Leading mental health charity, Bipolar UK, has today relaunched their campaign to help people identify if they might have bipolar.
The charity estimates one million people are affected by bipolar in the UK, that’s 2% of the population. However, with delays to diagnosis common, over half (56%) of people living with the condition in the UK are yet to be diagnosed, posing a significant risk to their lives.
To tackle this, the newly named ‘Maybe it’s bipolar?’ campaign has launched after an initial pilot successfully reached over 1.5 million people in the first six months alone, encouraging anyone experiencing certain mental health symptoms to take an online test to assess whether or not they may have bipolar. The campaign is also aimed at the friends and family of people with unexplained symptoms to prompt them to share the resources.
The new awareness campaign includes a film by the charity’s ambassadors April Kelley (actor, writer, and BIFA-nominated producer) and Rosie Viva (model, presenter and author) who both live with bipolar.
They brought in a co-director and composer who also have lived experience of the condition to create a split-screen film helping people to recognise symptoms, such as periods of high energy, restlessness, difficulty sleeping, increased risk-taking and/or impulsive behaviour, followed by periods of low mood, which may be signs of bipolar.
The campaign will also include a series of adverts on social media platforms Instagram and TikTok highlighting the six common symptoms of hypomania, including impulsive spending, irritability, difficulty sleeping and the lesser known and highly stigmatised symptom of hypersexual behaviour.
With bipolar symptoms commonly first noticeable in teenagers and young adults (almost 50% of people get symptoms before the age of 21) the charity hopes to encourage more young people who are getting certain symptoms to consider the campaign’s message – ‘maybe it’s bipolar?’ and avoid years of living with unmanaged symptoms and/or potential misdiagnosis and incorrect treatment.
Speaking about the success of the pilot and the relaunch, CEO of Bipolar UK, Simon Kitchen, said: “This campaign is crucial for the hundreds of thousands of people in UK who are living with undiagnosed bipolar. The earlier someone gets a diagnosis and specialist treatment, the better their long-term outcome.
“Yet in the UK, after first telling a healthcare professional about their symptoms, it takes an average of nine-and-a-half years to get a diagnosis.
“During this lost decade, people living with undiagnosed bipolar are at risk of losing their jobs, relationships, homes and lives.
“By getting people who are struggling with their mental health to consider that ‘maybe it’s bipolar?’ we are supporting them to take the first step on the journey to diagnosis so they can get the treatment and support they need to live well.
“The campaign not only helps those who suspect they might have bipolar, but is also a valuable resource for friends and family to understand how best to support someone who’s having certain symptoms.”
The campaign is part of the charity’s ongoing mission to provide parity of care for people living with bipolar and reduce the risk of unintended consequences that can arise if hypomania is not treated.
Bipolar has the highest risk of suicide of any mental health condition and global research estimates that 15-20% of people living with bipolar will die by suicide, and 60% of people with bipolar will attempt suicide at least once during their lifetime.
“One of the many reasons behind the shockingly high risk of suicide in those with bipolar may be the long delay in diagnosis. Another key factor is that there isn’t a specialist bipolar care pathway in the UK, which would speed up diagnosis and save bipolar lives,” adds Kitchen.
