BIPOLAR DISORDER MANIA 101: Do you know the difference between dysphoric and euphoric mania?

Here’s the basic info about bipolar disorder mania. It’s MANIA 101!

 I’ve decided to label mania each time I talk about it. All of the different terms we use can be confusing, dysphoric, mixed and euphoric, for example!

Let’s start at the beginning.  There are two levels of mania: hypomania and full blown mania.

People with bipolar disorder II (two)  have hypomania only. People with bipolar disorder I (one)  have hyomania and the very dangerous and very life disrupting full blown mania. I have bipolar disorder two, but I’m one of the unfortunates- My type of hypomania is right on the verge of full blown mania. If I ever do move into full blown mania, I will then have a diagnosis of bipolar disorder one.  Fingers crossed that never happens!

Within these levels of hypomania and mania, there are two types of mania: Euphoric and Dysphoric mania. It’s simple to describe the difference between the two.

 

What are the signs and symptoms of euphoric mania?

E[image error]uphoric mania feels better than the greatest sex a person can have. It feels like falling in love, getting a dream job, winning an Oscar, traveling the world and seeing flowers bloom.  You get the picture.  People with bipolar disorder  get these feelings without any of the actual events. People tell me that cocaine has a similar feeling, but unless you have experienced euphoric mania, you will not understand how good it feels. It feels so good it gets people with bipolar disorder into a lot of trouble. I met my boyfriends and two husbands while manic- then they had to deal with my depression! Wonderful guys- they stuck with me- until I left! Often when manic. (In case this sounds stressful- I should let you know that this is NOT my pattern now. The Health Cards helped me cure that manic behavior!) 

When the euphoric mania strikes,  I’m more artistic, sing karaoke with no stage awkwardness, talk with anyone and I mean anyone, can pick up any guy and talk so fast it’s hard to stop myself, but I donl’t really want to stop because it feels so darn good!

 What are the signs and symptoms of dysphoric mania?

 Now for the tough, tough, awful dysphoric hypomania and mania. It’s easy to describe this mania  as well- it’s often called a MIXED STATE because it’s a combination of the very high energy of hypomania and mania combined with agitated depression. There is no feeling of good will or peace or fun- it never feels good.  The body is restless, jumpy and the mind is always irritated, often aggressive and swirling like a blender full of ickiness! Once again, there is little way to describe it unless you have experienced it.

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Dysphoric mania is often mean, accusatory, unreasonable and fickle. Nothing is every right with life when you are dysphoric manic. I had a big episode a few years ago where almost every moment of the day I thought- I have to leave Portland. I must get out. My life is terrible -people are terrible- moving is all I can do. Luckily, I once again had the Health Cards and they got me through it. Much of this episode was internal. I wrote about it in my Bp Magazine column.  Dysphoric mania has a high rate of road rage and suicide. Most of the people in jail who have bipolar disorder are there because of a full blown dysphoric manic episode. 

Both levels of mania and both types of mania have some very specific and shared symptoms.  1. It’s extremely and I do mean extremely hard to see that you’re manic. 2. Pressured speech. That’s why I used the mouth graphic for this blog post! 3. Need a lot less sleep, but are never tired the next day. 4. Increase in non thought through and unsafe behaviors- such as driving way too fast or sleeping with someone you don’t know- something you would not do normally. 4. The behavior is not part of your life while stable.

There are many more symptoms of course, but those are the main ones the two have in common!  One thing I should add- there is one very big difference between the levels of mania: people in a full blown manic episode often have full blown psychosis. This is especially true with dysphoric full blown mania. Hypomania rarely has any psychosis.

My book Take Charge of Bipolar Disorder has an excellent description of mania- as well as a management plan. To be honest, I work well when I’m mildly to moderately depressed- but mania! Wow, like anxiety, it’s tough to recognize and treat. This is why preventing euphoric and dysphoric hypomania and mania is the ONLY treatment path that works!

If you have mania, I wrote a lot on my Julie A. Fast Facebook page about my last euphoric and very funny episode – involving the picture below.  Mania can be managed, but it has a nasty way of slipping back into your life when you least expect it!

Julie

 

PS: Mania and Depression are two side of the bipolar disorder coin. One is not better or worse than the other- they are both BAD. I’m putting this picture on here again. I write books on bipolar disorder. I’m pretty good at managing my symptoms, but mania is a tricky, tricky mood swing- I look at the cart below and realize I went merrily through an entire store and didn’t realize I was manic until I woke up out of my daze at the check out stand. Wow, we have to have a plan in place to stay stable- mania is too strong to just wait and see what happens!

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Related posts:
What is Dysphoric Mania in Bipolar Disorder?
Bipolar Depression and Mania (euphoric and dysphoric)
BP Magazine Blog: Letter from a Dysphoric Manic Person