Hey... don't get too settled in.  Why not?  Because we're talking about Being Bipolar!  Come on... everyone say it along with me now!

So, right... now we have the highs or "mania".  These are a lot harder to explain than depression.  Depression's easy... you suck, everyone else sucks, you feel guilty about it or you just don't care.  Mania on the other hand is just a whole new ballgame.  I turn into a money spending freak...  in extreme cases, one might physically harm themselves or others.  I don't need to get too graphic... I'm sure you know what I mean. 

Here's what the American Psychiatric Association has to say about it.  Umm... they've got a lot to say, too :)

• A mood that seems excessively good, euphoric, expansive or irritable. The patient feels "on top of the world," and nothing--bad news, horrifying event or tragedy--will change his happiness. However, this euphoria can quickly change into irritability or anger. In either case, the mood is way out of bounds, given the situation and the individual's personality.
• Expressions of unwarranted optimism and lack of judgment. Self-confidence reaches the point of grandiose delusions in which the person thinks he has a special connection with God, celebrities, or political leaders. Or he may think that nothing--not even the laws of gravity--can stop him from accomplishing any task. As a result, he may think he can step off a building or out of a moving car without being hurt.
• Hyperactivity and excessive plans or participation in numerous activities that have a good chance for painful results. Patients become so enthusiastic about activities or involvements that they fail to recognize they haven't enough time in the day for all of them. For example, a person with bipolar illness may book several meetings, parties, deadlines and other activities in a single day, thinking he or she can make all of them on time. Added to the expansive mood, mania also can result in reckless driving, spending sprees, foolish business investments, or sexual behavior unusual for the person.
• Flight of ideas. The person's thoughts race uncontrollably like a car without brakes careening down a mountain. When the person talks, his or her words come out in a nonstop rush of ideas that abruptly change from topic to topic. In its severe form, the loud, rapid speech becomes hard to interpret because the patient's thought processes become so totally disorganized and incoherent.
• Decreased need for sleep, allowing the patient to go with little or no sleep for days without feeling tired.
• Distractibility in which the patient's attention is easily diverted to inconsequential or unimportant details.
• Sudden irritability, rage or paranoia when the person's grandiose plans are thwarted or his excessive social overtures are refused.

You'd just be the life of the party!  A hypomanic state is kind of like being halfway manic.  Personally, I think it's quite nice.  I get so many things done at work, tell lots of jokes, buy people lunch, get something resembling an ego....  Sure, I might get just a little obnoxious, but aren't most people that have lots of self-esteem?  :)

Please direct any comments, questions, or suggestions to duckie@byz.org