On soap operas, actors usually play characters nothing like themselves. But this summer on "General Hospital", Maurice Benard will take Sonny Corinthos to a dark place he knows all too well.

"Being bipolar myself, I know how difficult it is," said Benard. "In a way, it's easier when you're acting, because I've lived it."

Extreme highs and crashing lows have plagued Benard all his life.

"For me it got really bad. I was hospitalized for two and half weeks in a mental institution," Benard said.

"Bipolar disorder is also called manic depression and it's a condition where mood swings is a central feature," said UCLA psychiatrist Dr. Ian Cook. "People, when they're in the manic phase they tend to talk very rapidly and tend to have racing thoughts. And they may have a lot of worries and even thoughts of death and suicide."

When someone who's bipolar comes down they feel extreme fatigue.. they can't concentrate. Cook says manic depression plagues two to five percent of the population.

Like Benard, most people with the same condition are under psychotherapy and take mood stabilizing medication for the rest of their lives. Experts say the disease can be managed effectively.

Benard hopes his story on television will help more people get help. If you suspect a loved one is bipolar, his advice is 'don't fight them and don't lie to them'."

"The right thing to do is just to be 100 percent supportive and 100 percent loving," Benard said.

Maurice Benard will testify Wednesday before Congress about bipolar disorder.

He hopes to raise awareness and get the government to fund research.