Bipolar disorder (BD) affects approximately 2 million people in the United States each year. This troubling mental illness can disrupt a person's daily life and often leads to thoughts of suicide or death. People who are inappropriately diagnosed with bipolar disorder are often treated with unnecessary and potentially harmful medications. Bipolar disorder has become one of the most overdiagnosed mental disorders, due to the overlapping characteristics of blood pressure and other personality disorders. The creation of a universal assessment technique and re-education of the public and professionals would reduce the problem of overdiagnosis. Bipolar disorder is a type of mental illness, more precisely a mood disorder characterized by manic and depressive episodes. Mania is a period of high or irritable moods, and episodes of depression are low or sad moods, these episodes can last from a few days to several months and can impair your ability to function in everyday life . There are different classifications of these episodes and even mixed states where you experience both episodes at the same time. To receive a diagnosis of bipolar disorder, you must see a doctor who performs a thorough examination and laboratory tests to look for other illnesses that may cause symptoms similar to bipolar disorder. The diagnosis is based on self-reported experiences and abnormalities in behavior reported by your family, friends and co-workers. There is a list of criteria, and depending on the duration of the symptoms, this is how bipolar disorder is diagnosed. There is no clear idea of ​​how many types of bipolar disorders there are, but bipolar disorder type I, bipolar disorder type II, bipolar disorder NOS (not otherwise specified), and cyclothymic disorder are the most common. Most patients continue their journey of overdiagnosing patients, the lack of reliability of the psychiatrist will be the problem to follow. The overlapping characteristics that bipolar disorder shares with other mental illnesses contribute to diagnostic errors. A universal assessment technique would reduce the problem by having a broad view of the characteristics of BD. Regardless of what you think about the issue, it is clear that overdiagnosis is a problem and must be addressed for the well-being of the general public. Work Cited1) Ghouse, Amna. “Overdiagnosis of Bipolar Disorder: A Critical Analysis of the Literature.” Scientific Word Journal 10.1155 (2013): 287-297. Academic research completed. Network. April 7, 2014.2) Mazmanian, Dwight. “Bipolar Disorders: Shift to Overdiagnosis or Accurate Diagnosis?” Canadian Journal of Psychiatry 58.6 (2013): 371-372. Academic research completed. Network. April 7. 2014