Bipolar disorder brings highs and lows. Your care can stay steady.
Dr. McDade looks at how your moods move over time, the highs as well as the lows. Every visit is with her, from an unhurried first evaluation to each follow-up, by secure video in Texas.
Opens the booking page. A brief screening confirms fit before your first visit.
- Every visit with Dr. McDade
- 60 to 90 minute first visit
- No referral needed
The answer
Bipolar disorder is a mental illness that causes clear shifts in mood, energy, activity, and focus. The National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) explains that people with it often have periods of feeling very up or irritable and periods of feeling very down. It usually needs lifelong treatment, the NIMH adds. Dr. McDade asks about your highs and your lows, explains what she finds, and builds a plan with you. You deserve a physician who sees the whole pattern.
If you need help now
If you are in crisis or thinking about suicide, call or text 988 or chat at 988lifeline.org to reach the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. If you are Deaf or hard of hearing, use your preferred relay service or dial 711, then 988. In an emergency, call 911 or go to the nearest emergency room. This practice does not provide emergency services.
Who will you see?
Dr. McDade, at every visit. Health & Harmony Psychiatry is a physician-only practice, so every follow-up is with the physician who already knows your story.
Your story carries forward from visit to visit. Because she knows your history, she can tell whether short sleep is your normal or a change worth a closer look.
The practice provides psychiatric evaluation, medication management, follow-up, and coordination with the patient's other clinicians. Full recovery is the goal, even if the best path is a referral.
What can bipolar disorder look like?
It shows up in mood episodes, highs and lows that last most of the day, every day, for a week or two or sometimes longer, the NIMH explains. A high is called a manic episode, and a low a depressive episode.
During a high
- Feeling very up, high, or extremely irritable
- Feeling jumpy or wired, or more active than usual
- Racing thoughts and fast talk
- Needing less sleep
- Feeling able to do many things at once without tiring
- Feeling unusually important, talented, or powerful
- An excessive appetite for food, drinking, sex, or other pleasures
During a low
- Feeling very down, sad, or anxious
- Losing interest in almost all activities
- Trouble concentrating or making decisions
- Sleeping too little or too much
- Feeling hopeless or worthless, or thinking about death or suicide
If you need help now
If you are in crisis or thinking about suicide, call or text 988 or chat at 988lifeline.org to reach the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. If you are Deaf or hard of hearing, use your preferred relay service or dial 711, then 988. In an emergency, call 911 or go to the nearest emergency room. This practice does not provide emergency services.
If some of this sounds familiar, a careful evaluation can sort out what is behind it.
Some people have hypomanic episodes, highs that are less severe than mania and interfere less with daily life. Bipolar I involves manic episodes that last at least 7 days, or that are severe enough to need hospital care, and usually depressive episodes too. Bipolar II involves a pattern of depressive and hypomanic episodes, the NIMH notes.
About 4 in 100 U.S. adults have bipolar disorder at some point in life, the NIMH estimates from a national survey of 2001 to 2003. Symptoms most often start in late adolescence or early adulthood.
How does Dr. McDade treat bipolar disorder?
She starts with the whole pattern. People with bipolar II may seek help only for their lows, and the milder highs may go unnoticed, the NIMH notes. You and Dr. McDade piece together a timeline of your symptoms and what sets them off.
Ongoing treatment can help manage symptoms, the NIMH explains. The medicines doctors most often prescribe include mood stabilizers and atypical antipsychotics, and therapy can offer support, education, skills, and strategies to people with bipolar disorder and their families.
Medication decisions start with context. Dr. McDade explains why one option might be considered over another, and you decide together. When therapy is the better starting point, she refers to therapists she knows well. Follow-up visits run 15 to 30 minutes by secure video.
Bipolar disorder is not a life sentence of chaos. With the right diagnosis and steady care, the highs and lows even out, and people get their lives back.
Dr. Allison J. McDade, MDEach follow-up builds on what she already knows.
Questions about bipolar disorder care
Is bipolar disorder the same as mood swings?
No. Bipolar disorder brings distinct mood episodes. A diagnosis rests on how severe, how long, and how often the symptoms come over a lifetime, and on family history, the NIMH explains.
Can bipolar disorder be mistaken for depression?
It can. Some people have bipolar disorder for years before it is diagnosed, and some of its symptoms are like those of other illnesses, the NIMH notes. Dr. McDade looks at your moods over time.
Do I have to take medication?
No. Whether to start a medication, and where, is a decision you and Dr. McDade make together, after she explains what she recommends and why. If you already take one, talk with the clinician who prescribes it before you stop, as the NIMH advises.
How much does care cost?
Care is cash pay. A new evaluation with Dr. McDade is $465, and follow-up visits with Dr. McDade are $275. You receive a good faith estimate before your first visit.
Does Dr. McDade take insurance?
No. Care is cash pay, with rates set in advance and shared up front. You have the right to receive a Good Faith Estimate explaining how much your medical care will cost. Under the law, health care providers need to give patients who do not have insurance or who are not using insurance an estimate of the bill for medical items and services.
Is this an emergency service?
No. Health & Harmony Psychiatry does not provide emergency care. If you are in crisis or thinking about harming yourself, call or text 988, or call 911.
Sources for the facts on this page.
- Bipolar Disorder, National Institute of Mental Health, December 2024
- Bipolar Disorder, National Institute of Mental Health, NIH Publication No. 25-MH-8088, 2025
- Bipolar Disorder statistics, National Institute of Mental Health
The information on this website is for general education and does not constitute medical advice or create a physician-patient relationship. For care, please schedule an appointment.
Care Through Connection
Steady care through the highs and the lows.
Book the first visit online, or call 832.387.6088 with questions. A parent or guardian books for anyone under 18, and a brief screening confirms fit before your first visit.
Health & Harmony Psychiatry does not provide emergency care. If you are in crisis or thinking about harming yourself, call or text 988, or call 911. Ages 6 to 70. Health & Harmony Psychiatry provides care by secure video to patients physically located in Texas at the time of their appointment.