No. People with Bipolar can have cycles (manic episodes following depressed or vise versa) years, days, or even hours apart. Some people even have what is call mixed episode in which the have symptoms of depression and mania at the same time.

Question: How Often Do People with Bipolar Disorder Cycle? Answer: A member of our Bipolar Disorder Forum community asked, "How often do people with BP cycle?" (Read the full post.) A cycle is the period of time an individual takes to go through one episode of mania and one of depression (or hypomania and depression). As for how often these cycles occur, there is, unfortunately, no definitive answer. The frequency and duration of cycles are as varied as the individuals who have them. A study in 1992 found that 35% of people with bipolar disorder had only one cycle in a 5-year period, while 1% of the same group went through a complete cycle about every 3 months (Coryell et al). The phrase rapid cycling is tagged to the diagnosis of those who have four or more cycles in a 12-month period. http://bipolar.about.com/cs/faqs/f/faq_cycfreq.htm Mixed Episodes A mixed episode is essentially an episode that simultaneously presents symptoms of both depression and mania. For example, an individual with bipolar disorder (manic depression) may have all the frantic energy of mania, but may also be struggling with the black thoughts of depression. Found here are resources and information regarding this type of episode. Clutter, Christmas, and Mixed States This year-end installment of "I'm Bipolar?" looks at the last several months and the Christmas season in terms of bipolar depression - a mixed condition with some serious physical and behavioral consequences Grandiosity Grandiosity is a symptom of Bipolar Disorder - manic depression - occurring during mania, hypomania and mixed episodes. Here is a concise definition. Mood Swings – and Swings – and Swings From the “I’m Bipolar” series, the author shares, “I'm experiencing hypomania, depression, and an angry mixture all in a day, sometimes more than once each. And behind these mini-moodswings, the base mood has shifted, over the course of a few weeks, from depression, to a good balance, and back into depression again.” Name That Episode! What do you call an episode that has elements of hypomania but is characterized by exhaustion at the end of each day? Part of the "I'm Bipolar" series. Pressured Speech Pressured speech is one of the symptoms of bipolar mania, hypomania and mixed episodes. Here is a clear definition of pressured speech. http://bipolar.about.com/od/mixedepisodes/Mixed_Episodes.htm

It can happen much sooner than that, even weeks or days apart. The few people I know that are bipolar are not regular at all as so many things can cause or trigger them. Sometimes they seem to swing in and out of moods so fast it makes my head spin.

Not at all. All you have to do is have one manic episode to have Bipolar, Type I. It is not unusual at all.