So, in the last several weeks, it has become apparent that my younger sister (18 years old) is bipolar. My already stressed family is now stretched to the max.
Some family history: my father is a drunk alcholic that my mom, sister and I kicked out of the house five years ago. He ran and never looked back (other than to rear his ugly head and make poor decisions that continue to hurt us). My mom and I are both in nursing school-- together! We have one more year left!! I am so proud of my mom and the hurdles that she has overcome, and continues to jump to accomplish her dream. Needless to say, one of those hurdles was last winter when my sister repeatedly was insubordinant, attempted suicide several times (to prove her "control" over my mom), nearly failed high school, and was caught sneaking vodka in water bottles to school. At that point, my sister was having bouts of "severe depression" lasting several weeks followed by several weeks of "baseline"... repeating. One of the hospitals that she was at suggested that maybe she was developing bipolar, and started her on a low dose of a mood stabilizer, and adjusted her antidepressant. That worked great, and she graduated from high school!!
Fast forward to the past month... her "cycle" has evolved into 2-3 days of no sleep, 2-3 days of nothing but sleep, 4-5 days of normalcy, repeat... NOBODY can get in the way of what she wants to do. It doesn't matter if we ask her to help around the house, stay and eat dinner with us, take her medications, or refrain from smoking cigarettes-- it is her way or the high way! My mom and I are getting so frustrated and run down. We don't have any family (my father made sure of that). The pure fact that she is acting like this is enough to drive us nuts. Then pile on the fact that we cannot get her in with the psychiatrist for a month, and the emotional issue of coming to terms with the diagnosis that we all know is coming... our family is reaching its breaking point.
School starts in a month, and this craziness needs to simmer down. Is there any good reading material that covers how to deal with bipolar in this age group? Anyone who's been-there-done-that and can share some insight?
I am scared to death-- I used to work in corrections, and now in the ER and EMS-- people with bipolar don't seem to have a very bright future!
ruralnurs, I, for one, thank you. I agree that the label is given rather frequently just as I believe ADHD is. I became even more disheartened by it when I saw the number of women who were diagnosed when I did my psych nursing rotation. When I read their histories, I couldn't help but wonder if their life circumstances and perhaps even normal hormone issues were not responsible for many of their problems. In addition, I was very upset to see that the drug reps sponsored Tuesday morning breakfasts for the psych hospital staff where samples and other literature was given for many of the represented meds. Unethical, if you ask me.
That is not to say that I believe BP and ADHD are not real because I am sure that they are..just that it has become too convenient in our society to diagnose these things, perscribe meds and consider it done.
The labels do affect people with regard to military service, licensure in various fields (including nursing), etc..
Lastly, as I stated before, this illness does run a broad spectrum, so even if someone does truly have it, they still may be capable of living a productive life.
Specializes in Med-Surg, Geriatric, Behavioral Health.
Excellent post, ruralnurs.
No flame at all is warranted for what you have shared. It IS best for a patient to be seen several times before a genuine diagnosis is made. Prior to this, it all just Diagnostic Impressions. Also, I agree with you that many in the psych community do not put much faith in the Bipolar II diagnosis. It could be other things, like Depression mixed with other psychiatric ailments, PTSD, substance induced mood disorder, or even Borderline PD. I have even had the experience with folks who are genuine BPD who are wannabe Bipolar II's (and manipulatively pushed for it) in order to escape their own BPD diagnosis being the cause of their misfortunes. The use of Adjustment Disorder is often best as an initial diagnosis until more data is present regarding what the person actually suffers from. However, if there is a clear cut history for the patient and if present aready in other family members, this should not be discounted and a diagnosis can usually be made much easier. And, I also agree with you, making a diagnosis from a tear off sheet made from a drug company is NOT how diagnoses should be made. It is NOT that simple...despite what the drug company guys would want others to think.
tamsonfirst
19 Posts
ruralnurs, I, for one, thank you. I agree that the label is given rather frequently just as I believe ADHD is. I became even more disheartened by it when I saw the number of women who were diagnosed when I did my psych nursing rotation. When I read their histories, I couldn't help but wonder if their life circumstances and perhaps even normal hormone issues were not responsible for many of their problems. In addition, I was very upset to see that the drug reps sponsored Tuesday morning breakfasts for the psych hospital staff where samples and other literature was given for many of the represented meds. Unethical, if you ask me.
That is not to say that I believe BP and ADHD are not real because I am sure that they are..just that it has become too convenient in our society to diagnose these things, perscribe meds and consider it done.
The labels do affect people with regard to military service, licensure in various fields (including nursing), etc..
Lastly, as I stated before, this illness does run a broad spectrum, so even if someone does truly have it, they still may be capable of living a productive life.
Thanks for sharing this perspective.