It's been known for a long time that bipolar disorder can be inherited. A new study, published in March 2009, has found that children with at least one bipolar parent are almost 14 times as likely than others to develop bipolar disorder in childhood. To a lesser but still significant degree, children with one or two bipolar parents were also more likely to develop other mood disorders, anxiety disorders, and other serious mental illnesses before the age of 18.As I said, we already knew that BP can run in families. This study, though, puts some numbers on the likelihood. This doesn't mean you mustn't have children if you are manic-depressive; it does mean you should monitor your children's behavior for the signs and symptoms of childhood-onset bipolar disorder (COBPD).
Source: Lifetime Psychiatric Disorders in School-Aged Offspring of Parents With Bipolar Disorder
Photo: Stacy Braswell
I can vouch for that. We adopted a son whose birth father has bipolar I and his mother had some kind of mental disorder. He said bipolar, but it seems she also had psychotic breaks. He was in a group home for much of his life.
Our son who is 10.5 years old is now showing signs of mania and depression. We have had him in to be assessed by a therapist and she is giving her assessment to the pdoc that we see next month.
We are feeling much more capable of coping with any bipolar disorder in our son now that I am dx’ed with bipolar II.
Just my take on it.
Grace happens – even with bipolar people.
Denise
My mother is bipolar and never got care for it. I have it also, but I am getting help through medications and therapy.