Bipolar Disorder

[gina5005]

Ever since she was a child, my daughter has always had problems especially with her mental health.
In body she is a perfectly normal young woman, its her mind im worried about.
When she was a young child she had alot of difficulty socialising, and was cripplingly shy.
As she got into her early teens, she had terrible mood swings, but i put them down teenage hormones.
Now she is seventeen, and its gradually getting worse. She has gone through a major alcohol addiction that almost killed her, she said she drank because it helped "block out guilt".
She has successfully quit the drinking, but her moods are still the same. One day she is happy and full of energy, if somewhat dangerously impulsive, doing things on a whim such as dangerous activities and promiscuous sex, then the next day she is hiding in her room all day and being very violent, and it goes round in a vicious circle. She gets very easily agitated and shows alot of signs of manic behaviour.For example she has had one of her moods were she talks nonsense and draws all up her walls, then the next day goes on like nothing has happened. She isnt very socially gifted, she has been kicked out of high school, and two colleges for aggressive behaviour. She doesnt like being touched, and she doesnt like maintaining eye contact or she gets very agitated. She doesnt talk to anybody about how she is feeling, and she doesnt seem to know right from wrong. She can often be charming,yet domineering over the people she knows, and she normally says what she wants, not caring how it affects others. Me and my partner are becoming increasingly concerned with her behaviour.She shows no regard for anything, she has been in trouble with the police on various occasions, and she shows no love or caring for herself or others.
We have taken her to various doctors and consultants, she was put on medication for bipolar disorder but she went back and told them that she was fine. We took her back again, and she was verbally abusive to the consultant, saying that just because she see's reality, doesnt mean shes crazy.
Is she just being a rebellious teenager, or is something more going on here?
Please help us, as her behaviour is destroying herself and her family.

[bipolarbear2008]

Gina,

A lot of what you describe sounds like it could be bipolar. However, it also sounds like there is a lot more going on with your daughter. It is common for other mental health conditions to be present as well, and your daughter may be suffering from more than one mental illness. For example, her dislike of being touched and her extreme "shyness" could actually be forms of Aspberger's/autism. Talking nonsense and drawing on walls could be due to a form of schizophrenia. And she may have some form of bipolar, well. All of these illnesses get worse with age, if not treated. All of them have very effective treatments and can bring back the "real" person inside of your daughter's current personality.

It sounds as tho' she has been seen by a psychiatrist for treatment. I cannot believe that if your daughter was being abusive to a consultant, s/he did not recognize that something was seriously wrong and recommend further treatment.

Your daughter needs to be seen by a psychiatrist who understands bipolar and personality disorders. If your live anywhere near a University with a medical school, call them and arrange for an evaluation. If your daughter is under 18, you might want to discuss in-patient (i.e., in the hospital) diagnosis and treatment for your daughter. Once she reaches adulthood at age 18, this option may not be available to you. (I'm a little confused as to your daughter's age since you mention she was booted out of two colleges....)

At some level, your daughter knows that things are not right. Something that she might be willing to do is to keep mood charts. (You can download these from online sites or ask her psychiatrist for some forms.) The goal is to have her record her moods 3-4 times a day, along with what she was doing at the time. After even a week, she may start to recognize mood swings and possible triggers. Seeing evidence on paper of mood swings might be enough to persuade her to give medications another try.

Also, appeal to her "adult logic." She can try medications for a month and if they don't make her feel better, she can switch or stop. If you can help your daughter understand that SHE will be in complete control, she might feel better about trying meds. There is some excellent work by Dr. Xaviar Amador -- books and even an online podcast -- on why people who are mentally ill fight taking medications and some ideas on how to help.

If she is arrested again, get in tough with her lawyer and/or the court. Explain that you believe your daughter's actions are the result of mental illness and push for a court-ordered evaluation and treatment plan. Your daughter might find treatment as a good alternative to jail time.

Finally, I would urge you to find a local chapter of NAMI. You will benefit from talking with other families who are going through similar things and they can suggest other resources to you.

Please write back and let us know how your family is doing.