Dear Lindsey:

You wrote: “Look up Bi Polar spectrum disorder and it will match up with me more”- I looked it up and there is no such diagnosis in the latest DSM 5 or the earlier DSM 4.

A “Bi polar Spectrum Disorder” is a term, or a concept, not a diagnosis.

WebMD states: “The bipolar spectrum is a term used to refer to conditions that include not only bipolar disorders .. but also other types of mental conditions that can involve depression or mood swings..- including some impulse control disorders, anxiety disorders, personality disorders, and forms of substance abuse.. Some psychiatrists find the ‘bipolar spectrum’ concept to be a useful framework for thinking about the wider range of mental health problems.”

There are only three bi polar diagnoses in the DSM 5: Bipolar 1 Disorder, Bipolar 2 Disorder, and Cyclothemia. If you were not diagnosed with either one of these three, then you were not diagnosed with a bi polar disorder!

You suffer from impulsivity and mood swings and other symptoms, but why take on the identity of being bi polar when you don’t fit any of the three diagnoses for the disorder?

anita