Symptoms of Bipolar affective disorder

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The main symptoms of bipolar disorder are mood swings from extremely happy (mania) to extremely sad (depression). The periods of mania and depression are extreme and without treatment, can interfere with everyday life.

In the depressive (low) phase symptoms may include:

Feeling very sad and hopeless
Mental and physical slowing
Lack of energy
Finding it difficult to concentrate
Losing interest in everyday activities
Feeling of emptiness or worthlessness
Feeling pessimistic about everything
Feeling of serious self-doubt
Difficulty sleeping, waking up early
Thoughts of suicide

The manic phase usually comes after two to four periods of depression and may include:

Feeling extremely happy, elated or euphoric
Feeling full of energy
Not feeling like sleeping
Feeling full of great new ideas
Feeling important

Other people often see this differently and might think you are:

Speaking very quickly
Changing the subject frequently
Generally behaving in a strange, unusual and uninhibited way
Appear unable to sit still or relax
Making decisions without thinking things through
Doing things or spending money recklessly

If you are having a manic episode, you often canâ€™t tell that anything is wrong. It can seem like other people are being critical, negative or unhelpful.

During both the manic and depressive periods of the illness you might also experience strange sensations such as seeing, hearing or smelling things that are not there (hallucinations). Or you might believe things that seem irrational to other people (delusions). This is called psychosis or a psychotic episode.