What are two hallmarks of bipolar disorder?

Bipolar Disorder Symptoms
The hallmark sign of bipolar disorder is rapid, often severe transitions in mood between two phases: manic and depressive. The manic phase usually includes restlessness, high energy, and racing thoughts – and it can easily spiral into agitation, aggression, and even violent behavior.


What is the hallmark of bipolar disorder?

Mania. The hallmark of bipolar disorder is a manic episode that lasts at least one week. Mania is an excessively elevated mood state that includes feelings of euphoria. It might also cause a person to be unusually irritable and quick to get into conflicts.

What are 3 major symptoms of bipolar disorder?

Symptoms - Bipolar disorder
  • feeling sad, hopeless or irritable most of the time.
  • lacking energy.
  • difficulty concentrating and remembering things.
  • loss of interest in everyday activities.
  • feelings of emptiness or worthlessness.
  • feelings of guilt and despair.
  • feeling pessimistic about everything.
  • self-doubt.


What are the red flags of bipolar disorder?

Talking rapidly, sudden changes in topic, or “leaps of logic.” Having more energy than usual, especially if needing little sleep. Being intensely focused, or finding it hard to focus. Involuntary facial movements, such as twitches or mouthing.

What are the 4 stages of bipolar?

Stages of Bipolar Disorder
  • Acute Mania. Acute mania is marked by energetic or irritable moods and accelerated activity. ...
  • Mixed Mood State. Mixed mood state includes symptoms of both manic and depressed mood. ...
  • Acute Major Depressive Episodes. ...
  • Continuation or Maintenance Phase.


Bipolar disorder (depression & mania) - causes, symptoms, treatment & pathology



What is the hallmark symptom of bipolar disorder in children?

These symptoms could include grandiosity, a decreased need for sleep, pressured speech, flight of ideas or racing thoughts, distractibility, increased goal directed activity or psychomotor agitation, and excessive participation in pleasurable but risky activities.

What are the top 10 signs of bipolar?

10 Signs of Bipolar Disorder
  • Restlessness and agitation. ...
  • Overconfidence. ...
  • Impulsive and risky behavior. ...
  • Hopelessness. ...
  • Withdrawal from family and friends and lack of interest in activities. ...
  • Change in appetite and sleep. ...
  • Problems with memory, concentration, and decision-making. ...
  • Preoccupation with death and thoughts of suicide.


What is the gold standard for bipolar disorder?

Lithium is considered the gold standard treatment for bipolar disorder (BD). Current clinical guidelines and scientific evidence support its use as a first-line treatment in BD.


What is the strongest risk factor for bipolar disorder?

This analysis revealed rare protein-truncating variants in the AKAP11 gene that raise disease risk several-fold, making it the strongest genetic risk factor found for bipolar disorder to date.

What is the first-line drug for bipolar disorder?

Lithium and divalproex are first-line mood stabilizers; other options include carbamazepine, oxcarbazepine, and atypical antipsychotics (e.g., aripiprazole, olanzapine, risperidone, quetiapine, and ziprasidone). The above medications can be used as monotherapy for patients with less severe illness.

What is first-line therapy for bipolar disorder?

Lithium. Lithium is the first-line choice for preventing mood instability and treating mania. This agent is successful in treating aggressive behavior during acute manic episodes, and it is also the most successful long-term treatment for bipolar disorder.


What can trigger bipolar disorder?

A stressful circumstance or situation often triggers the symptoms of bipolar disorder. Examples of stressful triggers include: the breakdown of a relationship. physical, sexual or emotional abuse.

What can be mistaken for bipolar disorder?

Bipolar disorder can be confused with other conditions, such as depression, schizophrenia, BPD, anxiety, and ADHD. Detecting and diagnosing bipolar disorder may take some time. But getting a correct, early diagnosis often results in better outcomes.

What are symptoms of high functioning bipolar?

Additional symptoms may include elevated mood, productivity, speed of movement and thinking, as well as grandiosity. An easy way to conceptualize bipolar disorder is essentially as an energy problem – too little, then too much, for longer than just a day (technically at least 4 days in a row for hypomania).


What is typical bipolar behavior?

People experiencing an episode with mixed features may feel very sad, empty, or hopeless while at the same time feeling extremely energized. A person may have bipolar disorder even if their symptoms are less extreme. For example, some people with bipolar II disorder experience hypomania, a less severe form of mania.

What are the main diagnostic features of bipolar disorder?

People who live with bipolar disorder experience periods of great excitement, overactivity, delusions, and euphoria (known as mania) and other periods of feeling sad and hopeless (known as depression). As such, the use of the word bipolar reflects this fluctuation between extreme highs and extreme lows.

How do you identify bipolar triggers?

While many bipolar disorder triggers center around stressors, goal attainment and other positive events can also elicit mood episodes, particularly mania or hypomania. Events such as winning an award, getting a promotion, falling in love, or even going on vacation may act as triggers, initiating a dangerous cycle.


How do you know if someone is undiagnosed bipolar?

Signs and symptoms of bipolar disorder
  1. Behaving in an overly silly or joyful mood unlike normal personality.
  2. Extremely short temper.
  3. Unusual irritability.
  4. Sleeping little.
  5. Not feeling tired.
  6. Talking a lot.
  7. Racing thoughts.
  8. Trouble concentrating.


Can bipolar look like ADHD?

Many of the symptoms of a manic bipolar episode and ADHD may be similar, such as distractibility, restlessness, or impulsivity. So ADHD may go undiagnosed in a person with bipolar disorder, if a doctor mistakes ADHD symptoms for a manic episode.

Can trauma trigger bipolar disorder?

Childhood traumatic events are risk factors for developing bipolar disorders, in addition to a more severe clinical presentation over time (primarily an earlier age at onset and an increased risk of suicide attempt and substance misuse).


What is a bipolar meltdown?

Bipolar Triggers and Warning Signs

Bipolar disorder features extreme shifts in mood that are unpredictable and often disruptive to daily functioning. Changes in sleep patterns, eating habits, emotions, and behaviors accompany the mood swings.

How do people with bipolar react to stress?

“When stressed, bipolar patients will often, out of desperation, reach for anything to calm themselves or take away the stress even for a moment. Drugs, binge-eating, or excessive shopping can be unhealthy coping mechanisms that can bring on mood episodes,” Dr. Israel says.

What does stress do to bipolar?

When you're experiencing stress, you're more likely to become depressed, manic/hypomanic, anxious, or angry. If you get sick with a stress-related illness, the illness can become an additional stressor and make you more vulnerable to relapse.


What three drugs are used to treat bipolar?

Examples include:
  • Carbamazepine (Carbatrol, Epitol, Equetro, Tegretol)
  • Divalproex sodium (Depakote)
  • Lamotrigine (Lamictal)
  • Lithium.
  • Valproic acid (Depakene)


What is the most effective therapy for bipolar disorder?

Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), which involves trying to change your patterns of thinking, is effective for bipolar disorder, according to the American Psychological Association.
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