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How should I go about finding out if I have cyclothymic disorder

User Profile: MicahMicahMicah
MicahMicahMicah July 21st

I have done some research, and I think I might have cyclothymic disorder. I show symptoms of hypomanic episodes and depressive episodes (I am not 100% about depressive episodes, but looking at the criteria for them, I meet a few). I definitely have never had a hypomanic episode or depressive episode. But I have some doubts that I have this. Like, wouldn't my psychiatrist have noticed if I had this? Wouldn't I be diagnosed already? So I want to see if I should bring this up with my therapist and psychiatrist. Maybe I am misinterpreting the symptoms.

For the hypomanic symptoms, I notice that at times, I feel the pressure to keep talking. I don't interrupt people, but I always feel impatient and feel like they need to be quiet so I can speak. I am not sure if I have elevated happiness, but at times, I just feel a sudden surge of positive emotions, and I can't figure out where that came from. I am sure that I have lots of poor judgement with things, but maybe that's my personality. I don't know. I definitely have irritable and agitated behavior. But I don't know if the anger is too extreme to count for this symptom. Because I get really angry at times. Recently, I have been doing good with anger, but sometimes I have a bad week where I get really angry. I do not think I have a decreased need for sleep, because I have read that for that criteria, individuals just don't feel like they need to sleep, whereas for me, I want to sleep but I just can't. I also get easily distracted and can't concentrate at times, but that is probably because of my ADHD. 

For depressive symptoms, I feel down a bit sometimes. I don't know if it is more than it is typically for people, although I have noticed this week I have been really sad. I cry easily at stuff, but I don't think that counts towards this. Like mentioned above, I do have irritability and agitation, but again, I don't know if it's too extreme to count. I don't really feel guilt, but sometimes I feel like I have no worth and that my family probably hates me and wants me to go. I usually always feel like that, but most of the time I realize that it's silly and my family does love me, but occasionally I feel it more strongly. I have periods of time with difficult sleep issues. I have noticed that the insomnia isn't always there, I noticed that there are weeks that I can fall asleep and stay asleep really easily, but there are also weeks (usually months) that it is very very difficult for me to fall asleep and stay asleep. And I feel tired throughout the day, even if I do manage to sleep well. And I just feel bored a lot of times, I lose interest in doing stuff. I have never, not even once, considered not being alive. 

So I am wondering if this stuff is important enough to bring up to my therapist and psychiatrist. I would say that these issues do cause me difficulties in day to day life, like the irritability definitely does, and a lot of the depressive symptoms do.

But I am worried that if I do bring it up to my psychiatrist and therapist, they wouldn't listen. Or maybe when asking my family, my family doesn't notice these symptoms because I never complain about some, or maybe I am just making a big deal about stuff. My psychiatrist has kind of brushed me off before when I mentioned the possibility of having excoriation disorder (which I am 100% sure I have. Like, I scratch and pick at my scalp all the time.). So maybe I should bring it up to my therapist first, I think he'd listen. But again, I am not sure if these symptoms are even severe enough for me to have cyclothymic disorder. Should I keep track of mood changes? 

1
User Profile: Remina
Remina July 22nd

@MicahMicahMicah

Hey there. Definitely keep track of everything and definitely communicate with your therapist. The more information you have for the therapist, the easier it is for the therapist to do an accurate assessment.