Bipolar Disorder
Bipolar disorder is a mood disorder that causes extreme fluctuations in a person's emotions, causing them to lose control. It typically manifests during adolescence or early adulthood, with a roughly equal ratio between genders. Patients experience recurrent episodes of mania (elevated mood) or depression (low mood), and they cannot control their emotional ups and downs at will. These emotional fluctuations can affect a person's thinking, feelings, behavior, physical health, and daily functioning.
Main symptoms of bipolar disorder
Patients will have recurring manic episodes or depressive episodes. Different emotional states will appear at different times, and may be single or alternating episodes. Some patients may also experience mixed emotional episodes (Mixed Episodes).
Common symptoms of manic episodes
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The patient feels energetic and very active
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Inflated self-esteem
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Feeling unusually happy, excited, or irritable
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Feeling extremely energetic and not sleepy at all
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Rapid thinking, leaps of ideas, and many associations
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Talkative, frivolous behavior, unable to sit still
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Taking risks or even making reckless investments or indulgent behaviors
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Decreased judgment and self-control
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The patient thinks they have extraordinary abilities, status or wealth
Common symptoms of a depressive episode:
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Persistent low mood
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Loss of interest in things or activities
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Significant weight loss or gain (more than 5% change in weight within one month)
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Frequent insomnia
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Slowed movements
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Often feeling tired or lethargic
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Frequently feeling worthless or experiencing excessive or inappropriate guilt
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Decreased ability to think and concentrate, or often feeling indecisive
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Recurrent thoughts of suicide or suicidal behavior
Causes of bipolar disorder:
While the exact causes of bipolar disorder are not yet fully understood, it is generally believed to be caused by an imbalance of chemicals in the brain. Other possible factors include genetic predisposition, brain lesions, psychological stress, environmental stress, and more.
Treatment of bipolar disorder:
Current treatments for bipolar disorder include medication, psychotherapy and rehabilitation training. The use of pharmacotherapy depends mainly on whether the patient is depressed or manic. Commonly used drugs include mood stabilizers, which can help control symptoms such as excitement, depression, and impulsivity; they can prevent relapse when used in patients in the stable phase. Bipolar disorder can have serious consequences if not properly treated. First of all, bipolar disorder is very easy to relapse, and patients can relapse more than ten times in their lifetime. In addition, manic and depressive moods can last for several months, seriously affecting the patient's daily life. Finally, people with bipolar disorder are 10 to 20 times more likely to commit suicide without appropriate treatment than the general population.