[lost13]

i'm quite curious about bipolar, i always had and thought i had the depression the depression effects of it.i'm just wondering is mania like when your overly hyper for your personality?
cause at sometimes i would be happy enough to through things across the classroom at school in risk of getting suspencion, i'd laugh so hard at something thats not even funny like "pudding" and i'd laugh like nothing and i'd talk to much that my teachers have to tell me to be quite. i'd stop for like 10 minutes being really mad about how they cant tell ME to shut up but not tell the few other people in the class. i get really upset and everything and want to cry but then i jump up and start talking out of no where, and i solve problems faster. i'm usually am a slow learner when it comes to english and spanish but on those days that i'm super up i'm getting through my work faster then others, and sometimes the problems are wrong but i wait for the smart people to be done with the test before i act like i'm done. i sleep less on those days- i just realized- like know i've slept like 10 hrs. last night but like for the last 9 to 12 months i've slept for 5 to 8 hrs which is really short for me.
can anybody tell me is this a sign of mania and if i should bring this to my therapist? or is this something that i shouldn't worry about?

[Anneinside]

The signs of mania are posted all over the internet.

• Sudden changes from being joyful to being irritable, angry, and hostile
• Restlessness, increased energy, and less need for sleep
• Rapid talk, talkativeness
• Distractibility
• Racing thoughts
• High sex drive
• Tendency to make grand and unattainable plans
• Tendency to show poor judgment, such as deciding to quit a job
• Inflated self-esteem or grandiosity -- unrealistic beliefs in one's ability, intelligence, and powers; may be delusional
• Increased reckless behaviors (such as lavish spending sprees, impulsive sexual indiscretions, abuse of alcohol or drugs, or ill-advised business decisions)

You should bring up any concerns you have with your psychologist or doctor.

[yutzman]

Only a Psychotherapist can diagnose Bipolar or any other depressive illness. Sometimes it takes months or years of therapy (as in my case) to nail down a specific diagnosis. That being said, it sounds to me like your having the normal problems of a normal person of your age. Don't read problems into your life that don't exist....but mentioning them to your therapist sure wouldn't hurt....

Trying to diagnose yourself using the internet and a list of symptoms is really not the way to go about this. A psychiatrist or psychologist would need to work with you for a time before they could diagnose any mental illness. It's quite possible you are just acting like a pretty typical teenager. If you have concerns, certainly bring them up to a professional, but avoid trying to diagnose yourself without a clear understanding of bipolar disorder.

[venusss]

It will do not harm to talk to your therapist...

But it sounds that you are just normal teenager. Majority of people are more emotional in their teens and some mood swings are quite normal... after all there are lot of hormonal changes happening, you become more self-aware and there is also stress and presure from the environment you live involved.

Manic stage is usually more intense and out-of-control.

As for your sleeping patterns... that differs from every person and it changes a bit through their lives. 6-8 hours is quite normal, I believe... 5 hours may be bit too little... when was the time you slept just for 5 hours? Was it some exciting time when a lot of things were going on in your life?

[Anneinside]

I hope I didn't come off as meaning that the poster should self-diagnose but I was in a bad place and was responding to the idea of wondering if you have bipolar without having any idea of what the mania of bipolar is. So, I posted the list of diagnostic criteria for mania. I DO believe that you should not self-diagnose and be diagnosed by a professional.