The most recent medications typically prescribed for bipolar disorder include a class of drugs called “atypical antipsychotics.” Atypical means they work in a manner that is significantly different than the previous class of antipsychotic medications. “Antipsychotic” refers to the fact that these medications were initially thought only to help people with psychosis (a common symptom of schizophrenia).

However, since their initial development, further research has demonstrated that this class of medications also can have helpful mood stabilizing properties. This means for someone with bipolar disorder, their moods swings will typically become less frequent and less intense.