What's the difference between,,,

What's the difference between bipolar and cyclothymia?  Does anyone have cyclothymia out there and what are the symptoms?  Thanks!!!

[ManicMania08]

Cyclothymic disorder, as it is sometimes known, is a milder cousin of bipolar disorder. Like bipolar disorder, cyclothymia has high and low phases, though the highs are not as high and the lows not as low. It can be crippling nonetheless. And it is a risk factor for bipolar disease itself, with up to 50 percent of those with cyclothymia eventually developing bipolar disorder. Major depression is also a higher risk.

The hypomanic, or upbeat, phase features symptoms such as elevated mood, increased self-esteem, decreased need for sleep, racing thoughts, an increase in goal-directed activity and excessive involvement in pleasurable activities.

These symptoms might last for four or more days, then alternate with periods of mildly depressive symptoms such as sadness, pessimism, fatigue, feeling guilty, trouble concentrating and changes in sleep or appetite. For a person to be diagnosed with the disorder, this alternation persists for at least two years.

While cyclothymia's mood changes can be abrupt and unpredictable, they are not as severe as in the more serious forms of the disease, which are known as Bipolar I and Bipolar II. The main difference between cyclothymia and Bipolar I is in the severity of mania, and the difference between cyclothymia and bipolar II in the severity of depressive symptoms.

But the milder condition can still be disabling and disorienting. People who have more or less continuous mood fluctuations, as people with cyclothymia do, can end up with more limitations in life than people with major disorders.

The cause of cyclothymic disorder, which usually begins in the teens or twenties, is unknown, but there appears to be a genetic component. People who have a family history of bipolar disorder are particularly susceptible.

There's also likely an environmental influence, since stress, personal loss, drug or alcohol use, or even insufficient sleep can trigger episodes or mood fluctuations. In people with cyclothymia, "the brain has less capacity to buffer itself against what's happening in the environment.


I hope this helps ansewer your question.