Mania symptoms can be severe and people may need treatment in a hospital. Treatments for mania can include antipsychotic or mood-stabilizing medication. Taking care of physical health, learning warning signs, and putting self-care and coping strategies in place can also help people living with mania.
You'll typically need mood-stabilizing medication to control manic or hypomanic episodes. Examples of mood stabilizers include lithium (Lithobid), valproic acid (Depakene), divalproex sodium (Depakote), carbamazepine (Tegretol, Equetro, others) and lamotrigine (Lamictal).
Their criteria for a manic episode are: You have an abnormal, long-lasting elevated expression of emotion along with a high degree of energy and activity that lasts for at least one week and is present most of the day, nearly every day.
Lithium, divalproex and several atypical antipsychotics (olanzapine, risperidone, quetiapine) are first-line antimanic agents.
If you have mania, you'll probably need to take medicine to bring it quickly under control. Your doctor will also likely prescribe a mood stabilizer, also called an “antimanic” medication. These help control mood swings and prevent them, and may help to make someone less likely to attempt suicide.
"Bipolar disorder can worsen if left undiagnosed and untreated. Episodes may become more frequent or more severe over time without treatment. Also, delays in getting the correct diagnosis and treatment can contribute to personal, social and work-related problems.
Sometimes, if caught early enough, people experiencing mania can be kept out of the hospital. However, most episodes of mania require hospitalization in a psychiatric hospital for safety and stabilization. Any emergency room can initiate a hospitalization.
High levels of stress. Changes in sleep patterns or lack of sleep. Using recreational drugs or alcohol. Seasonal changes – for example, some people are more likely to experience hypomania and mania in spring.
Lithium is a long-term treatment for episodes of mania and depression. It's usually prescribed for at least 6 months. If you're prescribed lithium, stick to the prescribed dose and do not stop taking it suddenly unless told to by your doctor.
Both a manic and a hypomanic episode include three or more of these symptoms: Abnormally upbeat, jumpy or wired. Increased activity, energy or agitation. Exaggerated sense of well-being and self-confidence (euphoria)
Only a mental health professional like a psychiatrist can give you a bipolar disorder diagnosis – not your GP. However, if you're experiencing bipolar moods and symptoms, discussing it with your GP can be a good first step. They can refer you to a psychiatrist, who will be able to assess you.
Brain scans show doctors whether there is less activity in the brain, which indicates depression. They also show overactivity in the brain, which indicates mania.
You might experience hypomania or mania on their own. Or you might experience them as a part of a broader mental health problem. For example, bipolar disorder, postpartum psychosis or schizoaffective disorder. Some of us may find episodes of hypomania and mania enjoyable.
Mania is an extreme feeling of well-being, energy and optimism—you feel on top of the world. These feelings, however, can be so intense that you can lose contact with reality.
Kraepelin, however, divided the “manic states” into four forms—hypomania, acute mania, delusional mania, and delirious mania—and noted that his observation revealed “the occurrence of gradual transitions between all the various states.” In a similar vein, Carlson and Goodwin, in their elegant paper of 1973, divided a ...
Anxiety and mania may also both be characterized by racing thoughts or distractibility. So while they may be similar, and mania can cause anxiety, mania and anxiety are definitely two separate conditions.
Bipolar disorder is a mood disorder where people experience mania (extreme highs) and depression (extreme lows). These episodes are often random or may be triggered by specific events. However, understanding your bipolar disorder triggers can help manage or prevent an episode.
To help prevent a manic episode, avoid triggers such as caffeine, alcohol or drug use, and stress. Exercise, eat a balanced diet, get a good night's sleep, and keep a consistent schedule. This can help reduce minor mood swings that can lead to more severe episodes of mania.
Lack of sleep increases the risk of having an episode of mania in someone with bipolar disorder. In addition, antidepressants, particularly when taken as the only medication, may also trigger a switch into a manic state. Excessive use of alcohol or drugs can also trigger bipolar symptoms.
Research shows bipolar disorder may damage the brain over time. Experts think it's because you slowly lose amino acids. They help build the proteins that make up the insulation around your neurons.