It Can Be Hard To Diagnose Bipolar Symptoms in Children
Symptoms of bipolar disorder in children have had varying degrees of seriousness. In most cases, it can be quite difficult to detect the symptoms of the disorder in children or adolescents as they can often be confused with other issues such as hyperactivity, attention deficit or even allergies. It can also be misconstrued as other things in adults especially if they use alcohol or drugs.
Once commonly known as Manic Depression, studies suggest that its hereditary and environmental is primarily due to a shortage of Serotonin which is a natural occurring chemical that balances and controls moods. Because of the shortage of serotonin, extreme mood swings are the primary symptoms. However, there are other things to look out for as the disorder is known to have four phases.
Typical Symptoms of Bipolar Disorder and the Four Phases:
The four phases or mood swings present are Hypomania, Depression, Mania or Manic, and Mixed episodes. They are divided on each side of normal and balanced moods that most people slightly vary from. Variations may come in degrees and some people become more prone to episodes of mania over depression or vice versa. Then again, some may alternate frequently of infrequently between both sides of the normal.
In the mania or manic phase, people have extreme energy and euphoria, and typically talk fast and seem hyperactive in general.
When compared to the mania phase, the hypomania phase is less severe. However, they live their daily life in a way that others describe as an exaggeratedly happy person. This makes it harder to recognize but the impulsive trends come through sometimes which cause them to go into a full blown manic episode at some point.
During the depression phase, people are likely to sleep more, gain weight, contain higher irritability and unpredictable mood swings mostly involving guilt and may lose touch with reality.
In the Mixed emotion phase, they can experience a mix of high energy with depressed mood which is a combination of anxiety mixed with racing thoughts.
The Usual Symptoms of Bipolar in Children:
Similar to the four phases are the typical symptoms of bipolar in children who include irritability, frequent mood swings, hyperactivity and impulsivity, restless and fidgeting.
In studies, it was shown that up to 80% of bipolar children may come from families where both parents were either alcoholics or parents that also have bipolar disorder or both.
The symptoms of bipolar in children fit the ADHD (Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder) due to the guidelines set out for diagnosing it. However, it is not recognized until later in life.
To Wrap It Up:
The fact that episodes in bipolar children will get worse in time means that it is very crucial to diagnose bipolar symptoms to be made as early as possible.