Introduction
Bipolar disorder is a disease that causes psychological problems. It causes mood swings in the person who is affected. These are the common symptoms. Sometimes the person is so much depressed that he or she can not function normally, some other times he is so happy or elated that it will affect the daily activities. These extreme moods may last for long hours. The greatest fear is that he or she will commit suicide or suffer from other mental illnesses. There are different causes of bipolar disorders. They are divided into biological and psychological causes. Feelings of worthlessness and highness may occur together in what is called mixed state. People suffering from this disorder can function normally between the mood swings. While severe depression may lead to suicide, extreme mania can lead to aggressive, dangerous and risk-taking behavior and homicidal acts. A number of people may also turn to drugs and alcohol resulting in substance abuse. (Melinda 2008).
Bipolar disorder can affect people from all age groups. However, most people start showing the signs after teenage. This does not mean that children can not suffer from this condition, in some rare cases they do but the condition can often be misdiagnosed. The correct age to diagnose the condition is between the ages of 25-40years when the symptoms are clear. Because of the high risks of behavior, treatment or management of the condition is very important. (Melinda 2008).
Symptoms of bipolar disorder
The common symptoms of the disorder are mood swings. There are periods of elevated moods, but not always and periods of depression. There are different types of mood episodes and every episode has its own symptoms. These episodes are mania, hypomania, depression and mixed episode. (Kimberly and Marcia 2009).
Mania
The person feels that he has a lot of energy and seems to be very creative. They can sleep for a very short time; they feel like they are so powerful and are destined for greatness. This often goes out of control and the person may recklessly spend all their savings. They may make foolish and risky business investments. , they may engage in dangerous sexual behavior, get very angry and even fight. They blame others for their failures and they are often not encouraged to live with them. (Kimberly and Marcia 2009)
Hypomania
The symptoms are less severe than in mania. The only difference between hypomania and mania is that they don’t suffer from hallucinations and delusions. They can function normally. In fact hypomania will mostly lead to mania. (EMedicineHealth 2009).
Depression
The signs in the person are similar to those of a person suffering from depression. The person feels hopeless, sad and empty. He has no interest in the things he used to enjoy and is mostly fatigued. He loses physical balance and loses appetite; he either sleeps too much or too little. He has no appetite and his concentration span is very low. This is what will often lead to suicide. For mixed episodes he shows signs and symptoms of both mania and depression. For example he may feel very energetic and at the same time very sad and empty and useless. (EMedicineHealth 2009).
The type of episode may change from one person to another. Some people have mania, others have depression, yet others have a mixture of the two.
The greatest fear about people suffering from bipolar disorder is that they might commit suicide. A person living with a patient of these conditions should know some of the warning signs of suicide. These signs are: talking about death and suicide all the time, feeling hopeless, helpless, and worthless, writing wills and putting things in order, engaging in risky r behavior that can lead to death, and even carrying or seeking out weapons that may be used to commit suicide. (EMedicineHealth 2009).
Causes of bipolar disorder
According to research, bipolar disorder could be genetically inherited. But some people have developed the condition even when there were no traces of the disease in their heritage however. This is a very good indicator that other external factors like prolonged illness, stress, major life event, substance abuse, and sleep deprivation can lead to the condition. Many have argued that the condition can come without any cause but this leaves a lot to be desired. This is because even if all the other factors are not evident, everybody has faced a challenge in life that may lead to this condition. (Hyman & Rudorfer 1).
If diagnosed, bipolar disorder can be treated. Treatment ranges from therapy and medication to a healthy recovery lifestyle. We can not say that there is cure for bipolar disorder, what is required is proper therapy and this way one can lead a normal and productive life. Even so, patients with the condition should be exposed to medical treatment. The medicines involved are appropriate for stabilizing the mood swings of the patients. They are of different kinds and one has to try a variety before discovering the one that works on him or her. The patient needs a very strong support of friends and relatives during this period otherwise they will give up. In extreme cases of the condition, where the patient may harm himself or others, hospitalization should be considered. This is because of some several reasons. One, the person together with the loved ones will be protected, medication can be monitored effectively and the right changes implemented, group therapy can also encourage the patient to face the challenge. This will happen when he discovers that he is not alone in the journey. (Hyman & Rudorfer 1).
Work cited
EMedicineHealth, Bipolar disorder, 2009. Web.
Hyman SE, Rudorfer MV. Depressive and bipolar mood disorders, In: Dale DC, Federman DD, eds. Scientific American. Medicine, Vol. 3, New York: Healtheon/WebMD Corp., 2000.
Kimberly Read and Marcia Purse, What is Bipolar Disorder? 2009. Web.
Melinda Smith, M.A., Jeanne Segal, Phd., and Robert Segal. Understand, prevent and resolve life changes. 2008. Web.