Well, I had a conversation Monday with my therapist about my diagnosis and my seeking a second opinion. He expressed support, and he seemed to express some skepticism of my diagnosis, after looking at the paperwork, but he stopped short of saying it explicitly. For example, we looked at the admission paperwork which got me the bipolar diagnosis in the first place, and it was pretty equivocal. There were increasing panic and rage attacks with poor sleep; however, things like speech were normal--there was no pressure of speech. (When I look at it, poor sleep is a symptom of depression, and panic and rage attacks can occur in a variety of disorders, including anxiety and depression.) He also mentioned that he's never seen me manic: He's seen me a bit hyper and fidgety at times, but in no way manic, he said. He also did talk about what some other doctors say, like he mentioned one doctor said he believed that if someone developed mania on antidepressant, then they have bipolar disorder. He disagreed, saying he's seen patients have that but then go back to normal once the antidepressant was stopped.
It was an interesting, fruitful discussion. I look forward to my appointment on 10/31.
09 Oct 2013, 4:43 pm
