What are the Symptoms of Bipolar Disorder?

Bipolar disorder, also called manic depressive disorder, is a mental health condition. An individual with this disorder typically has significant mood swings that take him from feeling very low and depressed in the depressive phase to feeling vital and euphoric in the manic phase. The exact symptoms of bipolar disorder may vary from person to person, but they generally include dramatic mood shifts that may occur several times a year, each month, or even multiple times during one day. In many cases, the depressive part of the disorder can interfere with a person’s ability to function normally while the manic moods may lead to poor impulse control and decision making.

When a person is in the depressive phase of bipolar disorder, he often feels sad, hopeless, anxious, and guilty. An individual may also experience sleep and appetite changes, feel unusually fatigued, become irritable, or note unexplained pains that linger during this phase. Often the depressive phase is also accompanied by a loss of interest in participating in one’s normal activities. In some cases, a person in the depressive phase of bipolar disorder may even have suicidal thoughts or exhibit suicidal behavior.

The symptoms of bipolar disorder are much different when a person is in the manic phase. Instead of feeling very low and sad, a person usually feels euphoric and optimistic during this phase. Often, these feelings are accompanied by higher-than-normal levels of self-confidence, poor judgment, and impulsive behavior. An individual’s thoughts and speech may race during this phase, and he may feel unusually energetic and have less need for sleep. In many cases, this phase is also marked by aggression, increased sex drive, risky behavior, and drug use.

There are subtypes of bipolar disorder, called bipolar I, bipolar II, and cyclothymia, that are marked by symptoms of differing intensity. The mood swings a person may have with bipolar I disorder are often serious enough to interfere with his ability to perform as expected at work and in relationships; symptoms of bipolar disorder may make school difficult as well. An individual with bipolar II disorder, however, does experience mood swings and some functional changes, but they may not interfere with his normal activities. Additionally, manic episodes are usually less severe for a person who has bipolar II disorder.

Sometimes people are diagnosed with cyclothymia, which is a milder form of bipolar disorder. A person with cyclothymia usually has mood swings that prove disruptive at times. His symptoms of bipolar disorder are usually less intense than usual, however.