Hi,
How’s your day going?
I hope it is a good one.
Sometimes it can be hard to figure out who to talk to about yours or your loved one’s bipolar disorder and who shouldn’t know. More so than that, it can be hard to figure out who to tell details to, and who should just know that you or your loved one has the disorder.
But there is one person that you should never keep details from about you or your loved one’s bipolar disorder. Can you guess who that is?
Scroll down to find the answer
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Your psychiatrist!
Did you guess right?
Yes, believe it or not, your psychiatrist is here to help you, and in order to do so, they need to know everything.
You might be wondering what kinds of things your psychiatrist needs to know.
Well, for starters, anything you think might be a symptom, even if it isn’t a symptom of the disorder you are already aware of. That is to say, anything that is out of the ordinary about you or the way you think or behave.
Another thing that you should be telling your psychiatrist is how you are responding to your medications, especially the ones that they prescribed you. For example, are you having any side effects? Is the medication doing what it is supposed to do? Are you having any extra symptoms since the medications started?
You know what another thing is that you should be telling them? Your history of symptoms.
You see, it’s not just important what symptoms you are having now, it’s also important to tell them what symptoms you have had at any point in your life. After all, bipolar disorder can’t even be diagnosed without a full history of your symptoms. If you haven’t already told your doctor about a detail in your past that you think is relevant – maybe you forgot – then you should tell them now. It may or may not make a difference, but they can help you figure that out.
Another thing you should be talking to them about is your other medical problems. Some of them might not be relevant, but some of them might make all the difference in the world. Certain medical conditions may make a difference in your diagnosis, or in the way you are able to be treated. Some medications might interact with your other medical conditions in a way that isn’t good, so it is important that your doctor is aware of those conditions so they can avoid those types of problems.
You should also be telling your psychiatrist about your ability to pay, both for their services, and for your medications. They may have a payment program to help you out with their services, but you won’t know unless you ask them. Many times they will have samples available to hand out to their patients, but they don’t usually do so unless they know that the patient needs help paying for their medications.
Another thing they might be able to help you with is a prescription discount program, or even the number to the drug company’s discount services. All of these things may or may not be available, but you will never know unless you ask.
Go figure, huh? Who knew that all you had to do was talk to the doctor to find out about all these things? And who knew that when you talked to the doctor about all the different things you are experiencing, that they would be able to help you better?
Your doctor has been educated on mental illnesses in general, but you have to aid them in educating themselves about the mental illness you are dealing with. Believe it or not, they can’t do it alone.
With all these benefits for talking to your doctor, who would want to stay silent?
What do you think about all of this?
Well, I have to go!
Your Friend,
Dave
Post responses below
This was informative, I am not yet receiving help.
I am trying but it is difficult to get help. Mentally and financially. I’m stuck in limbo being bipolar I can’t wont and don’t have employment not that I don’t want to be employed. My biggst trigger at this time is all money related. But your newsletters do help me to keep looking for my answer. thank you
I have been seing doctors sence I was 14 years old,and I know that it is not good to tell them everthing thats going on in your head.
My son is 21 and still lives with me and his stepfather. We have been able to keep him under our health insurance since my husband’s company allows this for children who live at home under the age of 25. When my son’s mental health issues became apparent about 3 years ago I went with him to see his psychiatrist who gave him a definite diagnosis of OCD, anxiety disorder and observation for bipolar disorder. Since then my son wants to see the DR only by himself -understandable for a young man- but he also does not share whwat is going on with his mental health. If I ask him if he ever go a definite diagnosis about bipola he says “I don’t know”(his favourite sentence). He has never been able to communicate as well and have social skills like his older brother and sister were able to and I am worried he is not “telling the psychiatrist everything”. He is also very sensitive to drugs side effects (has always been, even to antibiotics). My question is: Would it be appropriate fo me to make an appointment with the psychiatrist myself to discuss my concerns about my son with him, or would that be a breech of the doctor/patient confidentiality, since he is over 18 y/o?
Just to say thank you so much for keeping me sane all this time,, my husband has bipolar and when he is manic he is full blown,lots of love and thank you xx
I have to say that telling your Phyitrist is not always the best. I say that because that they still have not given me my medications in PA for my BiPolar.
I agree with what David says about being prepared to pay for the right help and treatment. Seeing the header for withcaroline.com above the comment box prompts me to write. My wife had suffered from excruciating and debilitating pain for some 6 weeks, after being discharged from a 3-month stint in a local mental health inpatient unit in Winchester (Hampshire UK) following a breakdown. The mental health services here in Hampshire are very good (and free) but while in hospital she suffered from shingles on her lower back, and also had depot injections of piportil in the same place. The net result was that these sensitised her lower back and she developed PHN (PostHerpetic Neuralgia) in the same place. Pretty difficult for anyone to predict, even more difficult for someone in good health to deal with, but far worse for someone who is mentally fragile. She’s now been prescribed a low dose 10mg of Amitriptilyne which, while it is mainly used as an antidepressant, can also help with PHN pain.
David makes a very good point about the importance of other medical conditions and side effects (or unintended consequences)of medication, and these are often overlooked. We’ll be contacting withcaroline.com (as she is local to us in Portsmouth) to see whether she can help with pain management, but this begs the question – can hynotherapists really help patients who are taking anti-psychotic drugs and do their ethics allow them to do this ?
So point well made and keep up the good work David !
Hello Davie boy… long time no talk… how do you go on about getting a phsychiatrist… i’ve heard they’re all in the fashion thease days… any ideas let me know… take care linda
Hello, Dave and readers. My name is Lynn, and I’m an alcoholic; I also live w/Bipolar II Depression, and take meds for it, daily. Whenever I go to my Primary Care Physician for my other medical problems, I have the Dr. write a short note abt. what we talked abt., that I can give to my psychiatrist. I’ve found it true what you said abt. our other diagnoses. At one of my earlier admissions to the hospital for suicidal depression, the routine blood work revealed a hypothyroid condition, which I needed to take supplements for, and still do, to this day!! I would’ve never known abt. this condition, if it wasn’t for this blood test!! And lo-thyroid can contribute to depression, if left untreated!! And conversely, I get a brief note from my psychiatrist to give to my PCP, so ‘the right hand knows what the left hand is doing.’ I consider both these professionals, an integral part of my support system. Knock on wood; I haven’t had to be hospitalized this winter, @ all [I also have S.A.D., which is Seasonal Affective Disorder]. Hope this info. has been helpful to @ least ONE other person; then that would be why I shared it!! Thanks for sharing and for being there for us.
Hi David,
How do I ask a fellow coworker if she would be interested in this address? We work in the same building and sometimes email fun things back and forth with our business addresses.
Thank you,
Mary Fox
I just talked with my shrink this afternoon, and kept her abreast of my current situation. I have lost NINE pounds since my last visit, and now am down to 105 lbs (5’9″). She is QUITE concerned, as 30 years ago, after being hospitalized on a psychiatric ward, I went down to 78 lbs. She asked me what they did at the State Hospital to put weight back; I told her they gave me megavitamins and double portions at meal time, with a chocolate shake in the morning and 1 in the afternoon. She was going to take me off my Klonopin, but kept me with it, since I am going through a VERY hectic time, and she doesn’t want to make TOO many changes. However, she LOWERED my Depakote by 25mg for a week, and then down 25mg more the next week. Since I sold my condo, I was “rejected” from moving in to where I had been told I could move. This put stess on me to find SOMETHING before April 1st. Luckily, I found a 2-BR apartment in a house, and was told just TODAY that I could have it!! I still have the vertigo (going on 10 months), and all the specialists have NO idea how to “cure” it. I am soooo stressed to the MAX right now, but my current roommate (who’s leaving April 1), was a psych tech, and she says I’m doing “great!”
It IS vitally important to tell your psychiatrist of ALL diagnoses and symptoms with your BP. I even asked my DR for samples of the most expensive antipsychoticc (Zyprexa), and the local Mental Health Clinic is giving them to me!! After all, like Dave says, it doesn’t hurt to ask!!
BIG HUGS to all bipolar survivors and those who love us. May God bless you real good. I continue to pray for my country.