With bipolar disorder becoming increasingly diagnosed, it is still slightly controversial to diagnose children with manic depression. This is because many natural childhood behaviors mimic early onset bipolar disorder.
Here are five common false positives that may be accidentally diagnosed as childhood bipolar disorder.
OCD
Obsessive compulsive disorder is an anxiety disorder where children have irrational thoughts and fears, which result in repeating the same process over and over again. For example, a child stressed about making it to school the next day may check his alarm clock a set number of times each night before going to bed.
Another child may take special care to step over the cracks in a sidewalk. Oftentimes, children will try to hide these quarks as they are embarrassed by them.
Sleep Issues
Most children have trouble with their sleeping patterns, due to an unnatural modern way of life. A number of conditions, including sleep apnea, can cause irritability and increase fatigue, mimicking the mania and depression of early onset bipolar disorder.
Family Troubles
A stressful family situation can cause children to have major mood swings, even if they do not suffer from childhood bipolar disorder. In particular, major life events such as a death in the family, financial problems, or a new sibling can trigger seemingly manic and depressive moods.
Depression
Unipolar depression is rare in children, but it does occur. Depressed children often seemed angry, as they don’t know how to deal with their feelings.
Anxiety
Children commonly have worries and fears, whether they be going to school every day, that a monster is under the bed, or that they are afraid to go to sleep at night. Anxiety is common in childhood bipolar disorder, but one must rule out the other signs of manic depression before a simple diagnosis of anxiety can be made.
It is important to be patient when trying to receive a diagnosis for your child’s condition. It can take months or even years to discover what is truly causing their problems, and it may be as simple as a food allergy. It is extremely difficult for doctors to make an accurate diagnosis of childhood behavior and mood disorders.