What is cyclothymia?

What is cyclothymia?
The cyclothymic temperament is marked by episodes of erratic behavior - e.g. promiscuity, changes of residence or job, brief religion/cult affiliations followed by disillusion and episodic drug use (stimulants and sedatives).

Patient often talk in terms of their highs (typically lasting a few days) when they may have energy and creative spurts, sleep less and feel confident and their lows when they become “slothful”, lose confidence and self esteem, withdraw socially and feel guilty irritable and nervous.

There was a suggestion that their “tempestuous” life styles often create interpersonal havoc. These patients are often oven personality disorder diagnoses such as borderline, passive-aggressive histrionic or antisocial.

However with only an in depth phenomenology study and prospective follow up did it become clear that their personality maladjustments reflected underlying phasic affective dysregulation.

There is an underlying affective instability which gives rose to a “tempestuous” life style and this life style is instrumental in bringing about the life events which exasperate the mood disorder (e.g., broken relationships, loss of job, etc).

Historical accounts indicate that many cases cyclothymia were familial and many relatives manifested similar symptoms. Recent studies confirmed a genetic relationship between cyclothymic disorder and bipolar disorder, although other nonbipolar affective disorders are also found in these families did not find an increase familial prevalence of cyclothymia in unipolar probands compared with medical and control subjects, suggesting that the genetic aspects of cyclothymia are more specifically associated with bipolar, rather than unipolar, pedigrees.
What is cyclothymia?