question about mood

[nightfalls]

I have chosen not to post

Edited December 6, 2008 by nightfalls

[Mark]

I think the experience is variable. Some people do realize they are swinging and others don't. Insight into these things varys. As people experience mild mania, it tends to be something that feels good, so they may not be in a reflective mood, but instead increasingly in an impulsive mood. So - they may know, but not be motivated to care. Mania (mild and otherwise) can also feel agitated so there's no hard and fast rule as to how it feels. When mania gets very extreme, it can become a psychotic process which I have not heard many people say they enjoy, but which is not always unpleasant either. Like a drug trip, your milage may vary.

hypomanic means "below manic" - it is a mild state of mania and typically one that people feel is beneficial

mania is a much more energized state than hypomania and it can be expansive in character or frightening, depending on severity and other factors.

a mixed state is odder and less frequent. It occurs when a manic state and a depressive (or more likely aggitated) state occur together. I've heard talk that this actually doesn't occur, but rather is explained by rapid cycling. We'll have to see how the definition of the mood disorders are re-written in DSM 5 out in a couple years.

Does this help? Maybe if you can ask additional clarifying questions, I can be more specific.

[nightfalls]

I have chosen not to post

Edited December 6, 2008 by nightfalls

[TealBeauty]

I live most of my life in a mixed state. And am Ultradian, as well.

I always thought of myself as just a very optimistic person! A good thing!! Certainly not any sort of disorder! Then, in college (at age 33), I took Psy 101 and said to myself, 'Son of a bitch! I'm cyclothymic!!!!' LOLOL!!!!!

Still, where's the problem, right!? So it never occurred to me to do anything about it.

Well, after undergoing about a full decade of extreme stress, I 'graduated' to a much more severe form of mood disorder. Spiraled out of control a bit, although everything I did seemed like a good idea at the time, but finally got bad enough to end up at the doctor's and was diagnosed and treated as Bipolar. At first, the medicine was like magic!!!! I went back to being pretty normal. Especially as far as the hypersexuality goes, which is pretty everpresent, no matter what my mood. Sadly, though, over time, dealing with my moods has become more of a struggle.

Now, as I say, I'm in a mixed state almost all of the time. In a way, it's mainly a good thing!!!! I have a really strong sense of humor, so can usually joke around and/or find the humor in things, even during periods of being depressed!!!! LOLOL!!!! Very strange!!!

Ah, but the mixed state doesn't always prevail!!!! I can spend time feeling in one certain mood and one mood only and I might stay in that mood for a few days running -- but rarely longer -- but it's much more likely for me to flip moods for much shorter periods of time; maybe part of a day, or just a couple of hours. And sometimes, I can be happy and laughing one minute and sad and crying the next.

Now having said all this, I must say that I'm lucky enough that the moods are controllable enough -- that is t say, mild enough -- that I can 'pass' as not being nuts, for the most part. I only go really manic or really depressed every once in a while and I pretty much stick to myself, when I do, real life speaking, anyway. When hypo or hyper, I play on the computer -- sometimes for 70 hours straight! LOLOL!!!! (Sleep!!!!? Sleep?! I don't need no stinking sleep!!!!! LOL!!!!! ) When depressed, I sleep, sometimes almost all day, and for a few days in a row.

Ah, good times!!!! LOLOL!!!!