Why the sudden fascination with bipolar disorder?

It seems like every question I see asks something like "Could I be bipolar?" or "Is my friend bipolar" And heaven forbid anybody mention mood swings in a question. Even though anything from diabetes/hypoglycemia, thyroid conditions, menoause, or just plain teenage angst can cause them, the term "mood swings" automatically prompts a minimum of 3 replies that state "bipolar." Only 1-2% of the population has any form of this condition, so I find it highly unlikely that there are so many folks floating around who meet the diagnostic criteria. If folks find it a fashionable diagnosis, let me tell you: it isn't. Has the media focused so much on this disorder recently that it is just simly top of mind for everyone these days?

Opinions?

RX, not to take you to task, but when I was first diagnosed, I did 3 years of extensive research i.e. medical journals, peer-reviewed studies, etc., and the majority of statistics I could find said 1% of the population suffers from bipolar disorder. The highest percentage I came across was 2% and that was only cited in a very few sources. Do you have any idea when they changed this information?

Bipolar is the "in vogue" diagnosis. It is far too frequently applied to children, teens, and adults with mood changes which are actually in the normal range. People long for a "label" for their discomfort and trials in living. Sometimes "bipolar" IS, indeed, the most accurate label and description of their condition. Oftentimes, however, it is not.

Sadly, this label is being inappropriately applied to children whose parents prefer to label blatant misbehavior as "manic episodes" and crying/whining/fit throwing stemming from failure to get their way as "depression". Nothing could be farther from the truth.

There are, to be sure, SOME children, adolescents, and adults who suffer from this condition. There are many more, however, who have quite wrongly received this diagnosis for a plethora of reasons (e.g., insurance reimbursement, drug-seeking justification, parental pacification).

~M~

Rx I would hardly call 4 questions out of 30 "almost half" Report It

I agree! far too many people claim to have it when they don't and it takes away the attention from those that really do suffer from it.

i guess

About 4.4% of U.S. adults have Bipolar Disorder and the number is growing. Not because it is contagious or anything... just physicians are being retrained to spot it better than they have in the past. Men and women are equally likely to the disorder, and the average age of onset is in the early twenties. Detailed information on Bipolar clinical studies and research results is available on the National Institute of Mental Health website (http://www.nimh.nih.gov), and on the U.S. Government Clinical Trials website (http://www.clinicaltrials.gov)

It is more prevalent than you think and many cases diagnosed as simple depression end up in fact being bipolar disorder. There are varying degrees of interference with normal life but the bottom line, it is under-diagnosed in the USA simply because the primary physician who sees the patient has not been well equipped to make a discerning diagnosis. Many times when you see a patient who has depression diagnosed by the primary and treated with an SSRI (Zoloft/ Paxil/ PRozac/ Celexa) and get worse control / aggitated while taking these medications end up in fact being bipolar.

Whether people in here who ask questions about it as are you, they also do not know enough about the disease and are probably trying to self-diagnose but the answer to your question is that people KNOW when their life is in turmoil and are seeking to understand more about what might be the problem. Many people for what ever reason feel having a label as to what it is will make it all better.


The fact that more people are looking at the possibility of bipolar is a good thing. Whether it is true they are bipolar or not... sorry can't diagnose over the internet. At least some of the questions peak interest that hopefully they get evaluated. The questions also help to explain some of the behaviors when in a manic or severely depressed state. Having people who live with or work with an bipolar read these posts can also give them some understanding and compassion. This may help to save a marriage or your job or a life. So I fail to see the downside of people talking about, gaining knowledge,and finding compassion to an excess. The national health professional consensus is that it is under reported, under diagnosed and under-treated.


When people who have bipolar not yet diagnosed are taking in some of this information in these forums can be a life changing event for the better. This can be done by people seeking treatment rather than avoiding it out of fear they are going to be labeled as not normal. Treatment also has side effects and needs to be titered for each patient with the correct drug and dose to minimize side effects and maximize a positive life. Doing this helps prevent unmanageable lives, frequently loosing jobs, poor relationship skills, loss of marriage, anger, irrational thought if severe and most of all helps to prevent suicide which untreated bipolars as a group have the highest frequency of than in other mental illnesses. These are all valid topics in here that help readers to understand their disease. Reading your past questions asked, almost half have to do with bipolar issues. I am not knocking their relevance at all but I fail to see why you are raising this issue since by your own posts indicate you do not believe it applies enough to you to stop asking similar ones. So are you asking this one to validate the issue or to ditz it????


Additional note:

http://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/publicati...
This is a direct quote from the National Institute for Mental Health:

About 5.7 million American adults or about 2.6 percent of the population age 18 and older in any given year, (This represents just the adults.) Bipolar disorder typically develops in late adolescence or early adulthood. However, some people have their first symptoms during childhood, and some develop them late in life. It is often not recognized as an illness, and people may suffer for years before it is properly diagnosed and treated.



Here is a further estimate breakdown of the numbers:

Among the prevalence findings, the researchers reported:

* 1.0% had bipolar I disorder during their lifetimes.
* 1.1% had bipolar II disorder during their lifetimes.
* 2.4% had sub-threshold bipolar disorder during their lifetimes. (under the new DSM IV codes, these will be included)