What is your MBTI?
I'm typed anywhere between INTJ, INFJ, INFP, sometimes ENTP (mostly in real life)- including it because it may be relevant.
I don't relate to the stereotype of any of those (nor do I appear like any of them) so it wouldn't be too informative.
I put more stock into Enneagram however- tritype 53X (either 9w8 or 8w9, inclined towards the latter).
What mental illlness(es) have you been diagnosed with?
Major depression / later discovered to be Bipolar disorder, ADHD, social anxiety, PTSD.
How, in your own words, would you describe your personality?
I have Bipolar, so I'll explain the 'spectrum' of my personality;
Normal: cheerful, sanguine, and optimistic, seemingly extroverted, friendly, yet distant, deliberate, and cautious with a touch of coldness that is not obvious at first.
Manic: energetic, scattered, insensitive, sociable, arrogant, "looks like he has never doubted himself in forever, brimming with confidence".
Depressed/low: critical, impatient, brooding- anywhere between temperamental and combative or melancholic and cynical.
A common thread that remains in all states is a degree of cautiousness, even when manic.
Do you think your type affects the way you express symptoms of your mental illness, or even what symptoms you express? If so, how?
Sometimes I do. Also, definitely affects what I express- as a 5 core (or introvert in general), I default to detached thinking before acting as a main strategy in anything, so compared to others with ADHD and Bipolar, I am much more calculating and cautious than you might expect- I don't tick the 'obvious' outward symptoms checklist of impulsiveness, for example. If I had been a reactive or ID type like 4, 6, 7, 8, I'm sure I would appear much differently.
Any other comments?
I'd like to add that due to mental illnesses (or mood disorders, or personality disorders), descriptions of 'personality' would be very... Misleading, especially for those born with it. It's rather unstable due to the nature of the illness/disorder in itself (especially really unstable personality disorders like NPD, BPD, DPD) and does not characterize or even hint at the person's 'real' personality, not necessarily.
For example, my energy level / energetic appearance may not necessarily be a part of my personality, it is the mind in dysfunction and causing me to feel and become energetic. In other instances, it would not apply. An easy way to keep this in mind is depression as an example- it characterizes a person for a while, till it's gone. It (thankfully, for neurotypical 'healthy' people) does not 'change' their personality (or mindset, at least not forever), only what and how they manifest.