Manic Depression Behaviour

Moods change from one extreme of happiness to the other extreme of despair in manic depressive disorder. This shift of mood can last for a certain period and are called episodes. Episodes of happiness and sadness alternate with each lasting for several days or sometimes weeks and months.

Those suffering from manic depression have been observed to have varying patterns of behaviour. For example, some would have a predictable pattern of behaviour while others have random emotional outbursts. Only a small minority of patients do not suffer recurring episodes of manic depressive disorder.

Studies revealed that by using lithium, the recurrence of depression is greatly reduced thus reducing the need for treatment.

1. Bipolar 1 – Patients have one or more manic episodes. It is not necessary for a person to be suffering from depression in order to have bipolar 1 disorder.


2. Bipolar II - The patient will suffer episodes that involves severe depression and likewise hypomania. It is said that the presence of hypomania serves to present the bipolar situation in contrast with a unipolar depression.


3. Cyclothymia – A person is said to be suffering from manic depressive disorder if he or she experiences more than one episodes of hypomania coupled with many episodes of depression.


4. Bipolar Disorder NOS (Not Otherwise Specified) – The patient in this case, should show signs of bipolar disorder. However, patients in this category does not fall into the first 3 types of bipolar disorder.

In all cases of manic or bipolar depression, similar symptoms can be observed, such as deep feelings of sadness without cause, high irritability or bad temperedness or crying for no apparent reason.

Here is where family and friends come in to play important supportive roles in helping the patient recognize that he or she needs help and to persuade the patient to accept treatment. Failure to treat manic depressive disorder could lead to dire consequences that will affect not only the patient but to family and friends.

Manic Or Bipolar Depression

Bipolar disorder is another name for manic depressive disorder – a mental illness that typically alternates between episodes of mania and depression. The patient experiences elation and euphoric highs followed by deep melancholy and sadness. All too often this emotional disorder is overlooked not only by the patient, family and friends, but also by some mental health professionals still trying to fully understand what is manic depression.

Manic depressive disorder affects millions of adult Americans, with an alarmingly high suicide rate when depression hits. It is a type of affective disorder that is also called mood disorder and is fast becoming a serious medical condition and important health concern.

Often beginning in late adolescence as depression, manic depressive disorder develops as a manic episode in men and a depressive episode in women. 20 to 30 percent of adult bipolar disorder patients report having their first episode before the age of 20. When symptoms appear before the age of 12, they are often misunderstood and confused with attention-deficit disorder – a syndrome that is usually characterized by serious and persistent difficulties in attentiveness and hyperactivity. It has been found that the trend is similar across nationalities, races, age and ethnic and social groups.

Having manic depression makes it a challenge in leading a normal life with a regular schedule. This is because when these episodes occur, it very often leads to family conflict or financial problems with the patient behaving erratically and irresponsibly without reason. During the manic phase, the patient often becomes impulsive and aggressive, sometimes leading to high-risk behavior such as repeated intoxication.

This change in mood or “mood swing” can last for hours, days, weeks or even months. Every time manic depressive disorder symptoms are experienced at one pole for at least one week, it is called an episode. Experiencing 4 or more episodes or mania and depression in a year is called rapid-cycling bipolar disorder.