
If you experience hypomania (and any other symptoms of bipolar disorder), it could be because it runs in your family, Dr. Experts don’t really know what causes hypomania, but genetics and neurological factors seem to play a role in bipolar disorder in general. Since this doesn’t quite fit into the categories of bipolar I, bipolar II, or cyclothymic disorder, it’s diagnosed as Other Specified Bipolar and Related Disorders, hypomanic episode without prior major depressive episode, Dr. “There a small subset of people who experience only hypomanic episodes,” Dr. Some people with a condition related to bipolar disorder may only have hypomania.

In order to qualify as having cyclothymic disorder, you must experience these symptoms on and off for at least two years. If you have cyclothymic disorder, you go through alternating periods of hypomanic and depressive symptoms that aren’t severe enough to fulfill the criteria of having actual hypomanic and depressive episodes. Much like hypomania is a less severe version of mania, cyclothymic disorder (also known as cyclothymia) is a less extreme version of bipolar disorder, according to the NIMH. A condition called cyclothymic disorder, which presents as a less severe form of bipolar disorder, also involves hypomania. Hypomanic episodes are a non-negotiable part of this diagnosis. In order to be diagnosed with bipolar II disorder, you must have at least one hypomanic episode and one depressive episode, but no manic episodes, the NIMH explains. Basically, someone with bipolar I may deal with a variety of mood phases that don’t necessarily include hypomania.

Someone with bipolar I may also experience depressive episodes lasting at least two weeks, or mixed episodes with symptoms of depression and mania. While the minimum is four days, these can last up to several months, Dr. You may also experience episodes of hypomania.

In order to be clinically diagnosed with bipolar I disorder, you have to have at least one manic episode lasting at least seven days (or severe enough to require hospitalization), per the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH).
