Manic depression

• Bipolar Disorder Test • Bipolar Disorder Treatment • Bipolar Disorder Medication Guide • Helping Someone with Bipolar Disorder • Bipolar Help: Living with Bipolar Disorder • Are You Feeling Suicidal? • Suicide Prevention • How to Help Someone with Mental Illness Accept Treatment • Online Therapy: Is it Right for You? • Mental Health What is bipolar disorder? We all have our ups and downs, but with bipolar disorder (once known as manic depression or manic-depressive disorder) these peaks and valleys are more severe. Bipolar disorder causes serious shifts in mood, energy, thinking, and behavior—from the highs of mania on one extreme, to the lows of depression on the other. More than just a fleeting good or bad mood, the cycles of bipolar disorder last for days, weeks, or months. And unlike ordinary mood swings, the mood changes of bipolar disorder are so intense that they can interfere with your job or school performance, damage your relationships, and disrupt your ability to function in daily life. During a manic episode, you might impulsively quit your job, charge up huge amounts on credit cards, or feel rested after sleeping two hours. During a depressive episode, you might be too tired to get out of bed, and full of self-loathing and hopelessness over being unemployed and in debt. The causes of bipolar disorder aren’t completely understood, but it often appears to be hereditary. The first manic or depressive episode of bipolar disorder usually occurs in the teenage yea...

The situation is more difficult when loved ones aren't aware of what the problem is. Watching their moods shift can be confusing. If the loved ones don't understand how the disorder works, they can get caught in a cycle of trying to figure out why the person changes so much. Know that if someone's mood appears to change a lot more than yours, they probably have a The situation is often the most difficult for loved ones who live in the same house as the person with bipolar disorder. The reason for this is because the sufferer goes through major mood "spells" and the sufferer himself or herself feels overwhelmed and often feels a loss of control as a result. This mood shift often spills over to others, and this can set the tone for the mood in the entire house. Loved ones can find themselves walking on eggshells because they never know what to expect next. In addition, when the sufferer goes into a manic cycle, the inability to sleep can disrupt the whole house. If you share a bed with the person, you may wake up at 4 a.m. and wonder where that person is. You may be further upset when you find that he or she has been up for the third night in a row, unable to lay in bed and sleep. Even if you don't share the bed, that person may be up making noise in the middle of the night and may keep others in the house awake. THE BASICS • • One of the most helpful things you can do if you have a loved one with this disorder is to find a friend who has a loved one with the disorder, too, ...

What Is Bipolar Disorder? Along with manic or depressive episodes, patients with bipolar disorder may have disturbances in thinking. They may also have distortions of perception and impairment in social functioning. What Causes Bipolar Disorder? Like with other mood disorders, the At What Age Is Bipolar Disorder Usually Diagnosed? Bipolar disorder usually appears between ages 15 and 24 and persists through a lifetime. It's rare that newly diagnosed mania is seen in young children or in adults over age 65. Severity of symptoms varies with individuals who have bipolar disorder. While some people have a few symptoms, others have many that impair their ability to work and live a normal life. Marked by relapses and remissions, bipolar disorder has a high rate of recurrence if untreated. Patients with severe mania usually require hospitalization to keep them from risky behaviors. Those who are severely depressed also might need hospitalization to keep them from acting on About 90% of individuals with bipolar I disorder, which is the more serious form, have at least one psychiatric hospitalization. Two out of three will have two or more hospitalizations in their lifetime. What Are the Depression Symptoms of Bipolar Disorder? The clinical • Decreased appetite and/or • Difficulty concentrating, remembering, and making decisions • • Feelings of guilt, worthlessness, helplessness • Feelings of hopelessness, pessimism • • Loss of interest or pleasure in hobbies and activities that wer...

Information presented in this article may be triggering for some people. If you are having suicidal thoughts, contact the 988 for support and assistance from a trained counselor. If you or a loved one are in immediate danger, call 911. For more mental health resources, see our Bipolar disorder isn't just about having mood swings. It's a serious mental health condition that used to be referred to as manic depression. There are two main types of bipolar disorder that can differ in terms of the severity and nature of their symptoms. • Bipolar I: Individuals with bipolar I experience at least one manic episode in their lives. Although not required for the formal diagnosis, the vast majority will also experience major depressive episodes during the course of their lives. • Bipolar II: Individuals with bipolar II have at least one hypomanic episode (a less serious form of mania) and at least one major depressive episode. • Crying for no reason or prolonged periods of sadness • Difficulty concentrating or indecisiveness • Extreme fatigue, including the inability to get out of bed • Feelings of guilt or hopelessness • Loss of interest in activities that usually give you pleasure • Loss of interest in health, nutrition, or physical appearance • Sleeping excessively or difficulty sleeping • There are two primary types of bipolar disorder, which are different in terms of how symptoms present and their severity. Bipolar I involves having manic episodes marked by symptoms such as delus...

Depression and bipolar disorder, once called manic depression, have many overlapping symptoms. Here’s how to tell the difference. Most people go through a range of emotions over days or weeks. But if you live with depression or bipolar disorder, what you feel can adversely impact how you live. Depression and bipolar disorder are distinct diagnoses, but there’s a significant overlap of symptoms. This overlap may make it difficult to determine which condition you may be experiencing. Bipolar disorder used to be called manic depression, but healthcare professionals don’t use this term anymore. People with bipolar disorder often experience both symptoms of depression and mania or a high-energy period. But people with clinical depression typically don’t experience symptoms of mania. Depression and Clinical depression is named • • • • • depression with mixed features These conditions are related to MDD but have different diagnostic criteria. Depending on what you experience, you may receive a diagnosis of another kind of depression and not MDD. The DSM-5 recognizes three main • bipolar I disorder • bipolar II disorder • cyclothymic disorder Doctors look for the • Manic episode: • Hypomanic episode: • Major depressive episode: At least 2 weeks of several symptoms of depression. The criteria for a major depressive episode mirrors that for a diagnosis of MDD. Manic episodes are characterized by irritability or increased energy levels on most days, for the majority of each day. Peop...

What is it? Bipolar disorder, which used to be called manic depressive illness or manic depression, is a mental disorder characterized by wide mood swings from high (manic) to low (depressed). The expert view of bipolar disorder will continue to evolve, but it is now commonly divided into two subtypes (bipolar I and bipolar II) based on the dividing line between mania and hypomania described above.Periods of high or irritable mood are called manic episodes. The person becomes very active, but in a scattered and unproductive way, sometimes with painful or embarrassing consequences. Examples are spending more money than is wise or getting involved in sexual adventures that are regretted later. A person in a manic state is full of energy or very irritable, may sleep far less than normal, and may dream up grand plans that could never be carried out. The person may develop thinking that is out of step with reality -- psychotic symptoms -- such as false beliefs (delusions) or false perceptions (hallucinations). During manic periods, a person may run into trouble with the law. If a person has milder symptoms of mania and does not have psychotic symptoms, it is called "hypomania" or a hypomanic episode. • Bipolar I disorder is the classic form where a person has had at least one manic episode. • In bipolar II disorder, the person has never had a manic episode, but has had at least one hypomanic episode and at least one period of significant depression. Most people who have manic e...