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Curious: MD vs. BP

arfie
arfie
My first pro dx (1974) was, "Trauma Induced Amnesia."

My second (early 80s) was, "Manic Depression." This dx morphed into "Bi-Polar" without allot of fanfare. I scarcely even noticed the details of the change-over. I kinda AssUmed it was just because "Medical Doctors" didn't like competing with the likes of Winston Churchill, Steven Spielberg and me.

Is the diff just the label?

Just curious. . . Haven't found this detail on the WWW. Me and my Trivial Pursuit. . .
LeoX3
LeoX3
I think the transition took longer in the public mind than in the medical one, but I could be wrong.... Also, manic-depressive disorder was giving people some really odd impressions of what the problem is, from what I recall about 20 years ago. Suddenly anyone who had a good day followed by a bad day was "manic-depressive" in popular parlance.... My friend from college, who was dx'd back when it was still MD and not yet BP, raelly likes the change to the new term, because she was very tired of how people assumed they "kenw" what manic-depressive disorder was like, that it was "just moods" and blather blather blather. Having seen her manic out to the point of our calling 911, and then witnessed the three-month "downswing", and then.... Yeah. The popular ideas of "manic behavior" really colored popular perceptions of the disorder, IMO.

But I ramble and rant without anything other than my own druthers to back up my words.
arfie
arfie
No question it is just a label. It only gives me a name to call "it" for therapy work. Still. . . I am an amateur etymologist. Is there a more trivial pursuit than etymology? Everybody needs a hobby. . .

Fast forward another ?? years of psychotherapy at the VA and my BP dx morphed into, "cPTSD." I think. Patients don't get to read their own case files. For sure I have attended PTSD workshops and support groups at the VA.

There was some brief discussion on whether or not to change the dx officially. "Why?" I asked. "At the very least, PTSD is a malady of extremes. A bi-polar experience if ever there was one. . ."
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