Bipolar disorder is a type of mood disorder, a real medical illness. It used to be referred to as manic depression. The term, “bipolar’, refers to the two “poles” of the disorder: mania and depression.

The symptoms of mania may include:

• • Increased physical and mental energy
• • Increased self-confidence (grandiose thoughts)
• • High optimism
• • Less need for sleep without feeling tired
• • “racing” thoughts, speech and ideas
• • Impulsiveness, lack of judgment, easily distracted
• • Delusions and hallucinations in the most severe cases

The symptoms of depression may include:

• • Long periods of sadness or crying for no reason
• • Eating and sleep patterns drastically change
• • Crankiness, worrisome, anxiety
• • Pessimistic, apathy
• • Feelings of guilt
• • Lethargic behavior
• • Inability to concentrate or make decisions
• • No long enjoys the things that were once interesting
• • Aches and pains that have no known cause
• • Recurring thoughts of death or suicide (inability to stop thinking about it)

There are four types of Bipolar disorder:

1. Bipolar I- more mania episodes than depressive episodes (or goes “high” then returns to normal without any depressive episodes)
2. Bipolar II- more depressive episodes than manic episodes (or goes “low” then returns to normal without any “highs”)
3. Bipolar Disorder NOS (Not Otherwise Specified). This is used when it is unclear which type the patient has. Patient may have many “mixed” states. However, the severity or existence of symptoms is not dismissed but recognized. It could be that another neurodevelopmental disorder is involved but unable to pinpoint which one.
4. Cyclothymia- is considered less severe than regular bipolar disorder. This type of the disorder has more recurrent periods. Often this may progress into full-blown bipolar disorder.

Diagnosing children with bipolar disorder (among other mental health illnesses) can be more troublesome than adults because his or her brain is not considered matured until about the age of 25, on the average. It can be hard for any person to know whether his or her child is going through “normal” mood swings, or are they something indicative of a mental health problem?

There is a new blood test that has just been published that may help in this matter. It identifies if someone has the genes that mark the disorder. Other factors, however, including environmental triggers, appear to cause bipolar disorder so it is unclear if this blood test will be enough to diagnose someone with bipolar disorder. It is unknown for certain, at this time, what exactly causes bipolar but it is suspected that the cause is a combination between biomedical, genetic and environmental pieces.

Also, Dr. Bradley Peterson, M.D. , the chairman of the Psychiatry at Columbia is researching many mental health disorders using Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) and other techniques to help with the diagnostic tools currently being used.

Treatment Options:

Medication

Therapy

How Loved Ones Can Help

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