What Parents Should Know About
Bipolar Disorder In Children

Bipolar disorder in children

If you’re a parent you should be aware that Bipolar disorder in children can be quite a challenge for you as someone who raises and guides a child suffering from Bipolar symptoms.

Even you’re not a parent but anyone who knows someone suffering from Bipolar symptoms. You can make a lot of difference if you can understand the situation of someone with the disorder. You can help give solutions to the problem.

Understand the Child and Save the Trouble

By having sufficient understanding of what a child is going through when showing Bipolar symptoms, you can save lots of time, money and effort with the problem and avoid unnecessary mistakes and frustrations. Bipolar symptoms can be a menace to parents when they see their child acting strange and causing trouble.

Your child could be very active and energetic doing all sorts of things, running around, playing around and bothering other people having impulsive behavior which usually leads them to trouble. This is the high moods of Bipolar symptoms called "mania."

The mania episode of Bipolar disorder in children can be more intense than in adults because of the natural playfulness and the aggressiveness of the youth. Yet there are times when the child is suddenly sad, weak, lacks appetite, having procrastination tendencies and could be saying negative things about the self and others which could lead them to anxiety problems.

This is something parents could be so clueless about. This is the low moods of Bipolar symptoms called "depression."

There can be questions in your mind like:

  • What is happening to my child?
  • Did my child eat something that made him/her feel sick?
  • Did my child have a fight at school?
  • Was my child scolded by the teacher?
  • Did my child lose in a game?

A Cause of Misunderstanding

There can be a lot of misunderstanding to parents when there is Bipolar disorder in children and it can cost them a lot of trouble and confusion on what to do with their child. 

To solve this, some parents could spend a lot with toys, gadgets and all sorts of things to make their child feel better. Yet some "spoils" their child giving everything he/she wants. They can also spend on supplements and treatments which doesn’t work much.

Or even invest on activities and programs for their child thinking they can improve the capabilities and attitudes of their child.

Children Doesn't Like It

Bipolar disorder in children can make someone look weird or unpleasant to be with. Your child could act naughty or haughty and get into trouble but it doesn’t mean that she/he really means it.

Children with Bipolar symptoms are usually misunderstood by normal kids especially by peers and classmates at school. They can be treated like "outcasts" or as "out of the group" and they may tend to go solo in doing certain activities at school.

Having Bipolar disorder in children can be a difficult experience for a child during the stages of growth and development. They do not like it when people mistreat them and they themselves could not know what their behavior really is. They could not have really meant doing the troublesome things they do to others.

Give Them Concern

Understanding Bipolar disorder in children first, is the right approach towards the problem. Why do they do what they do? Could they be going through something?

Like ADHD in children and ADHD symptoms which have some similarities to Bipolar symptoms you should have “awareness” and make “adjustments” for the person.

Gain knowledge about the problem or sickness and show them some care and patience because a positive approach can lessen the degree of Bipolar symptoms.

Bipolar disorder in children should not be provoked or given an offensive approach like scolding, nagging and implementing fear. It would trigger the Bipolar symptoms and can make it worse especially the depression episode or "low moods."

A child is much less matured than an adult and could not have any coping skills yet, so they can be very vulnerable to negative treatments. Plus the depression episode of Bipolar disorder in children can be more severe than in adults giving more tendencies to hurt themselves and think of suicide attempts.

Making Bipolar Disorder in Children Easier

This is what every parent concerned should know about. To make it easier for a child and lessen the effects of Bipolar disorder, they should be given proper help, support and encouragement on their condition.

Help reduce stress and help manage the source of it. Stress can come from anywhere, anytime depending on the circumstances but if there are people such as families and friends who can help then it would be better.

Teach your child relaxation techniques or you can get a coach to guide and help make it more effective. This practice can remove stress and comfort anxiety symptoms.

Create a pleasant environment to live, a clean and an organized home without clutter lying anywhere. This would help "lighten" the condition of Bipolar symptoms and lessen its appearance.

Help Them Grow and Develop Better

As a parent or someone who cares, you should help your child suffering from Bipolar symptoms develop herself/himself in many aspects of life.

Investing in personality development can be a great help because a child would be able to improve her/his attitudes and personality. Virtues such as self control and patience can develop and improve. This can help reduce the appearance of Bipolar symptoms and help overcome the effects when it’s there.

Help develop study skills so it would be easier for the child to learn at school and get better grades. This can also lessen the stress a child experiences while studying and trying to learn new things.

More on Bipolar Treatment

You should know that the first important step for treating Bipolar disorder in children is having diagnosis through a doctor and having sufficient knowledge about the disorder. But what is more significant is parental care or adult care. Then there should be the assistance of a doctor or psychiatrist for guidance and medication as needed.

Know more about treatment of Bipolar symptoms by studying more. There are also professional instructors and coaches who can help and guide your child towards improvement of personality and abilities.

While therapies can be applied to improve the condition of a child, total dependence on drugs is not recommended because some drugs can create "side effects" and may create a negative reaction with Bipolar disorder.


Understanding Bipolar symptoms and having sufficient knowledge about it will save your child a lot of time and trouble which can be used for more productive things in life.

Every parent should know the importance of child rearing and development and Bipolar disorder in children is not something to be neglected or given less attention because the proper treatment of Bipolar disorder can determine how great the future of a child will be.



Go from Bipolar Disorder in Children to Effective Time Management Tips