NonBPD individual here, is this a dominating experience in the BPD community? Trying to not take things at face value (memes mostly) and trying to spark more clarity, conversation and thought to these sorts of posts.
It’s probably easy to joke around and be more flexible when you’re a member of the community but as an outsider who just wants to get a clearer image I’m in the dark
For me at least (BP 1), it’s not like this at all. Cyclothymia is a rare symptom of BP, which might cause consistent rapid cycling. For me, each episode can be months long and throughout that time the severity can change.
The official definition of BP is only requires two episodes (one [Hypo]manic, one depresive) in the year to be diagnosable, the rest is up to the psychiatrist to determine.
Edit: this is why I’m not a fan of these types of memes, it can leave lurkers with a different idea of what BP is than reality.
I kinda had a feeling this was the case.
Dw the smart peeps question their consumption and will try to seek out the truth ;)
Thank you for being curious! I think it’s fair to say that each person with bipolar will have their own different lived experience here. So I will only speak for myself. What this meme describes makes me think of rapid cycling, when one switches from (hypo)mania to depression and back within a matter of days (and sometimes, hours). It can feel like going from an extreme high to an extreme low on a dime.
However, this is not how all episodes develop. Not everyone cycles rapidly, and even people who do don’t do it all the time. Right now, I am on great medication, so I have long periods of stability with occasional manageable hypomania and mild depression. I rapid-cycled in the past, so this meme is relatable for sure.
FYI, bipolar disorder is usually referred to as BP or BD. “BPD” is used for borderline personality disorder, which has features similar to bipolar but is its own thing.
Sorta what I figured - darn it, I’m pretty sure borderline personality disorder changed their naming or something which was controversial so it just popped in there, apologies for the mistake, slip of the tongue haha
You’re all good!
For me I sometimes become the demon eating someone’s soul. 😭. The last week I’ve been waking up 3 hours early and have been super productive. I don’t get the severe “I am the Messiah!” swings that others do get, but unmedicated I have spent MONTHS in the dark periods. But like @ickplant said, medication keeps it mostly under control. We are all a little different but we commiserate together. 💜
