If you're happy and you know it clap your hands

"Like most diseases, bipolar disorder comes in different shapes and sizes and can be difficult to diagnose. Few people or physicians would miss classic bipolar disorder, with its cyclic episodes of severe depression and full-blown mania. After all, there is nothing subtle about mania, grandiose and often psychotic thinking, elated mood, superhuman energy and libido and reckless judgment.

But a milder form of mania, called hypomania, is not obvious at all, especially in someone like Bruce who happens to be temperamentally dramatic and lively. That is because hypomanic people feel very happy, have lots of energy, need little sleep and are generally fun to be with. And they certainly do not run to doctors complaining of happiness.

So it is easy to see how hypomania could masquerade as cheerful character. In the same way, dysthymia, hypomania's dark twin, has often been confused with gloomy temperament, when in fact it is a treatable form of low-grade depression."

Hypomania is the fun stuff. It's when people think you're really fun to be around. But it is usually the precursor to a full-blown manic episode. But people like the guy in this story just lived in hypomanic states for a long time. I think my mania is a lot like that. I make stupid financial decisions and take a lot of risks, but I never get to the point of doing anything REALLY stupid. Well, ok, sometimes I do, and that's the mania. To see some interesting stories on bipolar, check out this series from the NYT.

Patient voices series from New York Times.