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I agree that it's premature and possibly damaging to diagnose young children with bipolar especially as it often doesn't manifest itself until the teen years. But having had a daughter who has been 'challenging' from birth and seen her dreadful struggle to understand her emotions and behaviour, I think she would have preferred some answers and a 'label' to help her before now. She is 16 and was diagnosed, finally, with bipolar last week. She spent her childhood battling with herself and everyone around her which, as she started puberty (around 11 years old) turned into extreme highs (very risky behaviour) and lows (4 attemps at suicide). This concluded last year with severe psychosis and she spent 4 months in a psychiatric unit.
She chose to insist on some answers last week and although very sad to have this 'labelled' condition which is not going to go away, she is relieved to have an explanation of what is happening to her. She now feels she can try to move on with her life and this illness and is not, simply, going mad as she puts it!