I have a diagnosis paper from my clinic that I got today. It says bipolar 1 disorder\unspecified. My primary doctor has me as schizoaffective bipolar type. I was also given major depressive with psychotic features two years ago.
I am so tired of changing labels!
Try not to get caught up in the diagnosis.
You should focus on the treatment of symptoms and not worry so much what its called,
In the end it doesn’t really matter.
Sorry you’re feeling annoyed,
Don’t let it get to you, especially if your treatment doesn’t change.
What’s the difference? I am depressive with psychotic features because I have schizoaffective disorder. Those are pretty wide terms.
You know your symptoms though, which is probably the important part.
It dosent matter as long as you get better,that’s what counts
It’s just annoying. Especially right now as I have a SSD hearing in june.
I know everyone says the diagnosis doesn’t matter, just treating the symptoms does, but I don’t think that’s true for everyone. Sure, it may not matter to some of us, but it matters to me. I want to be able to understand and explain what’s going on in my mind, and the revolving door of diagnoses doesn’t help that. It makes me think that, since no one can figure out what’s wrong with me, there’s not actually anything wrong with me, that there must be some other supernatural explanation for what I’m experiencing. Or, maybe they’re just trying to “treat” me because I’m smack dab in the middle of a grand conspiracy. Anyway, my point is that while some of us care about nothing but the treatment, others of us need a definitive answer, a clear label, to keep ourselves on the right track.
I totally get this. I got pissed recently when a new PA told me I couldn’t have schizophrenia because I’m too expressive. I said I’m in recovery, and she said nobody recovers that good, and started calling me schizoaffective. For as much as I tell people not to focus on the label, I’m not gonna lie, it pissed me off. The reason people like her think schizophrenics can’t be expressive is because the second one of us is, they change the label and say “oh, since you recovered, you must never have been sick!” It’s very invalidating and frustrating.
My pdoc did not agree with her, because she’s more trained in psychotic disorders, so I stayed schizophrenic. The label doesn’t matter for treatment, but it can have an emotional value. We tell people not to get caught up in it because it changes all the time.
I have two diagnoses - sza bipolar type and bipolar 1 with psychotic features.
My current psychiatrist is uncertain.
My diagnostic history. Schizophrenia 1975- 1983, schizoaffective /occasionally bipolar 1983-2005, personality disorder NOS 2005 -? , paranoid personality disorder ?- October 2018 . At my last appointment with new consultant in October 2018 he was suggesting schizophrenia and ASD.
It’s so common to have a change in diagnosis.
I’ve found it changes over continents. It’s more likely you’ll be diagnosed sz aff in the states than Australia but as @GoldenRex says it so well. It’s about treatment and not labels.
Most of us have changed even from that initial one…schizophreniform which just means they haven’t seen you over 6 months even on meds!
My medical aid doesnt even recognize schizoaffective lol.
That’s why mine is " bipolar, unspecified "
It’s just to activate pmb sessions and to put my meds on chronic.
I need to know my diagnosis. My current diagnosis is F20.3 undifferentiated schizophrenia. And I find it right.
I found out what Bipolar 1 Unspecified is! It is an insurance billing code as there isn’t one with some insurance for schizoaffective separate from schizophrenia. I AM schizoaffective!
Yep as I thought
I was so confused why my official on my doctors statements was schizoaffective. I felt like a fraud to be here.
The diagnosis doesn’t matter if the treatment works.
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