Manic-depression, or bipolar affective disorder, is a mood disorder with biochemical origins and usually manifests itself by a combination of extreme emotional highs and lows, either at the same time, or one or the other at different times in a person's life. There is a difference between these highs and lows in a person with a mood disorder and the usual highs and lows that all of us experience. With a mood disorder, the highs (mania) and lows (depression) are extreme enough to interfere with a person's normal level of functioning. You and your physician will want to monitor your moods very closely during your pregnancy.

A history of pre-pregnancy mood disorder does put women more at risk of developing a mood disorder during pregnancy and in the postpartum period. Early recognition of changes and prompt treatment certainly help to minimize the impact of the illness.

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