The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM), the manual that defines all mental illness in the US, is being revised and a new version is due out in 2013. One of the proposed changes to the DSM is to the diagnosis of mixed moods. This change is being proposed by a mood disorders workgroup. It aims to reflect clinical practice where doctors already refer to a “mixed” mood that doesn’t officially meet the DSM criteria. (As I noted, mixed moods are only technically recognized in bipolar type 1.)
Changes to the mixed mood diagnosis will help people with bipolar 1, bipolar 2 and unipolar depression get better treatment.
I want to provide you with information you find useful and helpful.
Because without those two things, this site turns into me just talking to myself, and well, I do that a lot already. And if there’s one thing I’ve learned about readers it’s that they surprise you. Actually asking you what you want is infinitely better than me guessing.
Today I’m launching a 60-second survey to get a bit more information about you. This survey is completely optional, but I would appreciate one minute of your time so I can learn a bit more about you.
I’m running this survey through a site called WEGO Health. WEGO Health focuses on finding people who are leaders in health communities. These are people who:
Engage on health topics
Answer questions
Ask questions
Share information on health topics
Basically, they’re looking for many of you. I know many readers here fit their profile and would possibly benefit from their services.
Um, What Kind of Services
WEGO Health runs webinars, chats and whatnot on health topics. You never have to attend if you don’t want to.
I Don’t Want to Sign Up for Services
That’s perfectly fine. There’s a checkbox at the bottom of the survey that will opt you out of all emails.
Your Feedback Will Be Anonymous
One of the good things about running it through a third party is you’ll be anonymous to me so you can be completely honest. If there are things you don’t like here, it’s OK – be honest about them.
What You Will Get
By taking this survey you will get customized social media tips provided by WEGO Health.
And as a bonus, two lucky survey responders will receive my new ebook, currently in production: Electroconvulsive Therapy – Everything You Need to Know Before You Go Under the Electrode (it’s a working title, I know, inflammatory).
(Note: I have no direct or financial ties to WEGO Health. If anyone has any questions about the survey, feel free to leave a comment here or contact me directly.)
3 Things I’ve Learned About Mental Health This Week
In a continuation of the 3 New Things series, this week follows up on the British Psychological Society’s critique of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, version 5 (DSM-V), talks about irritable mood in bipolar disorder and expresses my general disdain for people who can’t report about mental health accurately.
So, in part II of this series on mixed moods in bipolar disorder, I look at mixed moods in bipolar type II.
Mixed Moods in Bipolar Type II
Now that we’ve wandered into Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM)-free territory, definitions on mixed states get a bit looser.
Mixed mood states may be, in fact, the most common way of experiencing bipolar type II. I find most people have a hard time distinctly separating “depression” from “hypomania” from “normal” moods. There is just too much crossover.
Two Types of Mixed Moods in Bipolar Disorder
Additionally, considering mixed moods to be part of the manic phase of bipolar disorder becomes useless when looking at bipolar II. As an article in Psychiatric Times suggests, there are really two types of mixed moods in bipolar disorder:
Mixed mood with depression as the primary mood (meeting the criteria for depression with some hypomania symptoms present)
Mixed mood with hypomania as the primary mood (meeting the criteria for hypomania with some depression symptoms present)
Those two mood types better reflect my own experience and I think the clinical experience of other patients and doctors.
Ask a Bipolar – What is a mixed mood in bipolar disorder?
As one of the Burble’s commenters mentioned, there seems to be a lack of good information on mixed moods available. After some Googling, I would tend to agree. While mixed mood episodes are pretty common for us bipolar folk, few people seem to be discussing it.
This is the beginning of a four-part series on mixed moods in bipolar disorder:
Mixed Mood Episodes in Bipolar Type I
Mixed Mood Episodes in Bipolar Type II
Changes to Mixed Mood Episode Diagnosis in the Revision of the DSM
Sometimes writing for a living drives me bonkers. Basically, I have to be brilliant on-command. And seriously. That’s hard.
You. Write. Be brilliant. Now!
It’s a lot of work for me. My brilliance gets tired and bogged down in the bits of my job I don’t like doing.
However, then I’m reminded there are many wonderful things about my job. Specifically, I get to learn new things, every day, all the time. While others work at real jobs I spend all day looking up facts and studies and learning things I didn’t know when I woke up.
I love that stuff.
3 Things I’ve Learned About Mental Health
So, I’m creating a weekly feature by sincerely flattering Jane Friedman and stealing her idea. (Jane writes Three Happy Things about writing once a week. Go check her out.) I’m not sure they will be three happy things, exactly, but I will be sharing three new things about mental health I’ve learned each week.
This will give me a chance to share smaller details that don’t make it into a full blog post, pimp the resources I like and otherwise share my knowledge.
I don’t want to say something “good” came out of my friend’s suicide attempt because I think that diminishes his personal experience. But maybe others have been helped. And that is thanks to him. Thanks to his honesty and bravery in speaking about his suicide attempt. I’m honored to know him.
Custom Moods / Variables I Use to Improve Mood Tracking
As I mentioned, the difficult a case you are, and boy am I difficult, the more challenging the patterns can be to find. This is why I’ve included these extra variables. Custom moods / variables include:
Obviously, the simplest form of mood tracking is just recording depression and mania on a scale, say, of one-to-ten. You could use a “paper” and “pencil” (look it up on Wikipedia).
You might still notice mood trends but that type of mood tracking is not nearly as helpful as it could be. And the more complicated your case, the more you already know, the more subtle your shifts may be and the less you’ll see using simple methods.
Most doctors (mostly psychiatrists) will ask you to track your mood if you have a mood disorder like bipolar disorder or depression. And while most people (psychiatrists and patients) would agree mood tracking is good, most people would also admit to not doing it.
I understand why mood tracking doesn’t get done. It’s like a homework assignment when you’re already working full-time. You just happen to be working full-time at being crazy. Homework tends to get left in the book bag.
However, there are easy, painless, simple ways to track your mood that can offer real benefits. Sixty seconds a day. Promise.
If you’ve been around for the last couple of weeks either at the Burble or at Breaking Bipolar, you know it’s been pretty much all suicide all the time. And there will probably be more to come on suicide as it’s an awfully big topic.
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