Early to treat equals less problems

Here's something interesting from 2007:

"The Journal of Pediatrics shows that childhood-onset bipolar disorder is more common than believed and often goes unrecognized and untreated for long periods of time, leading to lower quality of life and greater difficulty in treatment."

The longer bipolar goes undiagnosed, the harder it is to treat, and the closer together the cycles get (rapid cycling). My mom has this problem. By all accounts she was probably bipolar from the start, but didn't get treatment until well into her fifties. She had heavier depressions and higher highs than me, and I was diagnosed and first treated at age 15. Because I was treated so early, I have less rapid cycling, and depressions and manias which aren't as "deep."

"The patients also had an increased risk of substance abuse, a greater lifetime risk of suicide attempts, higher prevalence of lifetime anxiety disorders, and greater resistance to treatment."

Now here's where we differ. I have higher rates of anxiety and substance abuse, but my mom is allergic to everything (including pot), so she never really had the opportunity to do drugs. I, on the other hand, loved them. And I think the anxiety is a condition inherited from my dad's side. She definitely has the resistance and more suicide attempts.

All in all, I'm more stable for having been treated early in my life, and will remain stable so long as I keep treating my disorder. My mom will have a harder time at it, but can still achieve a level of normalcy with the help of medications. Interesting.