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Bipolar ForumsGeneral & SupportAt what age were you diagnosed
09/27/2011 01:13 PM
whatthefisup
whatthefisup
 
Posts: 440
Member

There is probably already a thread for this but, I am too lazy to look for it...

I was diagnosed only a few months ago and I am 29. One of my dear friends from another forum was really shocked at my diagnosis because he said if I was Bipolar I should have been diagnosed much earlier.

But this late diagnosis doesn't mean I didnt have episodes until now. I can look back over the last 10-12 years and recognize 4 or 5 major changes in my overall mood. It's just that this time around was much worse than in the past.

So, Im wondering what the average age of diagnosis is and particularly what ages you all were at your dx.

~Wendy

***My advice is purely personal. I am not a Doctor and there is NO substitute for getting proper medical diagnosis and advice***
Reply

09/27/2011 01:25 PM  Top
Dit
Dit
 
Posts: 12069
Group Leader
I'm an Advocate

I had my first breakdown and was psychotic at age 18, was diagnosed as being paronoid scitzophrenia, three yrs later i got re-diagnosed as having depression/anxiety so for many many yrs i did not know i had Bipolar I it was not until i asked to get re-assessed at the Mental Health Centre (was seeing the same pdoc for 24 yrs) stayed there for one month in the Fall of 2007, in 5 days I was told I had Bipolar I. It took 25 yrs to find this out.
Be Still and Know That I Am - Scripture
12-Step Slogans - One Day/Moment at a Time/Just for Today/Let Go & Let God/But By the Grace of God
Live and Let Live/Easy Does It/This Too Shall Pass

"Don't be afraid to cry. It will free your mind of sorrowful thoughts." - Hopi tribe

Bipolar I

Lithium 300 mgs, Lamotrigine 200 mgs, Klonopon (Clonazepam) .05mg more if needed, Clomipramine (Anafranil) 25 mgs, Abilify 5 mgs, Seroquel 25 mgs

Please note that I am not a psychiatrist or psychologist. My opinions are personal only. This site is not intended to be a substitution for professional care, nor is anyone here qualified to make diagnoses.

09/27/2011 01:30 PM  Top
Catbaloo
CatbalooPosts: 4717
Group Leader

I was 46 when I FINALLY was diagnosed. Before that, I had been treated for both anxiety and depression. Sigh.
My opinions are just opinions, and should be taken as such. I am not an expert on medicines or BP disorder.

Previous discussions I participated in:
Friend turning abusive
Abilify
Very low tolerance levels.

09/27/2011 01:33 PM  Top
YorkieLove
YorkieLove
 
Posts: 7028
VIP Member
I'm an Advocate

I was diagnosed with bipolar II when I was forty, but my first suicidal depression was when I was 17. I was misdiagnosed depression with ADHD until I had a nervous breakdown.
Lisa

My advice is purely personal. I am not a Doctor and there is NO substitute for getting proper medical diagnosis and advice.

Bipolar II, Depressed Severe

Lamictal 400 mg
Seroquel 150 mg
Effexor 150 mg
Inderal 10 mg
Ambien 5 mg
Lithium 1200 mg

Previous discussions I participated in:
Bipolar or Adhd
Tears
what colour is your mind.

09/27/2011 01:48 PM  Top
Cthebird
Cthebird
 
Posts: 2609
Senior Member

I was diagnosed with bp2 at 33 and then bp1 and 34. Looking back I had episodes since I was 15 when I think I had auditory hallucinations and severe depression. I had mild episodes for years later but when I was 34 all hell broke loose in terms of the mania and at about 37 I started to have the worst and longest depression of my life so far.
Bipolar 1, Simple Partial Seizures, and migraines

Psychiatric meds:

Lithium ER (900 mg)*Tegretol XR (1400 mg)*Lamictal (100 mg)*Geodon (160 mg)*Navane (5 mg)*Seroquel XR (100 mg)*Klonopin (.5 mg)

Ativan 1 mg "as needed" (I rarely take it.)*Seroquel regular 50 mg "as needed" (Only if I'm getting elevated.)

Other meds:

Propranolol (40 mg)*Levothyroxine (150 mcg)

My mix is side effect friendly for me.

09/27/2011 02:34 PM  Top
WastedSpace

I was officially dx at the age of 34. I've been living with it since at 10.

09/27/2011 02:52 PM  Top
kellylynn
kellylynn
 
Posts: 234
Member

I was diagnosed at 20 almost 16 yrs ago, looking back i think i had it since high school though.

09/27/2011 03:00 PM  Top
allyfant
allyfant
 
Posts: 1094
Senior Member

I was diagnosed BP2 a couple of months ago at 37, although like many others I've been having episodes since my teens.
Ally

Diagnosed with BP2 5/2011 after 15 years misdiagnosed as MDD, survivor of multiple suicide attempts, dealing also with PTSD. I have also had ECT.

Meds
Neurontin 900mg
Prozac 60 mg
Zyprexa 15mg
Lithium 900mg
Lunesta 3mg

09/27/2011 03:31 PM  Top
Bangbang
Bangbang
 
Posts: 6073
Group Leader

I was diagnosed in 1975 but did not accept it till I got sick in 1997
You are not drunk unless you have to hang on while lying on the floor.

Previous discussions I participated in:
Abilify
Hi Everyone
Dysthymia

09/27/2011 03:56 PM  Top
ZadieBlue
ZadieBlue
 
Posts: 3769
VIP Member

1994, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001 (participated in a Bipolar research study and still remained unconvinced), 2002, 2003 . . . and so on. I'm kind of stubborn.

Zadie

"I'm going to quit -- dried turkey." - Anonymous

"I forgot my mantra." - Annie Hall

"Knocked me on the head and sent me spinning
It was a blast I can't remember the last time
Stand between two poles and hold your arms up
I'll kick me over your head and stock down . . . " - Throwing Muses

Female, age 37

Bipolar I (mild)
• Episodes / cycling happen most often during Spring and Fall allergy season; some dissociation possible during episodes.
• GAD dx 12/11, PTSD traits, ED (in recovery)
• Boarding school survivor :)

PSYCH:
Adderall 15 mg x 2 • Prozac 40 mg • Ativan 1.5 mg • Geodon 120 mg • Starting Lithium again
(Levothyroxine 50 mcg • Atenolol 12.5 mg x 2 • Clonidine 0.1 mg x 3).

ALLERGY / ASTHMA -- (Winter / Spring cocktail): Levocetirizine • Alvesco HFA 160 mcg • Ketotifen Fumarate PRN • Flovent • ProAir PRN

Mercy Buckets to everyone!!!
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