If someone shows signs of mania, stay calm, minimize stimulation (noise, crowds), avoid confrontation, and encourage rest and routine; focus on providing support by offering simple foods, removing tempting items like credit cards, and crucially, seek urgent professional help if they're a risk to themselves or others, potentially by calling a crisis team or 988.
Here are some ways you can help during a manic episode.
You can use a 48 hour rule where you wait at least 2 full days with 2 nights sleep before acting on risky decisions. Review your decision to avoid a tempting, but risky, behaviour.
While there isn't one universal "4 stages" model, mania in bipolar disorder is often described as progressing through levels of severity: Hypomania (milder, increased energy), Acute Mania (severe impairment, risky behavior), and Delirious Mania (most severe, psychosis, disorientation), sometimes with an initial Prodromal or "early" stage, reflecting increasing intensity and potential for psychosis or hospitalization.
Getting them to the hospital
If your city has a mobile crisis team, you can call them and they will come to your house to do an assessment. They will ask you a lot of questions, and then help you get your family member to the hospital as needed.
If you're experiencing any of these situations, it's essential to call 911 or get to the nearest emergency room: Thoughts of death or suicide. Thoughts or plans of hurting yourself or others. Experiencing hallucinations and delusions.
What should I avoid saying to someone during a manic episode? Avoid dismissive comments, telling them to “calm down,” arguing about what they see or feel, downplaying their experience, or using confrontational language.
A significant change in your life, such as a divorce, house move or death of a loved one. Difficult life situations, such as trauma or abuse, or problems with housing, money or loneliness. A high level of stress and an inability to manage it. A lack of sleep or changes in sleep pattern.
9 tips for how to stop a manic episode immediately
The duration of a manic episode can vary, but in general: Untreated manic episodes typically last from one week to several weeks. Hypomanic episodes are less severe, usually lasting a few days to a week.
Manic and hypomanic episodes include three or more of these symptoms:
Watching someone you love struggle with Bipolar Disorder can be equally challenging and exhausting. Seeing your loved one experience hopelessness, frequent crying spells, social and career frustrations, and feelings of worthlessness can be heartbreaking.
What is the life expectancy of someone with bipolar disorder? Experts have established that living with any mental health condition reduces your life expectancy by anywhere from 7–10 years . The life expectancy for someone with bipolar disorder is approximately 67 years old.
Only 22.5 % recognized that they had experienced a (hypo)manic episode, only 17.5 % had consulted a health professional for a (hypo)manic episode, and only 12.5 % remembered having received a diagnosis of bipolar disorder and had received minimally adequate treatment.
Ignoring a person with bipolar disorder can escalate their mood swings and trigger their negative emotions. It can be harmful to a person and your relationship with that person. This is because such a person might experience frequent changes in emotional stability.
In bipolar disorder, a personmay experience psychosisduring themanic phase, which can have a duration of weeks to months.
11 Ways To Support Someone During Mania
Medications are essential for managing bipolar disorder, but lifestyle changes can support your treatment. Activities like art therapy, journaling, and relaxation techniques can help manage bipolar symptoms. Stick to a routine, eat a healthy diet, and exercise regularly to help stabilize your mood.
The Takeaway. A poor diet can contribute to bipolar mood episodes, and certain food choices may help manage them. People with bipolar disorder should avoid or limit caffeine, alcohol, sugar, salt, and saturated fats.
For example:
There isn't one single or clear-cut reason that someone may become hypomanic or manic. It seems to be a combination of long-term and short-term factors, which differ from person to person. These are some possible causes of hypomania or mania: High levels of stress.
Negative and Positive Life Events
In the same sense, positive life events such as goal attainment, falling in love, or winning an award, can also trigger an episode of mania. This is because individuals with bipolar disorder have a higher “reward response” chemically speaking, which can manifest with consequences.
The duration of bipolar episodes can vary widely. On average: Manic or Hypomanic Episodes: These can last from a few days to several weeks. Hypomanic episodes are generally shorter and less severe than manic episodes.
Common triggers for episodes include stressful life events, drastic changes, substance abuse, disrupted sleep, and abruptly stopping medication. During manic episodes, avoid arguments, intense conversations, and taking comments personally; staying calm helps reduce tension and creates a safer environment.
Clinicians like Foram Mehta of Medical News Today define mania as an abnormally elevated or irritable mood lasting at least a week, paired with symptoms like inflated self-esteem, decreased need for sleep, pressured speech, racing thoughts, distractibility, and reckless behavior.