I was told I had depression for 14 years until I got sectioned - it was bipolar
Kimberley Atkinson shares her experience of being misdiagnosed with depression for 14 years before receiving a correct bipolar disorder diagnosis. Experts emphasize the need for better screening to identify bipolar symptoms in patients treated for depression.
Why it matters
This highlights the critical importance of accurate mental health diagnosis and the potential dangers of long-term misdiagnosis.
Image caption, Kimberley Atkinson was told she had depression but she was later diagnosed with bipolar disorder
When Kimberley Atkinson was told she had depression, the diagnosis made sense to her.
She had struggled with her mental health since she was a teenager and hoped being prescribed antidepressants would improve things.
"My mood had always been up and down, and my emotional regulation was never very good," Kimberley said.
She said the impact it had on her life was awful, with depressions that felt like "sinking into a dark hole", leaving her stuck in bed and not able to face the day.
For 14 years, she assumed these were all the symptoms of her depression until her behaviour started to change dramatically.
Figure caption, My bipolar disorder was misdiagnosed as depression for years
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