Just to add, I began having POIS at age 12, with the depression sometime soon after. Your agrument seems to be of the perspective of "borderline controlled depression/mania" which gets pushed over the edge by POIS. The bipolar diagnosis did not arrive until I was 22, so I don't think I fit the scenario you posted, Daveman. If I were to have my apple cart upset, it was the bipolar on top of the POIS. Now if you got POIS later in life (33 years for you, Daveman?) and you already had a predisposition to depression/mania, then there might be something worth looking at about diagnosis. You may be more POIS than bipolar.
It's tempting to attribute POIS to contributing to a misdiagnosis of bipolar because it strengthens our claim that POIS is a serious, broad-spectrum disease. Thing is, we as POIS sufferers all have that confirmation bias where we see connections out there that may just be correlations. I'm speaking strongly on this issue as I believe challenging bipolar diagnosis on the notion that POIS could be behind it all is really dangerous or even irresponsible. Lets say someone where to decide to quit their treatment out of hope it would improve their lives. It is very tempting to some, since they want to believe they are normal, and not sick. This would surely be a bad thing. And how would it improve POIS symptoms?
Let's stick to solving POIS, and leave the mental illness to the psychiatrists informed by vast, peer-reviewed research networks.
Hi Nightingale. I did not want to offend you in any case. I trust you in what you´ve said and i am glad that lithium works on you to stabilize your mood, that is exactly the best proof that you have bipolar disorder. I got POIS after an emotional event. My mind took a heavy toll while this event was happening. After this precise emotional event i began to get POIS, i cannot recall exactly what was my first time, but i can recall feeling with brain fog for first time. And more: My brain fog led me to have negative, repetitive thoughts. I was suffering a hell on my mind, when the past years of my life before POIS i had been a very happy boy, so that was very strange for me. Firstly, I linked these effects to that emotional event, not to my POIS which was appearing.
I did not know at that time what could be happening to me. I remember that the Orgasm made me feel really bad. But i did not always linked that negative thoughts on the days after O. with the orgasm. I searched for "orgasm, masturbation + depresion" "orgasm + bipolar disorder" in google and nothing came up or simply "OCD" "Bipolar disorder" to watch what the symptoms were . I asked a doctor about my symptoms and he told me that i should stay relaxed and enjoy the moment of orgasming (sic).
My question with the bipolar disorder was only because i used to feel that way: While in POIS: Depressed mood, crippled mind, non-emotional state, negative-repetitive thoughts- Out of POIS: Like Superman, no negative-repetitive thoughts, want to socialize with everyone, jokes, clear mind... I expect you to understand why i asked you this exact question. I do not know more than you about this, nor do i pretend to do so.
When i began to fight against my POIS with garlic and fenugreek, the first thing i notice was that the negative thoughts were not anymore in my mind. And with niacin, you can wonder, it has been amazing. My mental, brain fog symptoms are gone after an Orgasm. I feel like i used to be before i got POIS, not like Superman, but more relaxed and focused with everything, more like ME. A lot of inner tension has gone away and i could be myself again. So, for me it was a connection more than a correlation. Any case is different, but i was addressing you from my own experience.
Finally, i have read some members that the anti-depressants -SSRIs- have made their POIS worse. I am glad that i did not take them in my full POIS years.
Best Regards.