YOU ARE NOT ALONE - A companion online community discussion board for The Mental Illness Happy Hour podcast with Paul Gilmartin

I'm newly diagnosed as bipolar II with rapid cycling. I am currently on medication which may not be working perfectly. I'm not experiencing hypomania at its highest highs anymore. More I get the energy, restlessness, decreased need for sleep and agitation. I'm very frustrated as I have become infatuated with a man who is not my husband. I am happily married. My spouse is amazing. However I feel like a teenager. I do have to be in contact with this man. I want the feelings to go away but I feel obsessed. What is he doing, thinking, etc. All my normal, adult self confidence disappears when I'm around him. I feel out of control of my feelings and completely obsessed. Has anyone ever experienced this? I feel completely love sick and I know I am not in love. I barley know the man! Any advice on the subject or experience is welcome. I feel completely embarrassed and crazy. Does this go away!

Are you seeing a therapist? Have you spoken to him/her about this?

I have had very similar expressions of hypomania, especially when I was younger. In fact, my first recognizable (in retrospect) bouts of hypomania were in conjunction with "falling in love" (obsessive thoughts, lack of sleep, productivity, agitation and anxiety). I second the recommendation of calling or emailing your doc, you might need to adjust meds or something. I found that the best thing for these bouts was to keep busy with things I was actually interested in (not just obsessed with). Also socializing, socializing helped a lot.

Thanks for the replies. I am seeing a therapist and still adjusting meds. Its just feels very strange. I'm new to Bipolar II, I was just diagnosed about two months ago, so this feels very strange to me. I'm currently in the adjusting meds phase. I'm hoping that this will pass. It's impacted how I feel about my otherwise happy marriage and its just scary. Its hard when it feels like someone else is driving your brain!

Keep working on it! Make sure you talk to your doctor about how long it should take to adjust to the meds, and if they're not working for you, work with him/her to try something different. It can take a while to find the right meds and the right dosage but once you do it will really help you get on an even keel. Good luck and God bless!