Along with paranoia, Missy would experience a “lack of personal hygiene, loss of appetite, confusion, and crying.”
“And a lot of shame and embarrassment over things I might have done,” she said. “Especially with the impulsivity, I was quite promiscuous, and the drug abuse and the partying and stuff like that.”
Eventually, Missy sought out a psychologist, who referred her to a psychiatrist where she was diagnosed with bipolar type one.
“Bipolar disorder is an illness where people experience episodes of both depression and mania,” Dr Rahul Khanna, SANE’s Clinical Director, told Mamamia.
“People are much more often aware of depressive episodes, which involves persistent sadness or low mood, loss of interest in things they enjoyed, along with changes in energy, sleep, appetite and concentration.
“Though an oversimplification, mania can be seen as the other side of that coin. During manic episodes, people can have really ‘elevated’ moods. Early in the episode, this can feel pleasant with increased energy and decreased need for sleep.”
Dr Khanna added that, in a manic episode, people can become “restless and agitated, have racing thoughts, struggle to stop talking or develop distorted and often grandiose thoughts.
“Impulsive or reckless behaviour is also common, and people can spend vast amounts of money, have risky relationships or use social media in ways that damage their reputation.