by Julie Frey

At one time it was considered common knowledge among health care professionals and therapists that only adults could suffer from bipolar disorder. Further research proved them to be wrong. Now we know that even though bipolar disorder in children is rare – it does happen. And, now, realizing that it can occur in children as well, in each passing year, experts have begun to examine and diagnose more children with bipolar.

When bipolar disorder is recognized in kids, it is given a different name – early-onset bipolar disorder. Mostly this was done in order to differentiate it from the more common disorder which is diagnosed in adults.

When we look at the symptoms of most kids who have bipolar disorder, they can be hard to discern. However, the most common ones seem to be extreme mood shifts careening from giddiness to depression and then back again. And, if your child happens to be extremely hyperactive, it can be almost impossible for a parent to tell normal child behavior from the behavior of someone suffering from bipolar depression. That’s why most parents should not attempt to diagnose when such symptoms begin to express themselves. Instead, they should seek the help of a child behavioral therapist.

As any grownup with bipolar disorder can tell you, at times, the disease can be almost impossible to control. With that in mind, just try to conceive of how much more difficult it is for a kid diagnosed with early-onset bipolar disorder to deal with the issue by himself. He is more likely than not to encounter many more problems than other kids his own age. For one, due to his constantly shifting mood swings, odds are that he will have trouble focusing in school. And his friendship with kids will probably be tenuous as they gradually begin to shy away from him due to his erratic behavior. These rejections, in turn, can make him turn away from even attempting to form new relationships with kids in his own age group.

Children suffering from early-onset bipolar disorder have an additional danger as well. Especially when they eventually cycle into their depressive phase. This is when they have the potential to become extremely dangerous to themselves due to the suicidal thoughts that, many times, accompany depression. Depression is a serious illness which is, unfortunately, often undetected too late – especially in kids.

Diagnosing bipolar disorder in kids can be difficult for a number of reasons. But the main one is that their depression often is expressed through moodiness or aggressive behavior. These are traits that many adults would consider to be normal kid behavior. For example, you might think that a child is simply being difficult or moody when he reacts to something happening around him which you consider insignificant. However, in his mind, these seemingly insignificant events become magnified and take on mammoth proportions. In time, if unchecked, the child may began to think that there is no way out except for suicide.

So when is the prime age at which these signs in children begin to manifest themselves? Regrettably, at least at this point in time, there really is no lower age limit when it comes to this disease. But, usually, it will first start to affect people as they enter their teens. However, in recent years, health professionals have begun to diagnose more and more children who are ten years or younger.

About the Author
Bipolar disorder can be a devastating disease. For more information on it, as well as articles such as bipolar disorder test and bipolar 1 disorder, visit our website.