Many children and especially adolescents experience mood swings as a normal part of growing up, but when these feelings persist and begin to interfere with a child’s ability to function in daily life, bipolar disorder could be the cause. Bipolar disorder, also known as manic-depression, is a type of mood disorder marked by extreme changes in mood, energy levels and behavior.
Symptoms can begin in early childhood but more typically emerge in adolescence or adulthood. Until recently, young people were rarely diagnosed with this disorder. Yet up to one-third of the 3.4 million children and adolescents with depression in the United States may actually be experiencing the early onset of bipolar disorder according to the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. Doctors now recognize and offer Bipolar disorder treatment in both children and adolescents, but it is still an under-recognized illness.
Children with bipolar disorder usually alternate rapidly between extremely high moods (mania) and low moods (depression). These rapid mood shifts can produce irritability with periods of wellness between episodes, or the young person may feel both extremes at the same time. Parents who have children with the disorder often describe them as unpredictable, alternating between aggressive or silly and withdrawn. Children with bipolar disorder are at a greater risk for anxiety disorders and Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). These “co-occurring” disorders complicate diagnosis of bipolar disorder and contribute to the lack of recognition of the illness in children.
Bipolar disorder is a largely under-recognized illness due to the difficulty in diagnosing it. Bipolar disorder treatment need to be found quickly as children suffering from bipolar disorder are at greater risk of suffering anxiety disorders and ADHD as well as bipolar complicating diagnosis still further. This article gives a good overview of some of the symptoms to watch out for. It also gives a number of resources that can be contacted it you are concerned that you or a loved one may be sufferer and requre Bipolar disorder treatment.
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