Bipolar Disorder

Bipolar disorder is a disease that affects a little over two million people in the United States. About one in eighty three people in America will be diagnosed with bipolar disorder, though it is an extremely hard to diagnose. It is often mistook as depression and sometimes anxiety or a combination of both. Even living with someone it can be difficult to pinpoint whether they are bipolar.

There are extreme mood swings though they may not happen as most people would think. It is almost a rarity for the mood swings to be hourly or even daily. Most often the mood swings happen for months at a time. A person might be depressed for 6 months and then manic for 6 months. Most often the mood swings or change in mood happen 3-4 times a year. In reality the mood changes are different for everyone and if a person notices this behavior in themselves or someone they care about, they should go to a licensed psychiatrist.

There are 4 types of bipolar disorder including bipolar I disorder, bipolar II disorder, cyclothymic disorder, and bipolar disorder not otherwise specified. Bipolar I disorder is diagnosed when you have had at least one manic episode and experienced some depression also it often includes the mood swings being 3-4 per year or possibly coming with the change of seasons. The main difference between bipolar I and II is that in bipolar II instead of having one episode of mania you have one of hypomania which is just a less pronounced episode of mania. In cyclothymic disorder your mood swings have milder depression and mania however the mood changes also happen more frequently though they are less severe. A person may progress from cyclothymic disorder to Bipolar I or II however this is not absolute. Bipolar not otherwise specified is any bipolar disorder that doesn't fit the other three disorders.