Overwhelmed -very recent Bipolar Spectrum Disorder diagnosis for 16 yr old daughter

Hi everyone,

my beautiful, kind and loving daughter was diagnosed with BSD last week by her psychiatrist. She has been on anti-depressants since October 2022 and we have seen a huge change, she is in contact with a psychologist and feels supported by them. I was in contact with a psychologist late last year, who explained things to me and I will contact them again asap to further help me support my daughter.

Just after Xmas, there was a change and she became more depressed and sleeping more. That's when we made another appointment and she was diagnosed and is still on the antidepressants, but other medication to help support her.

Her psychologist has put me onto the SANE site and I am currently reading all that I can on Bipolar, but it is confusing as I am unsure if my daughter has Bipolar I or II as her diagnosis states 'Spectrum'. Therefore I am focusing on the areas that relate to her as I have not witnessed any manic moods.

At the moment, when my daughter says that she is tired and wants to go bed, I support her decision. She is open and honest with both myself and my husband. We also have a couple of close friends who have been supportive.

I understand this is all very early days, my daughter has been happy to work in her part-time job and she says that she is happy to return to school, she is in year 12. I've been encouraging her to exercise and socialise with her friends, but do not push it.

Any feedback from others who have been/are going through something similar is really, really appreciated.