Bipolar Type 2: Hypomania And Depression

Bipolar disorder is of different types. It is categorized into four major types according to the nature of the symptoms that the patient experiences. Bipolar disorder Type 2 is one of these four types.

There are four major types of bipolar disorder. These are Bipolar Type 1 Disorder, Bipolar Type 2 Disorder, cyclothymic disorder, and bipolar disorder that is not otherwise specified.

Type 1 Bipolar

Bipolar 1 disorder is diagnosed when the patient experiences several manic episodes or mixed manic and depressive episodes and these episodes have not been caused by drug abuse or by any medical condition. Bipolar Type 1 disorder means that the patient may or may not be experiencing symptoms of depressive disorder between bouts or episodes.

Type 2

Bipolar Type 2 is when the patient has had one or several major episodes of depression and at the same time may have had one or several hypomanic episodes. That’s a case where the high extremes of hypomania is not reached and this makes the disorder more difficult to establish and diagnose. Where bipolar Type 1 patients can have a full-blown manic episode or mania, in bipolar Type 2, the patient may have hypomanic episodes that to others may just look like the bipolar person is having successive high-energy and high-productivity periods.

Other Classifications

Then there are the cyclothymic disorder and the bipolar disorder that is not otherwise specified. The concept of the bipolar spectrum includes cyclothymia where the patient experiences chronic or severe changes and swings in mood ranging from hypomania to mild depression. Because the types of bipolar disorder have not been that established yet, other types are not that specified and fall under the fourth type.

The Most Common Bipolar Type

Bipolar Type 2 is the more prevalent one and occurs with greater frequency. It is often marked by a mixture of hypomania and depression, with at the very least one episode of each. More often than not, when a person with bipolar Type 2 seeks medical or professional help, he or she is depressed. To make sure that a misdiagnosis is not made, the psychiatrist must be informed exactly of the occurrence, albeit once or practically non-existent, of any manic or hypomanic episode.

The difficulty in diagnosing bipolar Type 2 lies in the oftentimes misunderstood manifestations of the disorder in the person’s behavior. When a person suffering from bipolar Type 2 is in the manic stage, the tendency to be very energetic, lively, talkative, and insomniac may seem like the ordinary high-strung symptoms of a high-energy person.

The problem begins when the hypomania begins to affect judgment and feelings. These high-strung bipolar Type 2 sufferers will feel easily irritable and angered by the seeming inability of others around him to cope or catch up with his high-energy. With the frustration comes next the depression stage and the sufferer of bipolar Type 2 will soon have little or no energy and very low mood levels, judgment is again affected as thinking and movements slow down, ability for concentration is affected, eating and sleeping patterns change, and hopelessness sets in.

The mixture of symptoms in bipolar Type 2 as earlier said makes diagnosis more difficult. But it will help not only the patient but his doctors and family and friends as well if the highs and lows of bipolar disorder are given more attention. For example, the highs or mania of the disorder will range from heightened physical and mental energy and activity, excessive irritability bordering on aggression, insomnia without fatigue, delusions of grandeur and self-importance, racing thoughts, impulsive behavior, recklessness, high moods. The low depression level will mean unexplained sadness, loss of appetite and over-fatigue, worry and anxiety, lethargy and pessimism, indecision, withdrawal from social activities, and even suicidal thoughts.

Bipolar disorder, even bipolar Type 2, is treatable. What is important is for the symptoms to be identified early on and a diagnosis made. Anyone experiencing the symptoms should not be afraid of the stigma of being branded to be bipolar; otherwise, medical attention may not be sought. And when professional help is not sought, the symptoms will have a tendency to keep recurring without being checked and understood, if not treated. Accepting the fact that the possibility of bipolar Type 2, is highly likely, is probably the first and best step any sufferer can take.