// BBC UK NEWS — CRONACA
I was told I had depression for 14 years until I got sectioned - it was bipolar
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.
My bipolar disorder was misdiagnosed as depression for years
"I started becoming really erratic in my thinking style, having delusional ideas, speaking really fast, becoming very irritable," Kimberley said.
One night, while she was studying for a PHD at the University of Edinburgh, she drove to London after seeing a news report that someone was in trouble and becoming convinced she was the only person who could save them.
She also became convinced her moods were causing bad weather.