This may persist as long as the individual takes the medication, and can occur even after the medication has been decreased or stopped altogether. Cyclothymes is the fourth group of bipolar disorders. The symptoms in this group only last for a few days or weeks. In some individuals, the symptoms may be milder. However, rapid cycling occurs in this group. Rapid cycling is symptoms occurring in quick succession over and over again. An individual with rapid cycling can experience 2-3 episodes a month (http://www.thewindsofchange.org).
The problem with the different types of bipolar disorder is that the boundaries aren't clearly defined. A person with bipolar II for example, may begin to rapid cycle as well as experience a few episodes of full-blown mania. A person originally diagnosed with clinical depression may be medicated and then experience classical symptoms of bipolar I. Still yet, an individual with any form may experience mixed states. Mixed states can occur often and is characterized by an anxious, heightened state of emotion yet including symptoms of depression and mania at once. Mixed states are the most unstable and frightening (http://my.webmd.com/).
Being diagnosed with bipolar disorder can be a very long process. Most of the time, persons with bipolar disorder are diagnosed incorrectly. Initially one's doctor may diagnose bipolar incorrectly as being clinical depression, ADD, or ADHD. Patients that experience hallucinations during manic stages may be incorrectly diagnosed as having schizophrenia. By the time bipolar disorder is diagnosed correctly, the patient has already been placed on a vast assortment of medications that didn't work, or made the symptoms worse. For someone who experiences extreme shifts in mood, a whirlwind of doctors and medications can be frustrating enough, but once diagnosed there is a long road ahead before one can reach stability (http://www.