Topic Tuesday // Recognising and managing mania // 28 March, 7 - 9pm AEDT

[mrkotter]

---

@CherryBomb wrote:

Also, anyone who has experienced mania, please tell of your experience too!

---

Great question @CherryBomb, experiences include:

• buying a car, without actually thinking about it.
• No sleep, best was about 42 hours up straight. 
• many hypomanic episodes of just doing a lot but not achieving anything
• taking way too much on at work and then when I've crashed I've had to keep going
• Lots and lots of exercise when manic. 

When manic I've always felt on top of the world but then it gets out of control. At some point I crash and I start a depressive episode. All my episodes follow this pattern.

[CherryBomb]

Oh @SusanaBA sounds like things are a fantastic idea at the time (of mania), but not so much when it stops. Can anyone relate to @SusanaBA?

I'm curious, how does mania fit into the overall picture of bipolar disorder?

[CherryBomb]

@mrkotter how long do the episodes usually last? Do you know that you're experiencing mania at the time?

[davidharper_bal]

Mania is the thing that differentiates bipolar disorder from depression, so it’s a very important part of the condition. But most people with bipolar actually spend the majority of the time depressed, especially women. And while there are a lot of good treatments which can prevent mania, the picture is more mixed on the depression front. I think that’s probably part of the reason why some people look forward to the mania and only want treatment for the depressive phase of the illness. But the problem is that what goes up, almost always comes down. So preventing mania is actually a key part of preventing the depression, which nobody ever wants.

[Charli]

@mrkotter You've described much of my experience too! My record was going from Thursday morning to Monday night without sleep, feeling on top of the world, buzzing with energy and enthusiasm, nerve-endings on fire. But then comes the crash.

[Nikkir]

How do i get on 

[mrkotter]

---

@CherryBomb wrote:

@mrkotter how long do the episodes usually last? Do you know that you're experiencing mania at the time?

---

Good question. For me it depends, nothing shorter than around a month but generally several months (3 months is common). 

It's hard to say because I don't realise when it starts. I get this self confidence when it starts so I just feel like I'm having a good day. Then it's another good day and then they don't stop. I start to realise something is wrong when I am working a lot of hours at work, taking a lot on and sleeping under 5 hours a night. Or more often, someone close to me points it out to me. By that point it's too late and I generally ride the rest of the good times out because I know I'll crash eventually.

[CherryBomb]

@davidharper_bal @mrkotter @SusanaBA sounds like mania feels good, but the crash seems horrible when you feel depressed, and realise some of things you've done.  

It's understandable then that because people can feel so great during mania that they might not want to seek help. What can carers do if they think their loved might be manic? And what might they do if they don't want help?

[soul]

Is mania peculiar to bipolar or is it a symptom of other mental illnesses as well. If so, which ones?

[SusanaBA]

The signs of mania aren’t very subtle. Your loved one will need less sleep, will be more self-confident and sociable, and will almost certainly spend lots of money. He or she will probably also be a lot more interested in sex than normal. So if you’re seeing those sorts of behaviours, the big thing to do is to make sure the person takes their medication, and to get them to their doctor as quickly as possible. Unfortunately some people do stop taking their medication, and when they start to become manic, they think they are getting better, when in fact the opposite is true. Recognising that wishful thinking and not getting caught up in it yourself is really important.