what is bipolar cycling

Bipolar disorder is also known as manic depression. It is a mental illness that presents itself as mood swings or mood cycling. Many people do not realize that there are actually two types of bipolar disorder. Bipolar I Disorder is generally defined as the fury of Cycling with mood episodes mania and extreme depression as well as the occasional mixed episode. Patients with bipolar I disorder may also experience psychotic or hallucinating symptoms.
Bipolar II disorder is usually defined as rapid mood cycle with episodes of hypomania and depression. Bipolar II disorder does not occur with symptoms psychotic or hallucinating. Additionally, hypomania is defined as a milder form of mania, in which the patient has a period of hightened happiness or elation. The Patients with bipolar II depression is often more severe than in patients with bipolar disorder. Suicide, suicide threats, suicide attempts and suicidal thoughts are much more common in bipolar II patients than bipolar patients.
A diagnosis of bipolar II disorder is typically done when the patient has had one or more major depressive episodes, at least one hypomanic episode, no manic episodes, and when no other reason for symptoms can be found.
Symptoms of depression with bipolar II disorder include decreased energy, unexplained weight changes, feelings of hopelessness, increased irritability and crying uncontrollably. Symptoms of hypomania include sleeplessness, racing thoughts, distractibility, excess energy, and rash judgments. These symptoms are similar to mania but less severe.
Treatment of bipolar II disorder typically involves a combination of medication and therapy or counseling. Medicines normally prescribed for the treatment of bipolar II disorder are antidepressants such as Celexa, as well as mood stabilizers such as Topamax. Stabilizers mind are of vital importance in the treatment of bipolar disorders, because antidepressants alone can cause the patient to enter into an episode of mania or hypomania.
Bipolar II disorder, is actually often misdiagnosed as clinical depression. This is due to the fact that depression is often present, and hypomania episodes rarely come to light in therapy sessions due to their nature optimistic. It is typically through treatment by antidepressants that is the correct diagnosis because the patient will turn in an episode of hypomania disorder II almost immediately if the diagnosis should be bipolar, rather than clinical depression.
Treatment options counseling or therapy for bipolar II disorder may include traditional counseling methods, discussion of triggers and changes in lifestyle can decrease the severity of the episodes, and cognitive behavioral therapy. Patients with a mild case of bipolar II disorder may benefit counseling or therapy alone without medication. However, this is less common with bipolar II than bipolar I disorder, due to the nature of the severity of the depression.
It is vital for people with symptoms of bipolar II disorder to seek help from mental health professionals as soon as health symptoms become apparent. Patients with bipolar disorder II in at least half of suicides each year. To prevent suicidal behavior is important for bipolar II patients correctly diagnosed at an early stage, so that ongoing treatment of the disease can begin and continue to prevent suicidal behavior.
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Article Source: ArticlesBase.com – About Bipolar II Disorder
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