quote:

As far as I know, there isn't a "bipolar disorder lite" that involves just highs or just lows, as opposed to both.

There is Bipolar II. It contains major depressions and hypo-mania (which is not full mania).

I've been diagnosed Bipolar. My doctors have told me that Bipolar was under diagnosed because they would only ever see patients in the depressed state. Rarely would someone come in manic because for the most part they seem higher functioning. I don't think they are just diagnosing moody kids because there are certian criterias that have to be met in order to diagnose them. If you're curious you can look in the DSM for that.

I joke about it a lot but sometimes it can be difficult. When my mood does swing drastically I feel like I am insane. It bothers me that I can't be in control of my moods and how I feel certain ways for no real reason. I seem to cycle fairly fast, a few weeks high and a few weeks low. My lows are very low. I was first diagnosed MDD until I started showing manic symptoms. My family is not much help but thats probably because I won't let them. My doctors and I have still not found medication that has been overly helpful.

I think this is a case of over-diagnosis. Just as any hyper kid is determined to have ADD, any kid with mood swings now has bipolar disorder. This is not to say that bipolar disorder doesn't exist, but I don't think it's quite as common as some people think. Bipolar disorder involves extreme highs followed by extreme lows. If you get depressed every once in a while but you don't have any periods of extreme happiness, you probably aren't bipolar. As far as I know, there isn't a "bipolar disorder lite" that involves just highs or just lows, as opposed to both.

Someone I love has bipolar disorder, and I'll leave it at that. The best thing that you can do for a friend or loved one with bipolar disorder, in my limited experience, is to stand by them. There's a tremendous irrational stigma placed on mental illness, and it's bullshit. Stand by them. Trust them. Listen to them. Ask questions. Be honest. Don't second guess them--they second guess themselves enough as it is. When someone with bipolar disorder is in a good mood, they're probably just happy, not manic. If they're feeling down, it's probably not depression. As I understand it, depression is more of a soul-crushingly bleak sense of absolute futility and hopelessness than a bit of the blues. Long story short, just be open, honest, and compassionate.

People with bipolar disorder are just that--people.

As far as books on the subject go, I just read Detour: My Bipolar Road Trip in 4-D a couple of weeks ago and it's pretty good. Worth picking up at the library.