Mania, also known as manic syndrome, is a mental and behavioral disorder defined as a state of abnormally elevated arousal, affect, and energy level, or "a state of heightened overall activation with enhanced affective expression together with lability of affect." During a manic episode, an individual will experience rapidly changing emotions and moods, highly influenced by surrounding stimuli. Although mania is often conceived as a "mirror image" to depression, the heightened mood can be either euphoric or dysphoric. As the mania intensifies, irritability can be more pronounced and result in anxiety or anger. The symptoms of mania include elevated mood (either euphoric or irritable), flight of ideas and pressure of speech, increased energy, decreased need and desire for sleep, and hyperactivity. They are most plainly evident in fully developed hypomanic states. However, in full-blown mania, they undergo progressively severe exacerbations and become more and more obscured by other signs and symptoms, such as delusions and fragmentation of behavior. Causes and diagnosis
Mania is a syndrome with multiple causes. Although the vast majority of cases occur in the context of bipolar disorder, it is a key component of other psychiatric disorders (such as schizoaffective disorder, bipolar type) and may also occur secondary to various general medical conditions, such as multiple sclerosis; certain medications may perpetuate a manic state, for example prednisone; or substances prone to abuse, especially stimulants, such as caffeine and cocaine.
There is some evidence that people in the creative industries have bipolar disorder more often than those in other occupations.Winston Churchill had periods of manic symptoms that may have been both an asset and a liability.English actor Stephen Fry, who has bipolar disorder, recounts manic behaviour during his adolescence: "When I was about 17 ... going around London on two stolen credit cards, it was a sort of fantastic reinvention of myself, an attempt to. I bought ridiculous suits with stiff collars and silk ties from the 1920s, and would go to the Savoy and Ritz and drink cocktails." While he has experienced suicidal thoughts, he says the manic side of his condition has had positive contributions on his life. Etymology
The nosology of the various stages of a manic episode has changed over the decades. The word derives from the Ancient Greek μανία (manía), "madness, frenzy" and the verb μαίνομαι (maínomai), "to be mad, to rage, to be furious". See also
References
Further reading
Expert Opin Pharmacother. 2001 December;2(12):1963–73. Schizoaffective Disorder. 2007 September Mayo Clinic. Retrieved October 1, 2007. Schizoaffective Disorder Archived 2011-08-18 at the Wayback Machine. 2004 May. All Psych Online: Virtual Psychology Classroom. Retrieved October 2, 2007. Psychotic Disorders. 2004 May. All Psych Online: Virtual Psychology Classroom. Retrieved October 2, 2007. Sajatovic, Martha; DiBiovanni, Sue Kim; Bastani, Bijan; Hattab, Helen; Ramirez, Luis F. (1996). "Risperidone therapy in treatment refractory acute bipolar and schizoaffective mania". Psychopharmacology Bulletin. 32 (1): 55–61. PMID 8927675. External links

Bipolar Mania Symptoms
Depression and Bipolar Support Alliance