World Bipolar Day is celebrated each year on March 30th, the birthday of Vincent Van Gogh, who was posthumously diagnosed as having bipolar disorder. It's a day to increase awareness, acceptance and funding for this illness.
Approximately 2.3 million Americans (1 percent of the population) are diagnosed with bipolar disorder or 1 percent of the population. Bipolar disorder, formally known as manic depression, is a condition that causes extreme mood swings, making you go from hypomania and extreme highs to extreme lows and depression. Bipolar can affect anyone but typically presents itself in early adolescence or adulthood, sometimes it can even start as early as childhood and be diagnosed as late as your 40s and 50s. Bipolar is a chronic condition, meaning it is a life lasting condition.
Symptoms of bipolar may include mood swings, anxiety, euphoria, risk taking behaviors, impulsivity, racing thoughts, agitated depression, weight gain or loss, difficulty sleeping, rapid and, but not limited to rapid or slowed speech.
There are three different types of bipolar disorder:
- Bipolar I - episodes of mania that last more than 7 days and are so severe that they require immediate hospitalization. On the flip side, depressive episodes last around two weeks. People who suffer from bipolar 1 can also experience some depressive and mania symptoms at the same time.
- Bipolar II - pattern of depressive and hypomanic episodes that aren’t as severe and often without requiring hospitalization.
- Cyclothymic Disorder - (not as common as bipolar type I and II) periods of depression and mania lasting for at least two years (or a year in children and adolescents.)
Bipolar makes life very hard for people. People with bipolar can find it hard to make friends, keep a job, go to school, or even get out of bed and do everyday functions. But, people with bipolar disorder are more than their symptoms.
People who struggle with bipolar also tend to be more determined, hardworking, and have more perseverance because of the extra effort they have to put in just to be on a level playing field with everyone.
Some famous people with bipolar disorder are Mariah Carey, Selena Gomez, Demi Lovato, Frank Sinatra, Jean-Claude Van Damme, Carrie Fisher, and Catherine Zeta-Jones.
If you suspect your teen may have bipolar disorder, contact a pediatric psychiatrist. Check out the Institute of Mental Health website for more information about bipolar disorder in children and teens. The National Alliance on Mental Health NAMI is also a good place to get information and resources.
World Bipolar Day Resources:
https://www.worldbipolarday.org/
https://www.facebook.com/worldbipolarday
Rethink Mental Illness - World Bipolar Day
Sources for this article:
- https://mentalillnesspolicy.org/medical/bipolar-facts.html
- https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/bipolar-disorder/symptoms-causes/syc-20355955?utm_source=Google&utm_medium=abstract&utm_content=Bipolar-disorder&utm_campaign=Knowledge-panel
- https://www.webmd.com/bipolar-disorder/ss/slideshow-celebrities-bipolar-disorder
- https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/topics/bipolar-disorder
- https://www.isbd.org/
