Can bipolar symptoms change over time?
Can bipolar symptoms change over time?
Bipolar may worsen with age or over time if this condition is left untreated. As time goes on, a person may experience episodes that are more severe and more frequent than when symptoms first appeared.
Can a person be misdiagnosed with bipolar disorder?
Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and anxiety disorder can also be confused with bipolar disorder.
How often do people get diagnosed with bipolar disorder?
About 4 percent of people in the United States experience bipolar disorder at some point in their lives, according to the National Institute of Mental Health. And an estimated 2.8 percent of adults have been diagnosed with the disorder in the past year. But in recent years,…
Can a personality type be mistaken for bipolar disorder?
Additionally, some of the symptoms within these two personality types can easily be mistaken as belonging to the bipolar continuum (see previous Bipolar You blog: The Relationship between Narcissism and Bipolar Disorder).
Can a genetic predisposition cause bipolar disorder?
Most people with Bipolar disorder tend to have a genetic predisposition to the illness, but even those without a genetic predisposition can develop it. The trend in society among psychiatrists and mental health professionals is to make sure that a person with this condition is correctly diagnosed so that they can be properly treated.
How long was I misdiagnosed with bipolar disorder?
I was misdiagnosed with bipolar disorder type II for five years. Last year, I found out the diagnosis was incorrect. Before I realized I’d been misdiagnosed with bipolar disorder, it really did seem like the most accurate diagnosis.
Can a family history of bipolar disorder be missed?
Likely, bipolar disorder is missed due to lapses in patient history-taking. According to Masand, “A family history of bipolar disorder is a huge red flag for bipolarity in patients presenting with depression, but a thorough history must be taken in order to find this flag.”
When do they say Don’t Miss bipolar disorder?
“When a pharmaceutical company repeatedly says, ‘Don’t miss bipolar disorder, don’t miss bipolar disorder… and when you diagnose it, here are some medications you can use to treat it,’ there’s a tendency to expand the concept,” Zimmerman says.
Can a person be misdiagnosed with unipolar depression?
About 40% of people with bipolar disorder are initially misdiagnosed with unipolar depression (myself included). This type of depression is normally treated with antidepressants. Unfortunately, prescribing antidepressants alone to a person with bipolar disorder can be disastrous.