When bipolar disorder presents itself in children, it can manifest very differently to how it does in adults. Whereas adults can have prolonged episodes of mania or depression, when it comes to children they can have mood swings that are much closer together, perhaps lasting just hours instead of days or weeks.

It is not surprising then that many medical professionals find it difficult to successfully diagnose children with bipolar. In adolescents this can be because mood swings are common to the age group anyway. How do you tell what is normal and what is not?

This is why if bipolar is suspected, close attention needs to be paid in order to diagnose and treat the child correctly. While adults can be more easily monitored, the erratic nature of symptoms in a child can make things more tricky.

Only around 2% at most of the world.s adult population suffers from bipolar disorder. But trying to put a figure on the adolescent and child population is much harder for the reasons described above. On occasion if a child has attention deficit disorder and they prove to be very hyperactive, this can lead later on to symptoms which are more indicative of bipolar. But it does not mean every child who has ADHD will have bipolar disorder. You can see where the problems in diagnosis lie.

Some mothers may spot what turn out to be bipolar symptoms in their child when they are very young indeed. They may be difficult to get to sleep at night. They may be more prone to getting angry and throwing a tantrum than other children. Often, finding the level of behaviour is necessary to get the correct diagnosis. Many children have tantrums as part of growing up . it does not mean they have bipolar.

The typical symptoms of bipolar disorder as seen in adults are that they will go between moods of elation and moods of depression. When this occurs in a child suffering from the disorder those swings will occur far more rapidly. They also may not have a period of calm that marks out the periods in between their mania and depression.

If you have a child you suspect may have bipolar disorder, you should watch for those rapid mood changes. Don.t dismiss mood changes that occur over a longer period either though. They may also want to stay close to their parents and not be so confident to mix with other children. They may be distracted easily and their sleep habits may be far more irregular than those of other children. Similarly bedwetting could be a problem more frequently than some other children might experience it.

In many instances some aspects of a child.s behaviour could be normal for their age. Seeing symptoms does not necessarily point to a diagnosis of bipolar disorder. But with that said you do need to watch out for a combination of symptoms and patterns of behaviour that are more extreme than they would be normally. For example the mood swings will be far more erratic than they would be in a child who simply feels a bit high or low on any particular day.

Needless to say a proper diagnosis must be made if you suspect your child may be exhibiting bipolar symptoms. Diagnostic and Statistical Manual IV is to be used to help with diagnosing anyone with the potential for bipolar disorder. Once a proper diagnosis has been made you can start to look for solutions and treatment to help your child manage their condition more successfully. And the sooner the treatment can begin, the better the long term outlook is

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