Bipolar Symptoms – Difficult To Diagnose

Researchers and the medical community are not completely sure as to what causes bipolar disorder to start in the first place. Most people who develop it come from a family where another member(s) has it so the familial link has been established. But it is not family history or a genetic predisposition towards the disorder that can count as the only factor that gives rise to it. This is most definitely baffling disorder to diagnose.

A diagnosis for an individual who exhibits the classic bipolar symptoms which include cycles of elation and depressive mood swings is relatively easy to make because it follows a pattern.

However not all patients show symptoms that are as clear cut. For example, there are patients that do suffer from bipolar disorder but their symptoms are anything but classic. Mania mood swings can be mild episodes that do not really seem to point to a problem and sometimes can be attributed to circumstances or a person’s unique personality.

In the same way, depression can be sneaky in that it can sometimes obscure other elements that point to a bipolar diagnosis. If substance abuse is added to the picture that it can become even murkier and may remain undiagnosed for a lengthy period of time.

When you consider all of these things together it is not surprising that people with bipolar symptoms are hard to diagnose.  Approximately half of all individuals who suffer from bipolar disorder visited three professional members of the healthcare community before a proper diagnosis was made. In the same way, an estimated 20 percent of those who go to see their doctor because they are depressed actually suffer from bipolar disorder.

It is also a sorry state of affairs to discover that it takes an average of 10 years for a person with bipolar disorder who is showing the symptoms to begin treatment and therapy for such because it often takes this length of time for the diagnosis to be made.

It is not uncommon for bipolar disorder to be misdiagnosed as depression. For example, in those who suffer from bipolar II disorder the manic episodes are known as hypomania and are often times so mild that they go completely unnoticed by others. This may account for the fact that the episodes of depression in a person with bipolar II disorder outnumber the episodes of mania by approximately 35 to 1.

What is Known about Bipolar Disorder

What do doctors know about this mysterious disorder? What they do know is that it often appears when an individual is in their teenage or young adult years. However it has often been known to show itself in children as young as six years of age and in older adults.

Bipolar disorder can affect individuals of all different types of races and ethnic backgrounds. This is a disorder that has nothing to do with socioeconomic status, education level or chosen profession.

It is believed that bipolar disorder is related to special chemicals in the brain that have gotten out of balance. When this happens, it then makes it more difficult for the brain to do its work.

Doctors also believe that bipolar disorder and hormone levels are connected with each other. Studies have shown that a link exists between the development of bipolar disorder and thyroid hormone levels.