Bipolar I Disorder, Single Manic Episode

You said that your child was recently happy or irritable for at least 1 week. You said this is very different from how your child usually feels. Your child's very high mood caused some problems for him/her at home or other places. It may be causing problems in how s/he gets along with you, other adults, or other children. These problems may be so bad that you and/or your child's doctor feel there is a need to hospitalize your child. This is usually done to keep him/her from harming himself/herself or others. Some children who have the problems that you reported have Bipolar Disorder.

You said your child has had some of the following problems for at least 1 week:

• Big changes in how s/he feels: overly happy or silly; very irritable or angry
• Feeling too good about him/herself
• Too much energy; can go with little or no sleep for days without feeling tired
• Increase in talking. S/he talks too much, too fast, changes topics too quickly, and cannot be interrupted.
• Can't stay on task - shifts constantly from one thing to the next
• Takes big risks

You said that your child has not had problems with feeling very sad for a long period of time. Children who have very high moods have a higher chance of having low moods. You should be aware of the following ways children feel or act when they have low moods:

• Sadness, Irritability
• Crying
• Doesn't want to do things s/he used to enjoy
• Eats too much or too little
• Has problems falling asleep or waking up too early
• Has too little or too much energy
• Feels worthless
• Has little or no hope
• Can't stay on task
• Feels bad him/herself
• Thinks about death
• Thinks about hurting or killing him/herself

The types of problems that you reported are not very common in children.

Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (AACAP) Facts for Families© series (1997), the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) Diagnostic and Statistical Manual for Primary Care (DSM-PC) (1996) , and the American Psychiatric Association (APA) Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorder: Fourth Edition (1994).