Is bipolar II disorder serious?

Bipolar II is a very severe mood disorder that affects 3-4% of the population. Like Bipolar I it is genetically transmitted and runs in families. It is first and foremost a disorder of abnormal neurochemical functioning in the brain; not due to psychological stressors or character.

Bipolar II has recurring mood episodes that include: severe depression and hypomanic episodes. Hypomanias are mood episodes that arise spontaneously (i.e. not triggered by life events). They can last from a day or two to a week; sometimes longer. During hypomanic episodes the person feels very up-beat, optimistic, very self-confident, and experiences a decreased need for sleep. Such episodes are not pathological and in fact can be experienced as a huge relief from depressions that are so much of the landscape of bipolar II. However, it is the depressive side of this disorder that can be devastating.

Recurring depressive episodes dominate the lives of people with Bipolar II, unless controlled with mood stabilizing medications. Depressive episodes can last from a few months to a few years and if sufferers are not treated or are inadequately treated more than 50% of their lives are spent in severe episodes of depression. Surprisingly, Bipolar II can have a worse outcome than Bipolar I (unless appropriately treated). Divorce rates are higher in Bipolar II than in Bipolar I. The lifetime suicide rate is 19% and serious medical problems are much more common in Bipolar illness; e.g. twice the death rate from heart attacks compared with people who do not have mood disorders

Bipolar disorder is a severe mood disorder. Unfortunately there is no cure. However, treatment with mood stabilizing medications and lifestyle management can reduce and sometimes eliminate mood episodes (as long as medication treatment and lifestyle adjustments are maintained). Specific lifestyle changes have been shown to be very effective in reducing the severity and frequency of episodes and psychiatric hospitalizations. The following are high-yield strategies: get between 7-9 hours of sleep every night, avoid sleep deprivation, limit the use of caffeine to the morning (if taken later in the day can interfere with sleep), waking at the same time each day (something most people do not want to do, but it stabilizes the circadian rhythm which results in greater mood stability), completely avoid methamphetamine and cocaine, and use alcohol sparingly.