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Bipolar disorder
MANIC DEPRESSION, or bipolar disorder, is essentially a brain disfunction causing unusual shifts in a person’s mood and energy. These shifts are manifested in dramatic mood swings — from overly “high” or irritable to sad and hopeless, often with periods of normal mood in between. The periods of highs and lows are referred to as episodes of mania and depression.
Bipolar disorder tends to occur in the late teens and early twenties, with most sufferers having their first episode before the age of 30. About one in every hundred adults will suffer from manic depression at some point in their life.
Since Edgar Allen Poe wrote that genius and insanity were linked, many theorists have perceived a connection between bipolar disorder and creativity. Virginia Woolf, William Blake and Van Gogh are all believed to have suffered from bipolar disorder.
Each episode of mania or depression generally lasts several months. Anyone who has a manic episode is diagnosed as having bipolar disorder, although some people never suffer from symptoms of depression. Symptoms of mania, or a manic episode, include increased energy and rapid speech, reflecting thoughts that occur in quick succession. Elevation of mood is also often apparent, either appearing as cheerfulness or undue optimism, or in other cases as irritability. Socially inappropriate behaviour is another sign of a manic episode. Sufferers may demonstrate promiscuity or go on unrestrained spending sprees. In addition, a sufferer could have ideas of elevated status, for example, thinking he or she is a religious prophet. Insight is impaired, so that the patient may have no recognition of the fact that they are acting out of the ordinary.
When a sufferer is not in a manic phase they may suffer from depression, resulting in tiredness, ideas of guilt and low self-esteem, coupled even with suicidal thoughts. There can also be biological symptoms of reduced appetite and weight, early morning waking and reduced libido.
So what causes bipolar disorder? Scientists now agree that many factors act together to bring on the illness. Stressful events can be blamed, as can genetics and our childhood experiences. It is true that if someone in your family suffered with bipolar disorder then you are more likely to suffer with it than the general population, although the exact mode of inheritance is yet to be discovered. Other factors are also important, including personality type, significant life events and some kinds of physical illness.
Medications known as Mood Stabilisers are usually prescribed to help control bipolar disorder. However, as an addition to medication, psychosocial treatments are believed to have a positive effect, increasing mood stability. These include cognitive behavioral therapy, psychoeducation and family therapy. Who knows what Edgar Allen Poe would have thought?ARCHIVE: 0th week TT 2005

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