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Bipolar 2 Disorder

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Bipolar disorder affects as many as 2.3 million people in the U.S. and almost twenty percent of those afflicted with bipolar disorder will attempt suicide at some point in their lives. Most people are in their teens or early twenties when symptoms of bipolar disorder first appear. A correct diagnosis can be delayed for several years or more because of the complexity of the disorder. The average age at onset of bipolar disorder is around twenty, and almost everyone with bipolar II (2) disorder develops it before age fifty. Those who have immediate family members diagnosed with bipolar disorder are more likely to be afflicted by it.

Bipolar II disorder is different from bipolar I disorder because of the mania present in the mood swings. Both disorders have the same severe forms of depression, but those with bipolar II disorder do not have the same manic mood swings that bipolar I sufferers do. Bipolar II have a milder form of the mania known as hypomania. And sometimes the hypomanic episodes are less frequent and more brief than those with bipolar I disorder.

Bipolar depression is difficult to distinguish from a unipolar major depressive episode. Patients with bipolar depression usually have extremely low energy levels, slowed mental and physical processes, and more profound fatigue. More bipolar II patients report an excessive need to sleep or sleepiness when awake, known as hypersomnia, than unipolar depressives.

The symptoms of bipolar II disorder are classified into two categories: the hypomanic episodes and the depressive episodes.

During a hypomanic episode, elevated mood can manifest itself as either irritability or euphoria (feeling .high.). Symptoms also include lack of ability to concentrate on one topic, jumping suddenly from one idea to another, rapid or loud speech, increased energy, increased or unusual physical activity, and a decreased need for sleep. The actions of a person experiencing a hypomanic state might seem pleasant to those around them. They may be very charming, make jokes, be intensely interested in other people and activities, and can even be seen as the .life of the party.. However, the negative aspects of these hypomanic states are that the person may engage in dangerous or risky behavior such as spending money they don’t have, seeking out sex with people they normally wouldn’t, and behaving erratically.

The depressive episodes that bipolar II disorder sufferers experience can occur soon after hypomania finishes. Depressive episodes in bipolar II disorder are similar to clinical depression, with depressed mood, loss of pleasure, low energy and activity, feelings of guilt or worthlessness, and thoughts of suicide. Some people go back and forth between hypomania and depression, while others have long periods of normal mood in between episodes. In others, the depressive symptoms may last much longer than the manic symptoms, and might last weeks or even months. If the disorder remains untreated, an episode of hypomania can last anywhere from a few days to several years.

People with bipolar II disorder can benefit from medical intervention in the form of preventive drugs that level out moods over the long term. These drugs prevent the negative consequences (dangerous and risky behaviors) of hypomania, and also help to prevent episodes of depression. There are four main types of drugs which have been shown to help those afflicted with bipolar II disorder: mood stabilizers, anti-psychotics, benzodiazepines, and anti-depressants.

Mood stabilizers come in the forms of Lithium and the anti-seizure medication Depakote. The most prescribed anti-psychotic drugs are Zyprexa, Seroquel, Risperidone, and Abilify. Benzodiazepines are commonly referred to as tranquilizers and come in the forms of Xanax, Ativan, and Valium. Anti-depressants are rarely used because they can trigger manic episodes, but if the other drugs have failed, these drugs are used: Prozac, Zoloft, and Paxil.

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