Lived Experience Forum

[illuminate]

Hi there

im having a hospital stay and the psychiatrist thinks I have Bipolar Type 2. My psychologist thinks I have BPD/CPTSD. I’m getting conflicting information.

Perhaps I have both?

I’ve been started on new medications which may highlight what the diagnosis is. IDK.

How should I navigate this?
Feeling confused and anxious.

TY.

[Xibon]

Hey @illuminate, thanks for reaching out here, and I hope you've experienced the kindness and care you deserve today 🌻

It sounds like you're really going through a difficult and conflicting time. Receiving different information from 2 different psychiatric/pschological professionals would feel very confusing, and I want to acknowledge that feeling confused and anxious is very valid in these circumstances.

Your situation sounds very pathologizing and frustrating. Unfortunately it's not our place to diagnose others here on SANE, and nor should we. But we can provide support, and inform you that you are not alone.

I can't speak for your personal circumstance, but co-occuring diagnoses, misdiagnoses and conflicting diagnoses are incredibly common. A cross sectional NLM study of mood and anxiety disorders in primary care by Katzman, Marcus & Vermani found misdiagnosis rates to be between 65.9% and 97.8% for a range of depressive, anxiety, and panic disorders (https://doi.org/10.4088%2FPCC.10m01013) - which is absolutely shocking in my opinion.

Needless to say we're here to support you. Remember that your diagnosis does not define you, and you're worthy and deserving of living a fulfilled life.

It would be great to discuss what coping mechanisms you currently have in place for anxiety, and whether you feel as though you have networks for support from friends and family around you. Thanks (again) for reaching out ❤️

[Jynx]

Hey @illuminate that is very confusing! 

Something that has been helpful for me is to look at diagnoses not as a set list of checkboxes that dictate what my experience ought to be for it to be 'valid', but as a set of guidelines for treatment. Everyone's experiences of mental health issues are different, and with BPD, bipolar, and C-PTSD in particular, there is a LOT of overlapping symptoms. Sometimes it helps to remember that diagnosis does not dictate identity, and if one of them seems to make more sense to your experiences, that perhaps might be the one worth pursuing. 

In my own opinion, they ought to throw the whole bloody DSM-V out the window and instead just view it through the lens of 'how trauma impacts the brain', but that's just me! However I also know that sometimes getting an official label can help give us the language we need to be able to describe our experiences - and can also help us to feel less alone, when we can find others with the same label. 

If you haven't already come across them, we've got some factsheets about various diagnoses if you think it could help to have a look.

The important thing is that this is your healing journey, and if something doesn't fit/doesn't resonate with your experience, you don't have to take it on board.

[LilMapleLeaf]

Hi @illuminate ,

Thanks for jumping on and sharing what's been going on. I know how frustrating it can be when you are looking for an answer and what you're getting is just more questions.

I think @Jynx and @Xibon have given you some lovely resources and guidance so there isn't much I wanted to add.

I just wanted to say, just speak honestly and clearly, and make sure you feel heard and seen by your treating professionals. I imagine you may have seen one professional more than the other so they may have a clearer idea however they would only be able to make assumptions based on how much they know and what they know. It may be both, it may be one, it may be something different. My suggestion is to read through the resources shared above, give all different strategies a go and see what works best for you. 

Before I got an official ADHD diagnosis, I started looking into ADHD strategies and started using them and they really helped me. I decided even if I didn't get diagnoses I was still going to use these strategies as they were helping me.

I hope that gives you a little bit of guidance it what would be a confusing time. Don't forget to take deep breaths and spend some time finding joy.