTHING and wants you to be ANGRY Too! ANd makes decisions that destroy everything around them. THen they wonder what happened and why it happened to them. IT is an awful thing to have to deal with.