Manic Attacks - What is Really Happening?

A manic attack is considered a one week period of a persistent and abnormal, elevated or irritable mood. The elevated or expansive mood disturbance must be accompanied by at least three of the following symptoms and the irritable mood must be accompanied by at least four of the following symptoms in order to attribute either to a manic attack. These symptoms are lack of need for sleep, ability to be distracted easily, inflated self-esteem or grandiosity, psychomotor agitation or increased participation in goal-directed activities, or excessive need for pleasurable activities with a high potential for painful consequences.

These episodes or attacks sometimes last from a few days to possibly months. Individuals who cycle rapidly have brief elevated moods for about a week before the cycle ends. They then go into a severe depression until the cycle begins again. During the manic episode, it is possible that the person may not recognize that there is anything wrong so treatment of the problem can be difficult. Although there are many theories as to the cause of manic attacks, it has been proven that certain medications can exacerbate the manic episode, such as anti-depressants, steroid use and the use of recreational drugs such as cocaine and marijuana. It is also noted that some light therapy can exacerbate the problem.

If you think you know someone that may have this illness, you will want to make a list of the noticeable changes that you see and the period of time that they last. You will want to bring these to your friends' attention and encourage them to seek the advice of their physician.