Bipolar and adhd

[Wasbipolarnowadhd]

my diagnosis has changed to ADHD. Anyone else had this?

[Happytiredbunny]

my best friend had this… she went cold turkey on her bipolar meds a few years back after taking a pretty hard dip… went private for an assessment and is doing soooo well on adhd meds, we went through the assessment process at the same time and it’s been life changing for her! Hope you’re doing ok!!

[Wasbipolarnowadhd in reply to Happytiredbunny]

thanks for replying. When you say cold turkey did she stop the bipolar meds quickly?

[Happytiredbunny in reply to Wasbipolarnowadhd]

yes, not the most sensible idea but she was adamant they weren’t helping and never really felt the bipolar diagnosis was accurate! So she stopped them, and started an adhd assessment privately a couple months later…

[Wasbipolarnowadhd]

can you remember what she was on?

[Wasbipolarnowadhd]

I’ve started on Ritalin and it’s made such a difference. I’m on loads of stuff for bipolar and I know it shouldn’t be stopped quickly but am also really interested in her experience

[Happytiredbunny in reply to Wasbipolarnowadhd]

apologies i didn’t get a notification for this! I’m not sure what she was on, I know she’d tried lots of different meds over the years… she’s abroad at the moment and gone through an assessment over there, they’ve given her a quick release stimulant for the morning, then she takes a slow release for through the day, and they’ve given her melatonin to help regulate her sleep! I think once you’re on the right meds for the adhd it’s just a case of minimising side effects, I was taking sertraline before my diagnosis and my consultant halved that immediately and then halved again and again till I stopped, I know that’s not a very hardcore med but the reduction in anxiety was pretty instant once I started the adhd meds so didn’t need the sertraline (which ironically was making my adhd worse)

[GrowandSew]

I was diagnosed with Cyclothymia (‘mild’ bi-polar) 15 years ago & the diagnosis never felt it truly fit but that was before psychs even considered ADHD for females so was a justifiable diagnosis that it wasn’t ‘just’ depression. Since my ADHD diagnosis & titration last year, I now take long acting Methylphenidate & it has completely removed my depressive episodes. I finally feel my life can now be different so I hope it all works out well for you too.

[Wasbipolarnowadhd]

thank you for replying. That’s so useful. My bp diagnosis was 19 years ago so similar. Did you have medication to come off too?

[GrowandSew in reply to Wasbipolarnowadhd]

No, I wasn’t considered considered severe enough to be given any medication for the condition. I had CBT several times which made absolutely no difference. Getting an ADHD diagnosis & treatment has been my turning point.

I’m sorry I can’t give any helpful advice re your meds switch, your psychiatrist should be able to help with coming off your bipolar meds.

[Wasbipolarnowadhd]

thank you x

[carijoy27]

I was diagnosed as Bipolar II - mostly depressive and my hyperfocus times were viewed as "manic episodes ".

Once I was diagnosed with ADHD by a psychologist, I changed my psychiatrist and we started cross titration. We decreased my mood stabilizer and added wellbutrin to my standard antidepressant. After some time when I was fully off of the mood stabilizer and on the highest dose of wellbutrin, my psych introduced a stimulant.

Every psychiatrist is different. If you are eager to get off bipolar meds, please do it under the supervision of a psychiatrist. If your current one isn't hearing you out, seek out a new one. You need to be able to be honest with your provider - you've been treated incorrectly for over a decade. I, too, was impatient about getting off the wrong meds and getting on the right ones.

My psychiatrist admitted to me she may have accidentally diagnosed some female patients as being bipolar instead of ADHD because there is so much misunderstanding around ADHD and women.

Best of luck to you on this journey,

Cari