Hey everybody, today I'm gonna talk with you about Bipolar II disorder
and how it differs from Bipolar I. So stay tuned.
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So I've heard from many, many, many, many of you that you needed more information
about Bipolar disorder. And I heard you! Don't worry. That's why I'm here right now
making this video about Bipolar II.
And I will talk about Bipolar II and how it differs a little bit from Bipolar I
but don't worry, I will do another video about Bipolar I so that you can see the
differences more clearly. But if you've not checked out my kind of Bipolar
summary video that I created a while ago - remember the whiteboard and I made
squiggles to kind of show you the differences and tell you how Bipolar
disorder works? You're gonna wanna click here and watch it first because it gives
you a good summary before we get kind of more into the nitty-gritty of Bipolar II.
Without further ado, and as always I have notes and my handy-dandy DSM. So, Bipolar
II: Now the way that I always think of Bipolar II is that it's the 'depressive'
side of Bipolar disorder. You never have mania... never. You have hypomania, and
this can be sometimes tricky for people to feel the differences or understand the
differences, but that's why you have to see a professional to get a proper
diagnosis. And so if you're worried that you're struggling with this, before trying
to diagnose yourself I would please encourage you, I can't encourage you
enough to see a professional to get a proper diagnosis, put a treatment plan
together, and figure out what's the best path for you. So, Bipolar II you don't
have mania, but you have hypomania. I'm gonna read you from the DSM really quick
about what hypomania may look like. It says that you will have an abnormally
and persistently elevated expansive or irritable mood, you can feel really an
inflated sense of self esteem like "I'm the best, I can do anything!" and you also
feel a decreased need for sleep. And if you remember me talking about mania
in that other video, and I believe in other FAQs, it sounds a lot like it right?
It's just a lower grade. And that's why it's important to see a professional,
because they'll know exactly what you're struggling with. It also says "flight of
ideas", like "I have so many things flowing through my mind I can't even - I
just can't settle down! There's so many things I wanna do and so many things I
feel like I wanna change in the world!" And it can be a really motivated place for
a lot of people to live in, and I know a lot of artists and people sometimes like
being hypomanic, because it's not as intense as mania, but we get a lot done.
We have so many ideas! Also, really distractable - as you can imagine if
you're thinking about all these different things it's hard for you to stay on topic.
"Increased goal-directed activity" - like I said you're really productive.
"Excessive involvement in activities that have a high potential for painful
consequences" - and this is where we usually end up in trouble, like we end up
in the hospital, or our family members or friends may call 911 to get us help, is if
y'know we may be sleeping around, we may be spending obscene amounts of money at
the mall, we may buy a new car, we may do things that we shouldn't be doing because
it could have a really horrific consequence on the end. And so that is
kind of how a hypomanic episode looks. It can be very similar to mania, like I said,
but it has to last as least at least for four consecutive days present most of the
day, nearly every day. And you must also have a major depressive episode in order
to be diagnosed with Bipolar II disorder. Now a major depressive episode has to last
at least two weeks, and to give you an idea of what that may feel like, you have
to have five or more of the following symptoms that have been present during the
same two-week period, just like I was saying. Depressed mood most of the day,
diminished interests like we've talked about before in the 'Six Signs of
Depression' anhedonia, not being interested in pleasurable activities or
activities that used to be pleasurable to you are no longer pleasurable, you may
lose weight, you may gain weight, you may oversleep, you may not sleep enough, you
may feel fatigued and have body aches. And a lot of those things will happen when we
have Bipolar II because we have to have hypomania and a major depressive episode.
Those both have to occur to get the diagnosis of Bipolar II and you can't have
mania. If you have mania, that makes you Bipolar I. Okay? So that's what Bipolar II
disorder is. You can see why it's one of the most misdiagnosed things in the psych
world - a lot of psychiatrists that I work with and therapists that I work with feel
that a lot of people that are diagnosed with depression may really have Bipolar II
or people that are diagnosed with Bipolar II may actually just have Major Depressive
Disorder. And it can be really difficult for us to properly diagnose. That's why I
cannot encourage you enough to seek out professional help. Get a proper diagnosis,
get properly assessed, and then you can look at your options for treatment. There
are a lot of options out there. Medication as always is an option, therapy and
different treatment centers. There are a lot of day programs you can go to to
better understand your illness, there are group therapy things for you and your
family because a lot of people with Bipolar disorder, if they have a hypomanic
or manic episode, can do some things that are really detrimental to themselves and
to their relationships. So there are a lot of group therapy things available in
hospital settings, in inpatient settings, where you can help rebuild that
relationship and better understand your own Bipolar disorder so that it can get
properly treated. And I hope that this helps, if you like videos where I talk a
little bit more in-depth about a specific diagnosis, give it a thumbs up and let me
know. And leave your comments below: What has Bipolar II disorder looked like
for you? What have you done in treatment to help you better overcome it? Because as
a community we can be so strong, we have so many experiences and so much
information we can gleam from each other. It's more than just me telling you how we
diagnose and what your treatment options are, we can share our stories. So share
your stories, and I'll see you next time.
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