[INFP] INFP and BiPolar

[Juggling69Tigers]

I really thought I was just crazy until I started reading this forum. I went to a psychiatrist who diagnosed me as bipolar and put me on meds that made me feel awful - uncreative, unhappy, just plain miserable. I quit taking them and decided to just work around my so-called "issues".

Does anyone else have a similar experience with psychiatrists? It seems to me that all of the "symptoms" of bipolar that I exhibit are just traits of an INFP.

 

[DigitalMethod]

It seems to me that all of the "symptoms" of bipolar that I exhibit are just traits of an INFP.

Like for example?

 

[PeaceBaby]

Yes, elaborate ...

and welcome to the forums!

 

[speculative]

I really thought I was just crazy until I started reading this forum. I went to a psychiatrist who diagnosed me as bipolar and put me on meds that made me feel awful - uncreative, unhappy, just plain miserable. I quit taking them and decided to just work around my so-called "issues".

Does anyone else have a similar experience with psychiatrists? It seems to me that all of the "symptoms" of bipolar that I exhibit are just traits of an INFP.

Did you discuss this with your psychiatrist, and if so what did they suggest?

 

[sleuthiness]

Did you discuss this with your psychiatrist, and if so what did they suggest?

Take these instead! :: opens up jacket ::

 

[file cabinet]

get a second opinion on the bipolar diagnosis if you think their diagnosis was not thorough enough.
and..have you had any episodes?
the people I know who have bpd aren't infp's and it seems rather unlikely that infp behavior is symptomatic of bipolar behavior.

 

[whimsical]

bipolar disorder is a serious mood disorder. it could probably affect any myers briggs type. the distinguishing factor in bipolar disorder is whether you have a very strong period of mania or depression, followed by a period of the opposite mood you just had. these periods last for 2 weeks and up.

of course "normal" people can be affected by their emotions, and can go from being very happy to very sad, tired to energetic, and etc. what is important here is the lengths of the periods between moods and the potency (for lack of a better word) of how much these separate moods affect you

 

[Juggling69Tigers]

My psychiatrist just wants to keep me on drugs. The drugs make it worse. Plus I'm not convinced that I really am bipolar. I quit going to him months ago and have focused on improving my mood through exercise and willpower. It tends to work for stretches of a few months, then I have a meltdown.

Some of the "symptoms" are random episodes of mania. I get super excited about a project, immerse myself in it so fully that I ignore everything else in my life, then I lose interest before I finish. I also have random times where I am just super freaking perky and do silly things like sing made up songs while I'm mopping.

Occasions where I escape into my own head so deeply that I become depressed about things like my inability to accomplish something dramatic like world peace or something more personal like why people don't like me (even though I don't know this to be true). During these times I can simultaneously love and hate the same person.

Losing sleep and getting depressed over conversations that I f*ed up.

I had one doctor diagnose me with ADD when I told him that I had a really hard time focusing on finishing projects that I am not interested in and that I can't decide on what I want to do with my life (I enjoy a wide variety of things)

 

[Poki]

Some of the "symptoms" are random episodes of mania. I get super excited about a project, immerse myself in it so fully that I ignore everything else in my life, then I lose interest before I finish. I also have random times where I am just super freaking perky and do silly things like sing made up songs while I'm mopping.

I think its just Fi and normal. I exhibit the same things, but driven by Ti. I may feel useless and question if I actually know anything and other times I can jump in and just go crazy figuring out a problem forgetting everything else in the world. I will get excited when I figure it out and want to tell the world only to realize the world doesnt care. Dominant Fi/Ti can suck sometimes.

 

[Neo Genesis]

My psychiatrist just wants to keep me on drugs. The drugs make it worse. Plus I'm not convinced that I really am bipolar. I quit going to him months ago and have focused on improving my mood through exercise and willpower. It tends to work for stretches of a few months, then I have a meltdown.

Some of the "symptoms" are random episodes of mania. I get super excited about a project, immerse myself in it so fully that I ignore everything else in my life, then I lose interest before I finish. I also have random times where I am just super freaking perky and do silly things like sing made up songs while I'm mopping.

Occasions where I escape into my own head so deeply that I become depressed about things like my inability to accomplish something dramatic like world peace or something more personal like why people don't like me (even though I don't know this to be true). During these times I can simultaneously love and hate the same person.

Losing sleep and getting depressed over conversations that I f*ed up.

I had one doctor diagnose me with ADD when I told him that I had a really hard time focusing on finishing projects that I am not interested in and that I can't decide on what I want to do with my life (I enjoy a wide variety of things)

Yeah, sounds just like me. Some psychiatrists really do believe that anything outside of the norm is caused by chemical imbalances. Perhaps seeing a psychologist may be more beneficial for you.

 

[phoenity]

I think its just Fi and normal. I exhibit the same things, but driven by Ti. I may feel useless and question if I actually know anything and other times I can jump in and just go crazy figuring out a problem forgetting everything else in the world. I will get excited when I figure it out and want to tell the world only to realize the world doesnt care. Dominant Fi/Ti can suck sometimes.

Wow I know that feeling! It's like you just discovered something and you have to share it, but nobody else seems to think it's important.

 

[speculative]

Wow I know that feeling! It's like you just discovered something and you have to share it, but nobody else seems to think it's important.

+1

I'm running into this a lot at work lately.

 

[Hazle Weatherfield]

I would get second and third opinions (from licensed doctors). I expressed to my therapist I felt bipolar sometimes and she immediately let me know she didn't think I was, only that I tend to feel my feelings, whichever they may be, very strongly, and also that certain emotions, specifically fear, anger and immense sadness, are easily triggered in my memory, which I then feel strongly, and also rather abruptly too, giving it the feel of bipolarism, but definitely not near the magnitude of someone who really is bipolar. If you have talked to or know someone with bipolar disorder, then I'm sure you understand how severe it can get at times.

I wouldn't necessarily disregard everything a psychiatrist might say, but a lot of them do tend to dole out the medicine too quickly for me. Ultimately, though, if you're still not seeing any progress, not even the slightest, and as it seems in your case you went backwards in progress, feeling even worse, I would move on and find something or someone else.

And my gentle words for you are that acquiring emotional health is a long journey (I might even say never ending), but a rewarding one, and I am happy to see folk who are even open to becoming aware of dark hidden aspects of themselves, let alone actually seeking advice and support. It requires a lot of bravery and for that, I commend you.

Best of luck.

(I also haven't forgotten about that other thread of yours, but I do need more time to organize my thoughts for that one)

 

[speculative]

And my gentle words for you are that acquiring emotional health is a long journey (I might even say never ending), but a rewarding one, and I am happy to see folk who are even open to becoming aware of dark hidden aspects of themselves, let alone actually seeking advice and support. It requires a lot of bravery and for that, I commend you.

Great post; I think sometimes we focus too much on whether or not we are "clinically" unhealthy, to tell us whether or not we have work to do. Outside of being clinically anything, we are all on a journey and have much work to do.

 

[placebo]

Doesn't sound like it's a good idea to take drugs, especially if you don't even want to. I can say that I have pretty strong mood swings that almost verge on bipolar or borderline diagnoses, but I wouldn't believe I actually have those diagnoses. A counsellor I talk to just straight out tells me life is like a huge rollercoaster, with those kind of ups and downs. You might want to try talking to a therapist or psychologist instead, because it's basically a psychiatrist's job to prescribe drugs, and they don't spend so much time on the psychotherapy I believe, which in your case, may help more (guessing). I mean, a lot of times, a change in thinking, rather than a change in biology or whatever, can help more.

 

[Susah]

(a bit of rant - but these things are very important. Wrote this originally as a reply on a blog where I couldn't post it so I'm posting it here instead. Just as relevant I think/hope)

I have not been diagnosed with anything at all, but I'm starting to suspect I might actually be bipolar (2)

I'm very introverted and... well... odd... but never had any depression so major that it has warranted any investigation, but I slightly suspect that I might have had a moderate depression for a couple of years now and I'm just used to it so I don't notice any more. But I'm overly sensitive and very emotionally unstable. I certainly have my 'moods'. One of my friends actually suggested that I might be bipolar and I thought she was being utterly ridiculous. Then, recently, through a combination of things being a bit worse than normal and me starting to cope with communication a bit more, I got in touch with the university counselling service and had an initial assessment. Have not followed it up yet, but from what she said it sounded a lot like she thought I might be bipolar (I would add that that was probably just because I was in one of my hyper moods... but that doesn't really disprove her)

Well, that ended up being a bit long sorry...

My point is that I'm not sure I would want a diagnosis - I am mostly sort of functional - at least not so dysfunctional as to make it anyone's problem but my own. And I just consider it part of my personality. I couldn't imagine being in any other way. Although I guess not spending all my time in bed might be nice. But I like my bed...

So, yes, I really don't like this whole of labelling anyone who remotely diverges from the norm as somehow ill, with the secondary effect of dismissing anyone who doesn't have a diagnosis as completely fine and should just get a grip on things. Don't like it at all. Everyone should be allowed to be who they are - their problems should be acknowledged and they should get help and support disregarding whether they have any diagnosis or not.

That is my point! Well, one of them...

Heh... I really should go to sleep now...

 

[brainheart]

All I can say is that if you are bipolar, it really fucks up your life. It's not just mood swings. It's doing things, when manic, that you would never do otherwise. It can lead to psychotic thoughts and extremely magical thinking. When I'm manic, I see 'signs' in every damn thing and become certain that I'm destined for greatness. I don't care about the feelings of those I love anymore. It's all about me.

Bipolar depression, when severe, makes me constantly think suicidal thoughts, when I can think. For the most part my brain just stops working. It seriously feels like my brain's gears have completely stopped. Composing a basic sentence is serious work.

If you are bipolar, meds save your life. I would probably be dead if it weren't for medication. It pisses me off when people knock meds, because they really can make a huge difference. If you don't need them, you probably aren't bipolar.

Also, psychotherapy has never done anything positive for me, but meds have. I was hypomanic and going to this therapist for months- because I was anti-meds, too. She had never seen the non-manic me so she was just clueless, she just thought I was this extroverted person with ADHD. Hypomanic people can be charming and fun and extremely deceptive, so it can be hard to tell sometimes. Having bipolar 2, however, my main problem is chronic depression. I was on too low of a dose of medication for awhile and I just felt... blah. Once I raised my dose I actually had some motivation again. My mood swings are so obviously biochemical it's not even funny.

Mood disorder- your moods fluctuate inexplicably. Everything can be great in your life and one morning you wake up, suicidal.
Normal mood ranges- your moods fluctuate due to external circumstances.