bipolar type 1 or Schizoaffective disorder??

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hey
i know you guys are not professionals but i would appreciate all of your input and opinions: weather my recent episode was bipolar type 1 or Schizoaffective disorder? i'm unable to see my medical records for another 2 weeks until i see my psychiatrist.

i have been diagnosed with bipolar type 2 in the past almost 2 years ago following a psychiatric hospitalization. but i have only just recently been discharged from another psychiatric hospital where i got treatment for 2 weeks. i think stress and moving country is what triggered my mood episode.

the reason i was admitted was because my mood went extremely high and i was getting very irritable and argumentative to everyone over small un-important things (looking back).the moods lasted a week or so. during one of my up moods i got into an argument and it ended in me punching a brick wall so hard there was blood dripping from my hands and i walked off. but my boyfriend had to follow me and physically hold me down. i lost touch with reality for an hr or so and was barely aware what was going on. but i was soon back to feeling super happy and went to the park. but i was having such a great time that i refused to go home despite it being 11pm. so my boyfriend got the ambulance to take me to hospital. while there for the first week i refused medication and my mood got worse. my racing thoughts got faster, my irritability got worse, my energy levels went up, and i was only getting a few hrs sleep a night and went from happy to pissed of over small things. and i started hearing noises such as scratching walls/people mumbling. i was also paranoid and thought the doctors were trying to force me bad medications to poison/hurt me. but other then irritability my mood was reasonably happy.during my mania in hospital i had a day or 2 where my mania went down for short while but the psychosis still continued. but then my mood went up again and the psychosis remained until i was medicated.

once i started to accept the medication the "psychosis" went away, and went back to mania for a short while then my mood went back to normal and i was discharged.

looking back i'm not sure if it was Bipolar 1 with psychotic features, or Schizoaffective disorder? (bipolar runs in my family and there is no record of schizophrenia anywhere in the family)

the two disorders sound very similar. but because i had 1-2 days of normal mood while being psychotic does that mean it was Schizoaffective disorder? or just the bipolar and mania going down slightly?
does this sound like bipolar or the other, as the distinctions are very close.

thanks in advance for your input t

I hate to tell you this, but my diagnosis changed from paranoid schizophrenia to schizoaffective disorder with bipolar to bipolar I with psychosis back to schizoaffective disorder with bipolar II etc. What matters is you, not your diagnoses. I could care less if someone said that my diagnoses changes again. I know what I deal with daily and take my medication daily. I know that I need help and seek help from a professional. I am doing fine and just bat my eyes when the doctor says well you have such and such diagnoses. Who cares! I think for medical insurance purposes it needs to be recorded. However, a diagnoses does not make you nor break you. You are what matters the most.

The DSM V has changed from the DSMIV and no longer has paranoid schizophrenia as a subtype. Also, bipolar has three subtypes now according to the DSMV: bipolar 1, bipolar 2, and bipolar not otherwise specified. Furthermore, according to the DSM V, schizoaffective disorder presents with a major mood disorder throughout the majority of the duration of the illness and includes either or both of the following: major depressive episode or manic episode. And,
two of the following criterion for psychosis similar to Criterion A for schizophrenia must be present: delusions, hallucinations, disorganized speech, grossly disorganized or catatonic behavior, negative symptoms of flat affect,
lack of speech-alogia, and lack of movement-avolition (taken from Schizoaffective disorder on psychcentral). It goes on further about other specifications.http://psychcentral.com/disorders/schiz ... -symptoms/


I don't know if this helps. Like I said, just go with the flow and live life to the fullest no matter your diagnoses.

Please take care!

ok that's interesting. i read up on the link you shared above. and it says in order for it to be a schitzoaffective disorder you have to have psychosis for at least a 2 week period WITHOUT a depressive nor manic stage. and i have never had psychosis without my mood playing up

Gracey, I'm glad the article helped. Like I said, the criterion for diagnosis may change, but you remain who you are.

I take my medication and don't have as many issues as I did before. However, I used to dwell on my diagnoses also. And, I realized each of us has a unique experience and cannot be placed in cookie-cutter type categories. I think you have a lot of potential and should not worry too much about your diagnoses, unless it helps you identify with others with the same diagnoses. I cannot relate well to others and really cannot relate to others with my illness. Thus, I don't care much for the name of disorders, but rather the people behind the name. I like this website since I can relate to many of the people here.

Happy Holidays!