From a proposed overhaul of the DSM, a new therapy for between-episode symptoms, to a link with flexible joints, explore the latest breakthroughs in bipolar research and care.
Key Takeaways
- A future update to the diagnostic manual could look beyond symptom checklists and focus more on your life context and biology, leading to more personalized care down the road.
- A new psychotherapy called Stabilise may help with “in-between” symptoms like ongoing irritability and low mood that often linger between major episodes.
- A small study found links between bipolar disorder, joint hypermobility, and higher autism or ADHD traits on screening tools, so if you have chronic joint issues, pain, sensory sensitivity, or attention struggles, it may be worth mentioning them to your provider.
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Every month brings small developments that hint at big shifts in how bipolar disorder is understood and treated. In this roundup, the leading psychiatric association’s plans for a new edition of its diagnostic manual signal possible changes in how mental health conditions are defined. A small trial of a new therapy suggests experts are rethinking which bipolar symptoms warrant treatment. And a new analysis of survey data linking physical traits with mental health symptoms may someday refine how scientists identify who’s most at risk for bipolar disorder. Each study has practical implications for navigating care today — and clues about what could come next.
New Diagnostic Manual on Its Way, Psychiatrists Announce
In a series of five new papers published in The American Journal of Psychiatry, America’s leading psychiatrists shared their vision for major updates to the field’s main diagnostic manual.
The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) has been revised roughly every 15 years since 1952. The last major update, the DSM-5, came out in 2013. Now, the American Psychiatric Association (APA) says it’s time for another, though no publication date has been set yet.
A paper in The American Journal of Psychiatry describes plans for a more holistic DSM, reflecting the latest research and developed with input from people with lived experience. Instead of focusing mainly on symptom checklists, your future DSM diagnosis could have four parts:
- Contextual factors: your circumstances, background, and what’s happening in your life.
- Biomarkers and biological factors: things like genetics, brain imaging, or other measurable health indicators that could help explain what’s causing your symptoms.
- Diagnosis: This would include the names of specific mental health conditions, like bipolar disorder, in addition to how much their symptoms are impacting your daily life and well-being.
- Transdiagnostic features: any different mental health conditions share symptoms. For example, anhedonia — when you don’t enjoy the things you usually do — is a shared symptom of bipolar disorder, major depressive disorder, and anxiety disorders.
The manual might even get a new name — the Diagnostic and Scientific Manual — to reflect its goal to stay grounded in the latest science.
What This Means for You
- This could lead to more personalized care. With the proposed changes, your healthcare team would likely pay closer attention to how your work, relationships, and cultural background affect your condition and treatment. These factors are included in the current DSM but often go overlooked, partly because they’re tucked away in the last section.
- The goal is to better reflect up-to-date science. The new version would be a digital-first, “living document,” enabling updates as new research emerges rather than waiting another decade-plus.
- Nothing is changing yet. These are proposed changes for the future. The APA shared this update to be transparent about their process, not to announce final decisions.
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Progress on New Therapy for Between-Episode Bipolar Symptoms
Bipolar disorder is known for its emotional highs and lows, but the condition doesn’t disappear between manic or depressive episodes. Ongoing sadness and irritability during these in-between periods can still make it difficult to live your life the way you want to.
Researchers in England and Scotland partnered with clinicians and people with lived experience of bipolar disorder to create a psychotherapy specifically for these inter-episode symptoms. Called Stabilise, the talk therapy combines aspects of two evidence-based therapies:
- Behavioral Activation This therapy helps you reconnect with activities that matter to you, even when they don’t feel rewarding in the moment. The idea is that engaging in meaningful behaviors can help shift your mood rather than waiting for it to shift first.
- Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) Dialectical behavior therapy teaches skills for recognizing and regulating emotions.
Stabilise helps you get unstuck from letting your feelings call the shots. Instead, it supports acting in ways that match what you really care about — your values, plans, and goals.
Before any therapy is ready for widespread use, it needs rigorous testing. Testing is underway for Stabilise. Recently, 12 people with bipolar disorder completed the therapy program over about seven months. Early results, just published in the International Journal of Bipolar Disorders, are promising:
- People seemed to like the treatment. While it’s not unusual for people to stop therapy early, all 12 participants who started Stabilise completed it, attending most of their sessions. Nine said they were “very satisfied,” and all felt the therapy was at least a moderate fit for their needs.
- Stabilise appears safe and potentially helpful. There were no serious adverse events like psychiatric hospitalization related to therapy, suggesting it’s safe. And 75 percent showed improvement in at least one area, like anxiety or quality of life. No one showed an overall worsening pattern.
What This Means for You
- Your between-episode symptoms deserve attention. Up to half of people with bipolar disorder experience ongoing symptoms outside of mood episodes. The development of Stabilise is a reminder that these symptoms are a legitimate reason to seek support, not just something to endure.
- Targeted therapy for these symptoms might be on the horizon. These results suggest that combining behavioral strategies with emotion regulation skills could be safe and helpful for inter-episode bipolar symptoms. Larger studies are needed before Stabilise is ready for widespread use, but this research is a step toward addressing a real gap in bipolar disorder treatment.
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Scientists Find Link Between Bipolar Disorder, Flexible Joints, and Neurodivergence
Researchers in England have discovered intriguing connections among bipolar disorder, joint hypermobility (unusually flexible joints), and neurodivergence — specifically, autism spectrum disorder and attention deficit and hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), according to a new study published in BJPsych.
The team studied 52 people with bipolar disorder and 54 without. Everyone completed questionnaires about joint flexibility, autism traits, and ADHD symptoms. Here’s what they found:
- Joint hypermobility was much more commonly reported in people with bipolar disorder. About 56 percent had it compared with roughly 18 percent in the comparison group.
- Neurodivergence may be even more prevalent. Around 85 percent of people with bipolar disorder screened positive for autism traits, and about 65 percent screened positive for ADHD traits — using standard screening thresholds — compared with only about 22 percent screened positive for autism and 4 percent for ADHD.
- The three conditions appear interconnected. The data suggest that hypermobility is associated with neurodivergent traits, and neurodivergent traits are associated with bipolar disorder. Statistical analysis suggests that part of why hypermobility and bipolar disorder show up together — in this study, those with hypermobility were about 5 times more likely to have bipolar disorder — might be because they’re both linked with neurodivergence.
This is a small study, and screeners aren’t the same as expert evaluations. But the results point toward a potential relationship between connective tissue, brain development, and bipolar disorder. One study investigated the theory that problems with connective tissue, which cause hypermobility, may affect how the nervous system processes sensory information from the body, contributing to neurodivergent traits that can increase vulnerability to mood disorders.
What This Means for You
- Consider screening for autism or ADHD. These results suggest that autism and ADHD may be underdiagnosed in people with bipolar disorder, since so many fewer had a formal diagnosis than reported significant symptoms. If you’ve struggled with attention, sensory sensitivities, or social situations, discuss evaluation with your provider. Accurate diagnoses help unlock effective treatments, which can not only help with any autism or ADHD symptoms, but they can also make bipolar symptoms easier to manage.
- Mention joint problems to your care team. If you have unusually flexible joints, chronic joint pain, or frequent dislocations, bring this to your healthcare team’s attention. Your provider might refer you to a specialist who can evaluate you for conditions like Ehlers-Danlos syndrome (hEDS) and other hypermobility spectrum disorders (HSD). Connective tissue disorders benefit from treatment, and you don’t need to wait for more research on the exact link with bipolar disorder to get support for your physical symptoms.
Editorial Sources and Fact-Checking
- Oquendo MA et al. Initial Strategy for the Future of DSM. The American Journal of Psychiatry. January 27, 2026.
- Ongur D et al. The Future of DSM: A Report From the Structure and Dimensions Subcommittee. The American Journal of Psychiatry. January 27, 2026.
- Wainberg ML et al. The Future of DSM: A Strategic Vision for Incorporating Socioeconomic, Cultural, and Environmental Determinants and Intersectionality. The American Journal of Psychiatry. January 27, 2026.
- Drexler K et al. The Future of DSM: Are Functioning and Quality of Life Essential Elements of a Complete Psychiatric Diagnosis? The American Journal of Psychiatry. January 27, 2026.
- Cuthbert B et al. The Future of DSM: Role of Candidate Biomarkers and Biological Factors. The American Journal of Psychiatry. January 27, 2026.
- Wright K et al. Behavioral Therapy for Inter-Episode Bipolar Symptoms: A Multiple Baseline Case Series Evaluation. International Journal of Bipolar Disorders. December 8, 2025.
- Wright K et al. Adapted Behavioral Activation for Bipolar Depression: A Randomised Multiple Baseline Case Series. Brain Sciences. October 19, 2022.
- Bucknill E et al. Embracing Complexity: Connecting Bipolar Affective Disorder, Joint Hypermobility, and Neurodivergence. BJPsych. January 20, 2026.
- Eccles JA et al. A Model Linking Emotional Dysregulation in Neurodivergent People to the Proprioceptive Impact of Joint Hypermobility. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences. July 15, 2024.
