cyclothymia

noun

cy·​clo·​thy·​mia ˌsī-klə-ˈthī-mē-ə 

: a mood disorder characterized by alternating episodes of depression and elation in a form less severe than that of bipolar disorder

Cyclothymia is a mild form of bipolar disorder with short and irregular cycles of nervousness and lethargy, pessimism and optimism, insomnia and oversleeping, tearfulness and jocularity, arrogance and self-pity, passionate involvement and sudden loss of interest.

—Lester Grinspoon

Examples of cyclothymia in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Symptom Range in Bipolar Disorder There are three types of bipolar disorder: bipolar 1, bipolar 2 , and cyclothymia. —Michelle Pugle, Verywell Health, 15 Oct. 2024

About two years before the crash, a psychologist diagnosed Adibi with bipolar disorder or cyclothymia, a mood disorder that’s considered less extreme than bipolar disorder, along with ADHD. —Nollyanne Delacruz, The Mercury News, 3 May 2024

However, these positive vibes can be interrupted by rapid cycling of emotional ups and downs known as cyclothymia. —Katarina Avendano, Good Housekeeping, 19 May 2022

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from German Cyklothymie (now Zyklothymie), from cyklo- cyclo- + -thymie, as in Dysthymie dysthymia

Note: The term was introduced by the German psychiatrist Karl Kahlbaum (1828-99) in "Ueber cyklisches Irresein," Der Irrenfreund: Psychiatrische Monatschrift für praktische Aerzte, 24. Jahrgang (1882), Nr. 10, p. 155.

First Known Use

1882, in the meaning defined above

Medical Definition

cyclothymia

noun

cy·​clo·​thy·​mia ˌsī-klə-ˈthī-mē-ə 

: a mood disorder characterized by alternating episodes of depression and elation in a form less severe than that of bipolar disorder