Hallucinations and "mania" with antidepressants = bipolar?

Question

I've had some probs at work and called our employee assistance program to ask for help. They refered me to schedule an appointment with a counselor. Now then I briefly described what was upsetting me so much at work on the phone, the psychologist instructed me to see my regular M.D. right away and be put on mood stabilizers. She refered to the term "manic", which completly caught me off guard, because I have never considered that. I thought of myself as being moderatly irritated due to stress.

Now, yes, I've been taking antidepressants with short term success and long term failure for the past 5 months. Started off with Zoloft (200mg), switched to Welbutrin (100mg) and am now on Prozac (40mg). I'm at the same time doing the AA thing (=stress!).

I had yesterday visual, auditory and sensory hallucinations (they were mild and benign) and quite entertaining really. I have occasionally enormeous energy and go for several days with very little sleep (1-4hrs/night), which is great for my pay-check of course. And yes, my mood is great sometimes, too. Are these symptoms expected and part of the "read the instructions or could that be an indicator that a re-evaluation of the original diagnosis is in order?

Short: can non-bipolar patients experience these "manic' episodes,

or is its occurence an confirmable indicator of bipolar disorder?

Other factors are contributing into it, too (sleep depravation = hallos, SSRI = better mood! etc.)

Answer 1

I am bipolar.  I was like you, being able to work  long hours, loosing out on sleep.  I was a workaholic and my boss just loved me.  I finally spiraled down into a major episode of mania and depression.

Almost five years ago, I attempted suicide.  The end result was being placed into protective custody.  During my evaluation at the mental health center, the psychiatrist looked over my history, evaluated my responses to questions, and determined that I was bipolar and not just  depressed.  Depression was the diagnosis under which I had been getting medicated for.  He told me that I was on too high a dose of antidepressants and that is what was contributing to my mania.

It is now years later.  I have found a good psychiatrist.  I am in counseling with an excellent therapist.  Together we have stablized my mood and treated my depression with meds.  I have also been given  cognitive therapy to undo the "wacky" thinking that made things worse.  

Also, my faith in God has really helped me out and my counselor, who respects my beliefs and convictions, uses it to help me to recover.  She feels that, while there is a brain chemistry component and a thinking component to mental disorders, there is also a spiritual component.

Employee assistance programs are great.  They give a person access to help that they would otherwise be unable to afford or unwilling to contact.  One thing you said in your details is that you talked to a psychologist and she used the term "manic".  She then told you to see your regular M.D.  This bothers me a little bit.

For one,  a psychologist, while being very helpful in counseling you to help you better understand your feelings, is not really qualified to give a thorough diagnosis especially over the phone.  That sounds like bad medicine.

Second, she also told you to see your regular M.D.  Is your M.D. a psychiatrist?  A family or general practioner can presribe medications for mental health issues.  But, for example, my regular M.D. won't because he says that a psychiatrist is better qualified to evaluate mental illnes and knows better which meds work best and don't have bad side effects.  He refuses to prescribe these kind of meds because there is a liability issue.

Your next step is to get a proper evaluation at a mental health facility.  Feeling mania and having halucinations is not a good sign.  It could be a reaction to meds you are on now or it could be the sign of something more serious than just depression.

Hang in there.  It may seem like somethings aren't working.  When this happens, don't hesitate to contact your psychiatrist.  There is not a "one-size-fits-all" solution to mental disorders.  It is trial and error at first.  Make sure that you listen to your psychiatrist and that he or she LISTENS TO YOU!  

You may have to wait for some meds to start working.  The doctor may have to balance your meds with others. (Like I said, it has taken me a few years of trying different meds.  I was once on 5 different meds for my condition.  After a few adjustments I am now down to 3.  My life is getting back into order with hope of getting back to work.)

God bless. Go with the grace of God.

Answer 2

go to webmd.com and put all of your symptoms into the symptom checker and it will give you a list of possible syndromes/diseases/etc. the hallucinations kinda make me say Schizophrenia.