Can Your Mood Swings Be Bipolar Disorder – What’s the Difference?

23 Dec Can Your Mood Swings Be Bipolar Disorder – What’s the Difference?

It’s obvious and quite normal to have mood swings in our day-to-day lives. There is no denying that we all have experienced bad mood swings for no reason at some point.

In fact, it is more common these days than ever. However, when it starts to get worse, you need to take it seriously.

Notably, the stress factors are increasing day by day and as a result, mental health is getting affected poorly. Stress can give rise to rapid mood swings and while few people tend to ignore it, other mistakenly consider it a bipolar disorder.

Nonetheless, there is a difference between bipolar and mood swings. If the change in your behavior makes you question “are my mood swings normal”, well, you better read the full blog.

Bipolar Disorder and Mood Swings Meaning – The Basics

Mood changes like a season. One moment you feel happy and content and the very next second you might get angry for no apparent reason at all.

With an increasing percentage of mental health issues, it’s important to understand whether it’s mood swings or bipolar that you are dealing with. Only then you’d be able to decide on the treatment.

What is Bipolar?

Bipolar or maniac depressive illness is also a brain disorder. It happens when a chemical imbalance causes an unusual shift in the activities, mood, and ability to perform day-to-day activities.

Bipolar is different from casual emotional ups and downs that every person goes through in an entire day. It is a mental illness where a person experiences a manic and depressive phase.

People dealing with bipolar disorder require treatment to cope with it.

Moreover, it came to light after certain celebrities like Jim Carrey, Britney Spears, and Bobby Brown exhibited its symptoms or were identified as diagnosed with bipolar disorder.

What is Mood Swing?

The mood is the current state of mind of an individual and mood swings are his/her reaction to a situation depending upon the emotions being felt. A person’s moods are influenced by a lot of factors which could be internal and external.

For instance, poor digestion can make a person feel cranky and upset just like that, and not getting enough sleep can also make a person feel depressed, irritated, and gloomy.

Even though episodes of mood swings are common occurrences and don’t require any serious treatment, their persistence is still not good for mental health.

So, the question persists what’s the difference between mood swings and bipolar? How can one discern an ordinary shift in his mood with a psychological problem?

What’s the Difference Between Bipolar and Mood Swings? – 8 Factors

If the basic bipolar and mood swings meaning is not helping you understand the difference, the distinction on the basis of these factors might be of some help. 

Factors on the basis of which you can make a distinction between mood swings and bipolar are:

#1. Types

#2. Signs and symptoms

#3. Age and Gender

#4. Family History

#5. Duration

#6. Role of hormones

#7. Severity

#8. Requirement of Treatment

Let’s get into the details…

#1. Types

Mood swings have no any types they are just a change in your behavior due to the emotions you feel in a certain situation. 

However, in the case of mental illness like Bipolar disorder, there are types. Bipolar disorder has 3 types: Bipolar I, Bipolar 2, and Bipolar 3. 

People with Bipolar 1 have severe maniac as well as depressive episodes that can be seen on a day-to-day basis.

Those with bipolar 2 disorders have more depressive episodes and milder symptoms of mania. Lastly, those with cyclothymia experience milder ups and down in their emotions. 

#2. Signs and Symptoms

Another distinction you can make between bipolar disorder and mood swings is on the basis of signs and symptoms. 

A person dealing with bipolar disorder experiences changes in mood for a longer duration without any cause. The symptoms of the maniac and depressive episodes vary. 

During a manic episode, a person has the following symptoms:

• Less requirement for sleep
• Racing thoughts
• Engaging in risky behaviors like drugs, alcohol, and reckless ex
• Being more talkative than usual

During a depressive episode, a person showcases the following symptoms:

• Losing interest in things they used to love
• Loss of or increase in appetite
• Lack of or sleeping more than usual
• Feeling sad, hopeless, and worthless for longer
• Thoughts of self-harm

These are some serious signs.

People with mood swings, on the other hand, don’t end up with thoughts of self-harm. The changes in mood can be of shorter duration depending on the factor affecting it.

#3. Age and Gender

Mood swings can happen to anyone. However, because it is mostly due to stress, it’s more common among adults and the elderly. Nonetheless, health issues may give rise to short episodes of mood swings in adolescents and teenagers as well.

Bipolar on the other hand is a chemical reaction and illness and has nothing to do with age. The usual age for Bipolar disorder is 25 years. And though it can occur to teenagers, it’s highly uncommon.

Additionally, the elderly experience frequent and more depressive episodes as compared to others.

Talking about gender, Bipolar disorder affects men and women equally. However, the same cannot be said about mood swings. It is quite evident and even scientifically proven that females have more mood swings as compared to men.

#4. Role of Hormones

Hormones have a major role to play when it comes to mood swings. It is because of this reason, women experience more of it. The hormonal fluctuations during PMS, menopause and pregnancy are the common causes of mood swings in females. The hormonal fluctuation during these phase make women more susceptible to fluctuating moods. 

Hence, mood swings are because of hormonal changes. An increase in hormones like cortisol can increase stress also lack of serotonin can also trigger stress.

But in the case of Bipolar disorder, hormones have no direct role to play. Nonetheless, chemical like noradrenaline, serotonin, and dopamine found in neurotransmitters may trigger it and affects its severity.

#5. Family History

Family history or genes may or may not play that much of a role in case of mood swings.

However, in the case of Bipolar disorder, genetic factors account for around 80% of the cause of the condition. That is to say, Bipolar is very frequently inherited.

In fact, as per the results of a study, there is a significant relationship between the heritability of bipolar disorder and kinship. Further, genetic susceptibility is similar on both maternal and paternal sides.

#6. Duration

In case of mood swings, they usually last for a few hours to a few days. However, in mental illnesses like bipolar disorder, the change in mood may extend to a longer duration.

The length of its existence may add to its severity. The person may not feel like coming out of bed for days, He/she may keep hearing and seeing superficial things for longer.

#7. Severity

Mood swings are not severe at all. One can change their mood with self-help.

However, you cannot say the same for bipolar and this makes a huge difference between bipolar and mood swings.

Bipolar disorder is a mental illness and if left untreated, it can severely affect a person’s life. It is more intense in nature and can hugely affect a person’s ability to perform their day-to-day activities.

A person with a manic depressive illness or bipolar disorder may start t hear and see things that don’t really exist. Also, severe manic episodes can lead to hospitalization and suicide as well.

#8. Requirement of Treatment

On the basis of the requirement of treatment, mood swings don’t really require any severe treatment. Removing its triggering factor can automatically help get rid of it.

For instance, mood swings because of lack of sleep can be improved once you make positive changes in your sleeping habit.

Bipolar on the other hand requires proper treatment to avoid its severity. One has to go through a proper diagnosis to start the treatment.

After understanding the difference if you think you have bipolar disorder, you must not delay going through the diagnosis and get the treatment.

Final Thoughts

Differences between bipolar and mood swings are quite evident. While the severity is more in the former, the latter is nothing to be worried about. 

Bipolar is a mental illness and must not be mistaken for mere mood swings; for, it can lead to loss of life if the person starts to experience manic episodes for longer. 

Talking about the right help at the right time can not only help him deal with it better, but it can also give the person their life back.

What are your thoughts about mental illness and society’s take on it? Let us know in the comment section.