Bipolar disorder is a mental condition of varied and unusually elevated mood episodes sometimes severe enough to necessitate hospitalization and psychiatric help. Mood episodes of extreme excitement to extreme depression and unusual irritability and going far beyond the normal and rational boundaries very fast, racing thoughts and highly unstable swings of emotions from being overly excited in one moment to becoming overly irritated the next are typical characteristic.
Sometimes delusions and hallucinations occur along with these abnormal mood changes. This disorder has long affected families, relationships, studies, jobs, and the person's ability to go on with a normal and a happy life.
Public awareness has increased since this problem has become more and more prevalent; in fact, in the U.S. alone, 1 out of 45 adults may strongly exhibit the symptoms of bipolar disorder. The behavior of a person suffering from bipolar disorder is something that friends, co-workers and family members may not recognize or understand easily, and it is only a mental health professional who can diagnose a person as having such.
How do they diagnose the illness?
Like any mental condition, diagnosis is done by running a series of tests, physical exams and perhaps even laboratory exams. A psychiatrist is usually the best person to determine if a person indeed has this disorder and what treatment plan is required.
But after the tests, a thorough interview is required for the doctor to get the patient's family profile and complete historical symptoms relating to family members. This may involve talking to a parent, sibling or spouse and can even extend to previous input from family and friends to completely determine the patient's medical profile.
People with abnormal depressive swings are usually those who are seeking medical help, and the medical professional must be able to distinguish this from unipolar depression that affects those who don't experience manic swings but are just depressed.
What are usually the symptoms of bipolar disorder?
These are some typical symptoms:
o Severe mood changes with long periods of overly happy moods;
o Abnormally irritable or annoying moods, or over-agitation which is beyond normal range;
o Frequent over-impulses such as shopping sprees, sex, and hastily considered business investments;
o Frequent racing thoughts causing lack of sleep and extreme restlessness;
o Increased and constant grandiose hallucinations, delusions or the excessive and frequent tendency to live in a made-up world;
o Inability to make rational decisions, often having a severe impact on work, study, and daily living that cannot otherwise be attributed to substance or alcohol abuse;
o Suicidal thoughts and attempts (this must be distinguished from major depression disorder);
o Extreme energy while feeling severely lost, empty or hopeless.
A minimum of one (1) week is given as an observational period.
How then is it treated?
There is no cure yet discovered for this illness, and there are treatment combinations done depending on the diagnosis. Since this is a lifelong illness, a long-term treatment plan is suggested that combines both psychotherapy and medication.
Since not all patients react the same with a designated medication plan, it is not unusual for medical professionals to try out medical solutions one after the other to find out the most effective way to treat a particular case. Often a daily life chart is required by the doctor to study and observe a patient's reaction to medications. If some changes in behavior and mood episodes occur, the doctor may add or reduce some medications as she deems necessary to lessen the symptoms of bipolar disorder.
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