Mood
Hypomania
Related terms · Hypomanic state
Hypomania is a state where mood and activity become elated or irritable, and changes such as not feeling tired despite reduced sleep, persist for a certain period.
Overview
Hypomania: Please look at these three things first
- Hypomania is a state where, unlike usual, your mood and activity levels become elated or irritable, and you continue to feel energetic even with reduced sleep.
- Unlike the temporary vitality felt after a good day or a restless night, check whether your speech, thoughts, spending, appointments, and judgment are distinctly different from usual.
- Depression If these changes occur during treatment, do not stop your medication on your own and promptly notify your psychiatry treatment team.
Meaning and Distinctions
What is hypomania?
In hypomania, you may feel more elated or irritable than usual, your activities, speech, and thoughts may speed up, and you may feel less fatigue even if you sleep less. While you may feel that your productivity has improved, those around you may notice changes in your spending, appointments, judgment, and daily rhythm. Hypomania is a state where mood and activity become elated or irritable, and changes such as not feeling tired despite reduced sleep persist for a certain period.
- Easily confused terms
- Unlike the temporary vitality felt after a good day or a restless night, check whether your speech, spending, judgment, and activities are distinctly different from usual.
- Why this is checked during medical evaluation
- First, confirm the possibility of bipolar disorder and the influence of medication at a psychiatry clinic, then continue current treatment. When considering Korean herbal medicine treatment together, the fact that sleep has decreased is not viewed simply as insomnia; instead, the treatment scope is determined by examining how the increase in activity, speech, spending, and impulsivity changed during the same period as throbbing, digestion, body heat, and tension.
- What to write down for your visit
- Record by date how many hours of sleep were reduced compared to usual, for how long, and how your speech, activity, spending, appointments, and impulsivity changed. Please also provide information on changes in prescribed medications such as antidepressants, steroids, or stimulants, as well as caffeine and alcohol intake. If you remain elated despite almost no sleep, or if you experience dangerous behavior, delusions, hallucinations, or thoughts of self-harm or harming others, seek a psychiatry evaluation or emergency evaluation before Korean herbal medicine treatment.
Learn more
Connecting hypomania to my symptoms
Check both your own sense of vitality and the changes noticed by those around you
Even if you feel that things are going well and your confidence has increased, family or colleagues may notice that your speech has become faster and that your appointments, spending, driving, or interpersonal conflicts have changed. Record your sleep duration, activity level, spending, and important decisions for a few days and compare them with your usual self.
Do not only mention depressive periods; you must also report elated periods
When receiving medical evaluation, you must mention not only the periods of depression and lethargy but also the periods when you were not tired despite little sleep and when your activity increased significantly. Since thyroid diseases and medication effects can cause similar changes, overall medication history and test results are reviewed. If your judgment of reality becomes blurred or you have thoughts of dangerous behavior or self-harm, seek immediate psychiatric emergency help.
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions when looking into hypomania
Is it hypomania if I feel good and things are going well?
Judgment is not made based on that fact alone. We evaluate whether the need for sleep has decreased, speech, thoughts, and activities have sped up, spending, judgment, and relationships have distinctly changed from usual, and whether this has persisted for a certain period.
If I sleep less and feel elated after taking antidepressants, should I stop the medication?
Do not discontinue the medication arbitrarily; immediately notify your prescribing medical team of the date the changes began and the changes in sleep, activity, and impulsivity. The medication must be adjusted safely after evaluating your current state.
Sleep and Mind Glossary
Compare similar terms here
You can check the brief meaning first and then proceed to the detailed explanation.Read More
Check guides where this term is used
- Condition GuideDepressionDepression is a condition that impairs functioning, characterized not only by sadness but also by loss of interest, changes in sleep and appetite, fatigue, poor concentration, guilt, and thoughts of death. We also check for anemia, thyroid issues, pain, medication effects, and the possibility of bipolar disorder. Rather than simply raising mood scores, we aim to reconnect basic functions such as washing, eating, going to work, and conversing. Thoughts or plans of suicide, inability to eat or drink, delusions, hallucinations, or a state of euphoria despite almost no sleep require immediate mental health or emergency evaluation.→
- Medical GuideWhat should I check when I am confused between depression and burnout?Depression and burnout are not distinguished solely by whether symptoms improve when you take a break. During your consultation, please verify if the low mood and loss of interest persist even when away from work, how much sleep, appetite, concentration, and self-reproach have changed, and whether there were periods of euphoria between depressive episodes.→
- Sleep & Mind ColumnWhat is the difference between depression and bipolar disorder? Signs of hypomania/mania and treatment options→
Evidence and Update Information
The following materials were referenced to verify the basis and scope of the definitions and treatment explanations.
- NIMH: Bipolar DisorderChanges in mood, sleep, and activity in mania, hypomania, and depressive episodes