In order to receive benefits for bipolar disorder, your disability must be severe enough to significantly limit one’s ability to perform basic work activities needed to do most jobs. For example:

• Walking, standing, sitting, lifting, pushing, pulling, reaching, carrying or handling
• Seeing, hearing and speaking
• Understanding/carrying out and remembering simple instructions
• Responding appropriately to supervision, co-workers and usual work situations
• Dealing with changes in a routine work setting

Bi-polar disability must meet a medical listing. Bipolar is listed under mental disorders. To satisfy the listing criteria for bipolar disorder, a number of variables are considered:

• Anhedonia
• Appetite disturbance
• Sleep disturbance
• Psychomotor agitation or retardation
• Decreased energy
• Feelings of guilt or worthlessness
• Difficulty concentrating or thinking
• Thoughts of suicide and hallucinations
• Delusions or paranoid thinking
• In assessing bipolar disability relative to a listing level impairment, the following areas of functioning are evaluated:
• Restrictions of activities of daily living
• Maintaining social functioning
• Deficiencies of concentration
• Persistence or pace
• Repeated episodes of decomposition–each of extended duration

An individual, who has four symptoms present from the depressive syndrome list, as well as extreme limitation in two of the four functional areas, would probably be eligible for benefits. Of course all of these symptoms must be diagnosed, treated and maintaining contact with a Doctor.