Children and Bipolar
Bipolar disorder, otherwise known as manic depression or bipolar depression, is a life-threatening mood disorder that affects a significant 2.6% of the American population, ages 18 and above. However, the symptoms of bipolar can start early in life and that bipolar in children is most likely to occur when parents have the illness. Furthermore, unlike adult bipolar disorder, bipolar in children are difficult to recognize. As such, it is advantageous to keep abreast with updated information about the condition and become attentive to the signs.
Symptoms in Children
The brain disorder bipolar affects a persons thoughts behavior, social interactions and mood energy. People with bipolar show unpredictable mood swings that are characterized by manic episodes (distractibility, restlessness and increased energy) as well as depressive episodes (feelings of fatigue, thoughts of suicide and pessimism).
With children, these dramatic changes in mood can go very fast and therefore go unnoticed in daily activities. The constant mood disruptions though result in extreme irritability. Parents whose children have been diagnosed with bipolar disorder based on the DSM IV criteria found the following signs and symptoms to be prevalent are lack of interest in play, destructive and prolonged anger outbursts or tantrums, disrupted sleeping patterns, bed wetting and nightmares, impulsivity and irrational thoughts, defiance of authority, tendency to get absorbed in multiple activities, hunger for carbohydrate and sugar-rich delights, involvement in risky or dangerous behaviors, hyperactivity and anxiety, delusions and hallucinations and thoughts on death and suicide.
Other Developmental Disorders and Bipolar In Children
Looking at some of the symptoms of bipolar in children makes one realize that they are also characteristic of other common pediatric illnesses. Some of which include the hyperactive-impulsive behaviors apparent in Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder; the tangential thought patterns and delusions of major depression and schizophrenia; and the rebellious and damaging actions associated with conduct and oppositional defiant disorder. Consequently, a proper diagnosis for bipolar in children is a must to apply the most appropriate treatment strategies for the disorder.
Acquiring Help for Children with Bipolar
From evidence, we can see that bipolar in children is a challenging task that needs urgent attention. Intervening early is then best way to face bipolar. It will help in achieving and increasing mood stability and reducing adverse effects. It is important that parents actively work with mental health professionals. They should be ready with accurate observations and notes of the childs behavior. Where possible, a licensed and well-experienced child psychiatrist should be consulted to conduct an appropriate diagnosis using two or more sessions.
The family may also confer with an adult psychiatrist who has extensive background in mood disorders and have also experienced treating adolescents and children. Other sources that are helpful in acquiring initial assessments for the child are medical professionals such as pediatric neurologists and developmental pediatricians. These experts can help implement the type of therapy that will be effective for the child before its too late and this is why they are important to seek.
Thus, the next time you hear children talk about death or suicide at a time when he or she is displaying all the other symptoms of bipolar in children, take it seriously and get help as soon as you can.