Descriptions of Mood States
Here are some first-person accounts of the various mood states associated with bipolar disorder:
- Depression
- Hypomania
- Mania:
Recognition of the different mood states is important so that the person who has manic-depressive illness can obtain successful treatment and avoids the detrimental consequences of the disease, which include destruction of personal relationships, loss of employment, and suicide.
Bipolar disorder: An Introduction
Bipolar disorder is a treatable illness marked by extreme changes in mood, thought, energy and behavior. It is not a character defect or a sign of personal weakness. It is also known as manic depression since a person’s mood can vary between the "poles" mania (highs) and depression (lows). This change in mood or "mood swing" can last for hours, days weeks or months.
More than 2 million American adults (Narrow, 1998) or about 1 percent of the population age 18 and older in any given year (Regier et al, 1993), have bipolar disorder. Bipolar disorder usually develops in late adolescence or early adulthood. Nevertheless, some people have their first signs during childhood, and some develop them late in life. It is often not recognized as an illness, and people may suffer for years before it is properly diagnosed and treated. Like diabetes or heart disease, bipolar disorder is a long-term illness that must be carefully managed during a person's life.
Symptoms of Bipolar Disorder
Bipolar disorder causes remarkable mood swings from overly "high" and/or irritable to sad and hopeless, and then backs again, often with periods of normal mood in between. Severe changes in energy and behavior follow with these changes in mood. The periods of highs and lows are called episodes of mania and depression..............
