Mania is a state of mind characterized by severe mood swings pretty rapidly, where one is extremely happy at one moment and immensely angry, hostile and irritable in the other. It is perceived as an important symptom for diagnosis of certain psychological conditions. It may set in due to malignancy, drug intoxication (methamphetamine and cocaine etc), side effects of certain drugs like SSRIs and steroids.

There are two forms of mania, hypomania (mild mania) and full scale mania that is characterized by psychotic features like aggression, catatonic behavior, delusion, hallucinations, and preoccupation with thoughts. It is easy to mistake maniacs for substance abusers for their erratic behavior. Such persons are known to possess tremendous artistic talent and creativity.

The cause of mania is unknown and researchers speculate amount of dopamine, glutamate, norepinephrine and gamma-amunobutryic acid might have something to do with the condition.