Mania

Mania is a type of mood. Mania is usually a symptom of a medical problem or a mental illness. A person with mania is described as manic.

When people are manic, they usually have much more energy than usual. They often have very strong emotions, and their moods may change very quickly.^[1]

The word "mania" comes from the Greek language (μwordsανία means mania).^[2] That word comes from μαίνομαι (mainomai), which means "to rage" or "to be furious" (very angry).

Mania is a symptom, not an illness by itself. Many different things can cause mania. These things include illegal drugs and brain tumors. However, most of the time, mania happens in people with bipolar disorder. Bipolar disorder causes periods of mania that switch off with periods of depression.^[3]

Like with other symptoms, mania can be mild (not very bad), severe (very bad), or anywhere in between. Mild mania is usually called "hypomania." Very bad mania can cause psychosis, with hallucinations and delusions.^[4]

Sometimes people with mania may need to be hospitalized so they do not hurt themselves or other people. Many people with mania and hypomania have special creativity and artistic talents.^[5]

1. ↑ Berrios GE (2004). "Of mania". History of Psychiatry. 15 (57 Pt 1): 105–124. doi:10.1177/0957154X04041829. PMID 15104084. S2CID 144834866.
2. ↑ Mania, Henry George Liddell, Robert Scott, A Greek-English Lexicon, at Perseus
3. ↑ Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders: DSM-5. Washington, D.C.: American Psychiatric Association. 2022. ISBN 9780890425763.
4. ↑ Semple, David (2005). Oxford Handbook of Psychiatry. Oxford University Press. ISBN 9780198527831.
5. ↑ Jamison, Kay R. (1996), Touched with Fire: Manic-Depressive Illness and the Artistic Temperament, New York: Free Press, ISBN 0-684-83183-X