A survey conducted by Depression and Bipolar Support Alliance found that 9 out of 10 people with bipolar said their disease affected their job performance.

People with BD have a significantly lower HRQOL when compared to other disorders such as obesity, atopic dermatitis, arthritis on scales that include family, friends, school, physical, emotional and self-esteem.

Further studies employed by Finnish indicate that BD I showed the second lowest HRQOL score when assessed by EQ-5D (mobility, self-care, usual activities, pain/discomfort, and anxiety/depression) and EQ-15D scales (mobility, vision, hearing, breathing, sleeping, eating, speech, excretion, usual activities, mental functioning, discomfort or symptoms, depression, distress, vitality, and sexual activities).