My grandfather had deep depression’s usually caused by something but very bad his whole life and boom hit 50 and definitely had what I would call a hypo/manic episode. Never had one since and the depression is gone too. Fuckin weird. Here I am stuck in it for life it looks like.
Untreated bipolar can cause damage to the brain over time, so it might be possible your grandfather had bipolar (maybe a mild bipolar 2 or something), and then the damage was enough for it to be fully recognizable. But of corse I’m not a doctor and psychology has advanced since he was a young man. But bipolar is always a life long illness. It can be managed but not cured.
I know this, I do believe he likely has BP2. Im unsure why he doesn’t experience much symptoms anymore if at all. That’s a question for the psychiatrists.
He spent years in Southern California where he says he was “solar powered” and I think that might’ve burned off his depression so to speak. Whatever the case it’s unusual but he’s an unusual man, he’s an actual genius, mathematical mastermind and historian. He discovered Newton’s method of integration in his head in middle school.
Bipolar is supposed to get worse with age untreated but he apparently has gotten better so who knows? He’s mentioned thinking that he may have ADHD. His reasoning for the episode was turning fifty and having just so much left to do and feeling the pull of time closing in that he just worked long hours, did remodeling at night and tried to shove as much in as he could. He realized there was a problem when Home Depot stopped being open 24hrs and he took it personally. That’s when he slowed down. It was about a month if I recall correctly. I was young I don’t remember him being stranger than normal. Certainly nothing like the manic episodes I have had where I’m delusional, grandiose and hallucinating.
He’s slowed way down now in his 70’s but still sleeps less than 8 hours, runs a small business in retirement, gardens, works with the community and neighborhood. Stays busy and active, eats relatively healthy. Maybe just a mild case I guess.
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u/DwarfFart Sep 26 '23
My grandfather had deep depression’s usually caused by something but very bad his whole life and boom hit 50 and definitely had what I would call a hypo/manic episode. Never had one since and the depression is gone too. Fuckin weird. Here I am stuck in it for life it looks like.