Bipolar Disorder Statistics and General Information

We all have experienced times of moodiness in our lives and up and downs. We have feelings of sadness, anger, irritibiltiy and excitement. These are normal feelings for a human being. By contrast, BiPolar I Disorder is a serious recurrent and possibly fatal disorder. The emotions and symptoms experienced by someone diagnosed with BiPolar I Disorder are so severe that they often cause significant impairment in the persons ability to function and maintain a stable lifestyle. BiPolar I Disorder can be successfully treated with psychological and pharmological interventions.

Here are some statistics from the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual for Mental Disorders:
More than 90% of individuals who have a manic episode go on to have future episodes.
The average is 4 episodes in 10 years. Interval between episodes tends to decrease as individual ages.
5 to 15% of individuals with bipolar I have 4 episodes within a year -– rapid cycle.
10 to 15% of adolescents with recurrent major depression go on to develop Bipolar I Disorder.
Bipolar I incidence is equal in men and women----euphoric mania followed by depression. Prevalence of 0.4 to 1.6% in community samples.

BiPolar Disorders have become the new fad diagnosis of the last couple of years. There are many complicating factors and varibles that make the diagnosis of BiPolar difficult to assess at times. BiPolar I Disorder is a serious mental illness and a thorough and comprehensive assessment is required for proper diagnosis.

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