Symptoms of Bipolar Disorder

What Are the Symptoms of Bipolar Disorder?
Bipolar Disorder causes one's moods to change from an "overly high" happy attitude to a sad, hopless, and depressive mentality and back again. Between these moods swings there are periods og "normal mood". While one is having sever mood swings it causes changes in there energy levels. The changes of mood are called episodes of mania and depression.

- - This is a main way that Depression and Bipolar Disorder are connected. When a Bipolar patient is at an extreme low, they are in depression. It is possible to for them to be suicidal. Those who are depressed are not neccessarily Bipolar and vise versa. Although the patient is not always depressed, both disorders are are imbalances in the brain. Also patients with Bipolar Disorder may only have short episodes of depression.

Signs and symptoms of mania (or a manic episode) include:
Increased energy, activity, and restlessness
Excessively “high,” overly good, euphoric mood
Extreme irritability
Racing thoughts and talking very fast, jumping from one idea to another
Distractibility, can’t concentrate well
Little sleep needed
Unrealistic beliefs in one’s abilities and powers
Poor judgment
Spending sprees
A lasting period of behavior that is different from usual
Increased sexual drive
Abuse of drugs, particularly cocaine, alcohol, and sleeping medications
Provocative, intrusive, or aggressive behavior
Denial that anything is wrong
A manic episode is diagnosed if elevated mood occurs with three or more of the other symptoms most of the day, nearly every day, for 1 week or longer. If the mood is irritable, four additional symptoms must be present.

Signs and symptoms of depression (or a depressive episode) include:
Lasting sad, anxious, or empty mood
Feelings of hopelessness or pessimism
Feelings of guilt, worthlessness, or helplessness
Loss of interest or pleasure in activities once enjoyed, including sex
Decreased energy, a feeling of fatigue or of being “slowed down”
Difficulty concentrating, remembering, making decisions
Restlessness or irritability
Sleeping too much, or can’t sleep
Change in appetite and/or unintended weight loss or gain
Chronic pain or other persistent bodily symptoms that are not caused by physical illness or injury
Thoughts of death or suicide, or suicide attempts
A depressive episode is diagnosed if five or more of these symptoms last most of the day, nearly every day, for a period of 2 weeks or longer.

Hypomania is a less severe but still a level of mania that one needs to be concious of. With hypomania one may feel good and may even be associated with good functioning and enhanced productivity. Even those who are close to the patient realize the person is having mood swings, such as those of Bipolar Disorder,it is common that he/she denies that anything is wrong. It is possible for hypomania to become a form of severe mania if the patient does not receive proper treatment. Also with out proper treatment hypomania could turn into depression.

Sometimes, severe episodes of mania or depression include symptoms of psychotic,also known as psychosis,symptoms. Psychosis is a loss of contact with reality. Common psychotic symptoms are hallucinations (hearing, seeing, or otherwise sensing the presence of things not actually there) and delusions (false, strongly held beliefs not influenced by logical reasoning or explained by a person’s usual cultural concepts). Psychotic symptoms in bipolar disorder tend to reflect the extreme mood state at the time. For example, delusions of grandiosity, such as believing one is the President or has special powers or wealth, may occur during mania; delusions of guilt or worthlessness, like they believe that they are not worth anything, or has committed some terrible crime, may appear during depression. People with bipolar disorder who have these symptoms are sometimes incorrectly diagnosed as having schizophrenia, another severe mental illness.

It may be helpful to think of the various mood states in bipolar disorder as a spectrum or a continuous cycle. There is a severe depression, a moderate depression, and a low level of depression which is known as "The Blues. The Blues is when the low loevel of depression is shot-lived.Dysthymia is when a mood swing is chronic. Then there is normal or balanced mood, above which comes hypomania (mild to moderate mania), and then severe mania.

However, for some people, symptoms of mania and depression may occur together in what is called a mixed bipolar state. Symptoms of a mixed state often include agitation, trouble sleeping, significant change in appetite, psychosis, and suicidal thinking. A person may have a very sad, hopeless mood while at the same time feeling extremely energized.

Bipolar disorder may appear to be a problem other than mental illness. As an example, alcohol or drug abuse, poor school or work performance, or strained interpersonal relationships can be affected. Such problems may be signs of an underlying mood disorder.

Suicide
Some people with bipolar disorder become suicidal. Anyone who is thinking about committing suicide needs immediate attention from a mental health professional or a physician. Anyone who talks about suicide should be taken seriously. Risk for suicide appears to be higher earlier in the course of the illness. Therefore, recognizing bipolar disorder early and learning how best to manage it may decrease the risk of death by suicide.

Signs and symptoms that may accompany suicidal feelings include:

talking about feeling suicidal or wanting to die
feeling hopeless, that nothing will ever change or get better
feeling helpless, that nothing one does makes any difference
feeling like a burden to family and friends
abusing alcohol or drugs
putting affairs in order (e.g., organizing finances or giving away possessions to prepare for one’s death)
writing a suicide note
putting oneself in harm’s way, or in situations where there is a danger of being killed

Those with bipolar disorder that feel suicidal can be helped, but they must get the help immediately.