ADHD and Bipolar Disorder

Let me start this off by saying and reminding everyone that mental illnesses are not to be self-diagnosed or thought about lightly. If you are feeling suicidal, please contact the Suicide Helpline and get help. It’s ok to need help. 

Now, when it comes to ADHD I don’t have personal experience having it myself but I do happen to have family with it and a husband with it for sure. So my experience is first-hand knowledge as a sister and wife. And to me, it’s funny. Not sitting still is the last thing I notice. First thing is having conversations, that don’t ever last long because once you get their attention, it’s also gone again in about a minute. And getting them to remember things. HA!

But I Love that part. Finding half-completed things all through the house and turning around when I was in the middle of my sentence to find them gone and into something new. It’s just my norm. 

However, when people like this get depressed and they go to a psychologist it’s not uncommon to get diagnosed with Bipolar Disorder. However, that doesn’t mean they actually have Bipolar Disorder, and it also doesn’t mean they don’t. The first question you might have is what is Bipolar Disorder.

“​“Bipolar disorder, formerly called manic depression, is a mental health condition that causes extreme mood swings that include emotional highs (mania or hypomania) and lows (depression)” ”

— (mayo clinic, 2018)

Let me show you why there is a possibility to get diagnosed Bipolar with ADHD. 

Here are the symptoms of Bipolar Disorder: (mayo clinic, 2018)

Credit: @iulia_m

Mania and hypomania:

• Abnormally upbeat, jumpy or wired Increased activity, energy or agitation

• Exaggerated sense of well-being and self-confidence (euphoria)

• Decreased need for sleep Unusual talkativeness Racing thoughts

• Distractibility Poor decision-making — for example, going on buying sprees, taking sexual risks or making foolish investments

Major depressive episode

• Depressed mood, such as feeling sad, empty, hopeless or tearful (in children and teens, depressed mood can appear as irritability)

• Marked loss of interest or feeling no pleasure in all — or almost all — activities

• Significant weight loss when not dieting, weight gain, or decrease or increase in appetite (in children, failure to gain weight as expected can be a sign of depression)

• Either insomnia or sleeping too much

• Either restlessness or slowed behavior

• Fatigue or loss of energy

• Feelings of worthlessness or excessive or inappropriate guilt

• Decreased ability to think or concentrate, or indecisiveness

• Thinking about, planning or attempting suicide

A whole lot to take in, alright well now for ADHD. So what is that?

“According to the Mayo Clinic “Adult attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a mental health disorder that includes a combination of persistent problems, such as difficulty paying attention, hyperactivity and impulsive behavior”

— mayo clinic, 2019

And now here are the symptoms of ADHD in an Adult:

• Impulsiveness

• Disorganization and problems prioritizing

• Poor time management skills

• Problems focusing on a task

• Trouble multitasking

• Excessive activity or restlessness

• Poor planning

• Low frustration tolerance

• Frequent mood swings

• Problems following through and completing tasks

• Hot temper

• Trouble coping with stress

Now the Similarities:

• Impulsiveness

• Problems focusing on a task

• Trouble multitasking

• Excessive activity or restlessness

• Low frustration tolerance

• Frequent mood swings

• Hot temper

• Trouble coping with stress

That’s 8 out of 12 on the ADHD list that is the same or very similar to Bipolar Disorder.

So this is very easy to misdiagnose unless this person is an experienced professional.

Truth is it’s also possible to be someone with both ADHD and Bipolar Disorder.

It’s best to be as honest as possible when talking to a therapist so the right diagnosis can occur.

Were you Misdiagnosed?

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References:

1. Mayo clinic, S. (2018, January 31). Bipolar disorder. Retrieved September 10, 2020, from https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/bipolar-disorder/symptoms-causes/syc-20355955

2. Mayo clinic, S. (2019, June 22). Adult attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Retrieved September 10, 2020, from https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/adult-adhd/symptoms-causes/syc-20350878

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