Adolescent is that transitional stage of development between childhood and adulthood and represents the period of time during which a person experiences a variety of biological changes and encounters a number of emotional issues both in boys and in girls. Depending on the culture the ages range from 10 years (preteens) to nineteen years (young adult). According to (WHO), the World Health Organization, adolescence covers the period of life between 10 and 20 years of age. For the sake of adolescence bipolar we will be dividing these phases into three: early, mid and late adolescence.

Early Adolescent Bipolar

There is evidence indicating that bipolar disorder which was diagnosed in childhood or early adolescence is different, possibly a more severe form of the illness in older or late adolescence. A case study on a 10 year old saw that the child’s difficult behaviors were first noted between the ages of 2 and 3, when he would yell and bang his head at day care. He would be hostile by hitting, kicking, biting others and thrash around in a tantrum over something very simple. He was enthusiastic most of the time being helpful and constantly on the move, but he would be furious over nothing within minutes. The physical symptoms were headaches, stomach problems, difficulty swallowing and frequent diarrhea.

Mid – Adolescent (13 – 15 or 16 years)

Very often we hear, “my boyfriend is bipolar and I'd appreciate some advice. He has been very emotional, one minute he is happy and the next he is sad. He has a hard time getting out his emotions and sharing them with me.” A person with bipolar needs to focus on controlling the illness through treatment rather than letting the illness control them. When the illness takes control they in turn try to control others in a relationship. This can be damaging to the other person who does not know what is happening in the mind. It is important to have a long-term daily bipolar medication and ongoing psychiatric care to maintain a good quality of life.

Late – Adolescent (about 16– 20 yrs)

Late adolescent bipolar symptoms are much closer to adult bipolar than to early adolescent or late childhood bipolar. While it is important to give your children the chance to express their personalities and bizarreness, you must always keep careful watch over your child’s friends. This is because they tend to act without thinking and don't always know what is good for them or the middle ground. A large percentage of bipolar adolescent experiment with drugs or  alcohol for self medication. These kids take illicit drugs or alcohol because they feel like their painful life is getting out of control. On the contrary, illicit drugs make bipolar worse.

Outlet

Bipolar individuals are often very talented and gifted people with talents expressed through writing, liberal arts, poetry, artwork, etc. You should encourage your bipolar child to express their talents in anything that they show interest in, like joining a band, orchestra, drama, outdoor sports, art lessons, or collecting something. This could be anything they can do and be proud of themselves for doing it. Finally use positive words and praise them for everything you can think of. It will sure boost their ego for doing something good or right.

The symptoms of bipolar in children are due to a number of factors which may be emotional, environmental or neurological in nature. Most cases of the disease are due to a combination of environmental and biological factors. The exact cause, however, is still a subject of some debate.

Asperger's Syndrome

Asperger’s syndrome is often conflated with bipolar disorder in the diagnostic phase. This disorder is a development disorder which is similar to autism in its effects. The areas of social development and communicative abilities are profoundly affected.

Like bipolar disorder, the causes of this disorder are not known with any certainty. However, Asperger’s does tend to run in families, suggesting a hereditary factor. It is believed to have neurological and/or genetic root causes.

Misdiagnosis

Bipolar disorder children are sometimes misdiagnosed as having Asperger’s since the symptoms can present similarly – compulsive behaviors, aggressive episodes and strange habits. In both disorders, there can be behavioral, anger and social development problems.

Bipolar in children may of course also be afflicted with Asperger’s syndrome. However, it is unknown in these cases if the two disorders are related, with the same underlying neurological or genetic factors being responsible or if the two arise independently. Research is continuing into both disorders, with answers likely to come in the following decades.

Treatment Options

Bipolar medication that is given to bipolar children and those with Asperger’s syndrome tend to be similar. Since the symptoms of both disorders are similar, they are often treated using the same medications.

Counseling and therapy are also both employed in the treatment of bipolar in children and children with Asperger’s syndrome. This may be done alone or in conjunction with pharmaceutical therapies. While the majority of Asperger’s syndrome do not necessarily need medication, therapy is very helpful in teaching the patient to cope with the disorder. Bipolar children are usually given therapy regardless of whether or not they are treated with medication.

If you suspect that your child may be suffering from either bipolar disorder or Asperger’s syndrome, contact your physician or mental health care provider to have a diagnosis performed. This way, a course of treatment can be given.

Early Treatment of Bipolar Disorder Children

The benefits of early diagnosis of bipolar in children are many, but perhaps the most important fact is, their chances of being successfully treated and living normal lives are greatly improved. However, being children, providing treatment for them can be an extremely sensitive issue as parents and doctors often don't agree. In many cases, doctors favor medication as the primary treatment and recommend therapy only to augment the medication bipolar kids receive. On the other hand, a large percentage of parents and an increasing number of psychologists don't believe this to be the ideal course of action.

Of course it's understandable for parents to feel this way when one considers the effects which these medications can have on a child's personality traits. In fact, it's not only children, but adults as well that are vulnerable to the effects of bipolar medication. Many parents claim that such medications tend to deprive their kids of their unique individuality, often causing them to become increasingly despondent and in some cases, almost disconnected in a sense. With these effects having been reported on so many occasions, one cannot help but to wander if these kids would be better off without medication.

Therapy Treatment

One alternative treatment for bipolar disorder children, known as play therapy, has enjoyed much success in helping kids with this condition to enjoy happy childhoods. During this therapy, bipolar kids are put in various hypothetical situations and they are then encouraged to respond in an acceptable manner and to find solutions which are emotionally well balanced. One must however also realize that some bipolar children symptoms, such as mood swings, can be so severe that play therapy may well prove to be ineffective. In cases where the symptoms are this severe, the child may in fact have little or no control over their actions or even their emotions.

A relatively new line of therapy which involves teaching patients how to recognize the symptoms of bipolar disorder, as well as factors that could trigger mood swings, is known as cognitive behavioral therapy. Furthermore, patients are also taught how to avoid bouts of depression and how best to manage such episodes when they do occur. Adults in particular can benefit from cognitive behavioral therapy, with or without medication.

Cognitive Therapy

One drawback of cognitive behavioral therapy is that it most often requires a relatively high degree of problem solving and lines of thinking which a child doesn't have, hence the reason why this form of therapy is not frequently used when treating bipolar kids. There is however those who feel that if the techniques were altered accordingly, this therapy could prove to be beneficial for treating bipolar in children but of course, there are others who argue that this is easier said than done.

Essentially, it's fundamental that absolutely everyone who is in some way involved with a bipolar kid, gets together in order to discuss the various treatment options. This includes not only the parents, but also psychologists, psychiatrists, pediatricians, and even teachers. If parents or even a teacher becomes concerned with regards to the effect any treatment may be having on a child, it should be discussed as soon as possible and the necessary action taken, even it that means a change of doctor.

Bipolar Children and Adolescent Bipolar Diagnosis

It is a hard thing to diagnose for sure. Often times bipolar disorder in children seems like ADHD, or normal active behavior for the child. Many times children go from depression to being manic and then to normal behavior very quickly, only taking a matter of days or weeks to transition.

Many times suicide can occur suddenly and with no previous warning.  This differs from older adult age people, who usually have long depressions and the suicide is often times premeditated. This fact makes it crucial that bipolar in children be properly diagnosed and the correct treatment given.

Bipolar in Children Symptoms

Often the symptoms of bipolar in children show up as mania.   This can be in the form of hallucinations (visual and auditory). It may appear to be hard to tell these from just a young child's ordinary imagination. The truth is that it really is at times.  Other times though the voices that are heard and the visions that are seen are much more terrifying or disturbing than a normal child without bipolar can possibly imagine.

Adolescent Bipolar Dangers

When it comes to adolescent bipolar, their symptoms are more towards what the adult's symptoms are. The big complication with teens is if they are using alcohol or drugs. This is often done to control the different moods that can happen with this disorder, adults and teens both do this self medicating. This is so dangerous because it can cover up the disorder's actual symptoms. Adolescent bipolar should always be suspected when they are using drugs.

When it comes to bipolar disorder in children, who are in their teenage years, it is harder than adults because the teens are still minors. These teens are often at odds with authority figures and they can be hard to get to conform to treatment options.

But there are a few methods for minimizing the confusion. Consulting with the teachers that the child has, gives the parent an idea of what goes on daily with the child. It also allows the parent to know how the child does away from home.

Consult a Doctor

Since many doctors out there disagree about bipolar in children, it is wise to get a second opinion. Once the second opinion has been received, a totally informed decision about treatment can be made and how to go forward with it. A second opinion helps clear things up in the event that one doctor can be wrong diagnosing bipolar in children. A guardian or parent should always closely listen to know if the doctor's decision sounds plausible. But it does fall to the parents to make the final decision. A wrong diagnosis leading to wrong treatment would be hard to think of, but in the event that bipolar disorder in children is the right diagnosis, it is advisable to accept it and go forward. It is always important to take care of bipolar children.

Bipolar Disorder in Children Treatment

Medication

Diagnosing bipolar in children enables treatment to be enacted early enough so that as adults they can lead normal lives. But the treatment for children with bipolar is very controversial. Many physicians prefer to use medication to begin with and then work therapy around the medications. But many doctors and parents do not agree with this approach.

The fact is that many parents notice that when their bipolar children are placed on medication,  the children's personality seems to be altered and lose some of the traits that are so familiar to the parents. Adults and children alike, who get unnecessarily medicated or over medicated lose themselves to a certain extent. Some of the medications can cause the children to be spaced out, very despondent, or out of it. This makes the doctors and parents very concerned, and makes them wonder if medication is the answer for children.

Bipolar in Children – Play Therapy

It has been proven that play therapy can be helpful with bipolar disorder in children. This also assists them to have a happier childhood. This type of therapy usually has the children placed in hypothetical scenarios that help them to learn how to figure out an emotionally healthy and logical solution. For some children this play therapy is quite successful, but for others it does not work. In particular cases of bipolar disorder in children, the symptoms and mood swings can be so severe as to make the child not capable of controlling their reactions emotionally or their actions to situations or other things that could stimulate them.

Bipolar in Children – Cognitive Behavioral Therapy

A pretty new kind of therapy called cognitive behavioral therapy helps the patient learn what may trigger inappropriate behavior and mood swings, the alternative to this inappropriate type behavior, and also learning to recognize the symptoms to their disorder. With cognitive behavioral therapy, the patient is allowed to see if they can avoid having depressive or manic spells, and also how to control the spells better when they do have them. With adults, this option for treatment is very possible. It is successful in some cases without medication and does work well with medication.

This type of therapy though does call for critical thinking and problem solving skills at a level not usually present with children. So because of this, it is not normally used with children having bipolar disorder who are under a particular maturity or age level. Some do believe that if the cognitive behavioral therapy techniques were changed to accommodate children, they could be equally effective on the children. However, this would be a very difficult task to accomplish.

Involvement of Parents and Teachers of Bipolar Children

Treatment options should always be discussed with parents, medical professionals and teachers. Anyone who is involved with the children should be involved in the course of treatment for the maximum success. If the teacher or the parent has questions about the effects of the treatment for the bipolar disorder in children or students,  they should be asked in the beginning so that if the treatment needs to be altered it can be. Parents also should not be afraid of going to other doctors if they feel the treatment or medication is not working for their bipolar children.