Q. I am a 36 female who is diagnosed with both Bipolar and BPD as well at PTSD from early sexual abuse and a rape during adolescents.

I have done well with therapy and have found a working mix of medication - depakote, ativan at bedtime, and prozac in the morning.

My question is....although my 8 year old daughter has not suffered the trauma as I did in childhood (the cycle of abuse is certainly broken in my home), is it possible that her now displaying mood swings are a sign of Bipolar or just a sign of her age?

 

  A. My own belief is that BPD is a biological illness, and is transported genetically. The jury is still out on this one, however. Regardless, if your daughter has symptoms, the cause, if environmental, has already happened. She needs treatment. Get her to a child and adolescent psychopharmacologist for input. The earlier you treat, the less negative impact the disease will hopefully have on her life.