You may be pleased to learn that changing the way you sleep may significantly improve your depression or bipolar disorder. 

             Reduced sleep isn't just a symptom of mania - a short night can actually trigger manic and hypomanic episodes.  Sleep changes can be as simple as staying up extra late to watch a movie on television or getting wrapped up in an interesting online chat session, or as serious as being unable to sleep due to a family member's serious illness or death.

"For reasons we have yet to learn, people with bipolar disorder seem to have more delicate internal clock mechanisms," said Dr. Ellen Frank, co-author of one study.

Once a sleep-deprived person has gone into mania, if he or she then feels less need for sleep and by staying awake perhaps 20 or more hours a day, is actually contributing to making the mania worse.

People suffering from insomnia and hypersomnia (too much sleep) are told to go to bed at the same time each day, and get up at the same time. Naps are forbidden. Insomniacs should not stay in bed if they can't sleep, but are to get up at the same time no matter how little sleep they have had. Hypersomniacs are advised to gradually reduce the amount of time spent sleeping to a normal amount by using an alarm clock.

Adjustment of the sleep/wake cycle may be of particular help for treatment-resistant rapid cycling bipolar disorder.