Bipolar Disorder: Symptoms, Treatment, and Lasting Recovery
Bipolar Disorder
What is Bipolar Disorder?
Bipolar disorder (formerly called manic-depressive illness or manic depression) is a psychiatric disorder, which due to chemical imbalance in our brain, causes unusual shifts in mood, energy, activity levels, concentration, and the ability to carry out day-to-day tasks. Bipolar disorder involves clear changes in mood, energy, and activity levels. These moods range from periods of extremely “up,” elated, irritable, or energised behaviour (known as manic episodes) to very “down,” sad, indifferent, or hopeless periods (known as depressive episodes). Less severe manic periods are known as hypomanic episodes, in which the person faces irritability and/or periods of anxiety. It is typically diagnosed during late adolescence or early adulthood. Occasionally, bipolar symptoms can appear in children. Bipolar disorder can also first appear during a woman’s pregnancy or following childbirth. During an episode, the symptoms last every day for most of the day. Episodes may also last for longer periods, such as several days or weeks. In a typical episode, the transition window typically lasts for 7-14 days. Although the symptoms may vary over time, bipolar disorder usually requires lifelong treatment. Following a prescribed treatment plan can help people manage their symptoms and improve their quality of life.
Sometimes people experience both manic and depressive symptoms in the same episode. This kind of episode is called an episode with mixed features. People experiencing an episode with mixed features may feel very sad, empty, or hopeless, while, at the same, time feeling extremely energised.
Bipolar Disorder Symptoms
A manic episode can include three or more of these symptoms:
- Feeling overlay happy for long periods of time.
- Talking very fast with racing thoughts
- Becoming easily distracted
- Having overconfidence in abilities
Bipolar Disorder includes Depression Episodes
can include five or more of these symptoms:
- Feeling sad or hopeless for long period of time.
- Significant change in Appetite.
- Thinking about or Attempting suicide.
- Feeling Fatigue or lack of energy.
- Problems with memory and concentration.
Treatment
People having a manic episode may:
- Feel very “up,” “high,” elated, or irritable or touchy
- Feel “jumpy” or “wired”
- Have a decreased need for sleep
- Have a loss of appetite
- Talk very fast about a lot of different things
- Feel like their thoughts are racing
- Think they can do a lot of things at once
- Do risky things that show poor judgment, such as eat and drink excessively, spend or give away a lot of money, or have reckless sex
- Feel like they are unusually important, talented, or powerful
People having a depressive episode may:
- Feel very sad, “down,” empty, worried, or hopeless
- Feel slowed down or restless
- Have trouble falling asleep, wake up too early, or sleep too much
- Experience increased appetite and weight gain
- Talk very slowly, feel like they have nothing to say, forget a lot.
- Have trouble concentrating or making decisions
- Feel unable to do even simple things
- Have little interest in almost all activities, a decreased or absent sex drive, or an inability to experience pleasure (“anhedonia”)
- Feel hopeless or worthless, think about death or suicide
Treatment
Bipolar disorder is typically treated with medication, psychotherapy, or a combination of both. Mental health professionals typically recommend therapy as part of a combined approach to treatment, in adjunct to the medical treatment. Other recommended treatment options are Cognitive Remediation Treatment, Interpersonal and Social Rhythm Therapy etc.
Beyond treatment, we can help you build a regular routine, which includes sleep hygiene, regular exercise, mood charting, etc. People having a manic episode may: People having a depressive episode may: Feel very “up,” “high,” elated, or irritable or touchy Feel very sad, “down,” empty, worried, or hopeless Feel “jumpy” or “wired” Feel slowed down or restless Have a decreased need for sleep Have trouble falling asleep, wake up too early, or sleep too much Have a loss of appetite Experience increased appetite and weight gain Talk very fast about a lot of different things Talk very slowly, feel like they have nothing to say, forget a lot Feel like their thoughts are racing Have trouble concentrating or making decisions Think they can do a lot of things at once Feel unable to do even simple things Do risky things that show poor judgment, such as eat and drink excessively, spend or give away a lot of money, or have reckless sex Have little interest in almost all activities, a decreased or absent sex drive, or an inability to experience pleasure (“anhedonia”) Feel like they are unusually important, talented, or powerful Feel hopeless or worthless, think about death or suicide Lastly, we can also help in minimizing the disabling effects of the disorder, by constant monitoring, and catching early warning signs through daily feedback calls.
Bipolar disorder is a lifelong illness. Episodes of mania and depression typically come back over time. Between episodes, many people with bipolar disorder are free of mood changes, but some people may have lingering symptoms. Long-term, continuous treatment can help people manage these symptoms.
Why Emoneeds And How We Help In Lasting Recovery?
Living with bipolar disorder can be challenging, but there are ways to help make it easier for yourself, a friend, or a loved one. At Emoneeds, we support you in your journey to reduce your relapse and help you with lasting recovery.
We have new and better treatment ideas to help patients recover better from the illness and also to prevent relapse, by providing them consistent support. We have tailor-made effective individual therapy sessions, cognitive remediation therapy program, family therapy and psychiatric consultations, in order to manage unwanted thoughts and changing unhelpful patterns of thinking and also to manage the underlying anxiety.
Bipolar disorder is a lifelong illness, but long-term, ongoing treatment can help control symptoms and enable you to live a healthy life. Be a part of tomorrow’s medical breakthroughs. Talk to your health care provider about the treatment options, their benefits and risks, and which one is right for you.
Depression FAQ's
The answer is TRUE!
Bipolar disorder makes a person emotionally crippled to different extremes, that some people are unable to function appropriately in personal and social situations, such as work, social gatherings, familial responsibilities etc. Various studies suggest that it is one of the top five leading causes of disability known worldwide.
On the other side, it is known that bipolar disorder can be treated completely, and people with this illness can lead completely productive lives.
The answer is FALSE!
Among other psychiatric illnesses, bipolar disorder is not directly passed from one generation to another. Rather, it is the result of a complex group of genetic, psychological, and environmental factors.
