Understanding Bipolar Disorder: Symptoms, Impact, and Treatment Approaches

Abstract

Bipolar disorder is a chronic mental illness. This is an illness that several Americans have and suffer from each year. Bipolar disorder may be triggered by unfortunate events and stressful experiences. Mood swings usually accompany this disorder. Individuals will oftentimes go from frequent shifts of highs and lows. This reoccurrence and severity may differ from patient to patient. Bipolar is usually treated with medication. There are several different types of medication that a clinician may choose to administer to their patient, depending on their symptoms. Clinicians are advised to see patients regularly and make adjustments to medication as needed. Many people recover and can function normally again, but not everyone has that luxury.

Introduction

The reason why I wanted to research bipolar disorder is because I have a close friend who suffers from a minor form of bipolar disorder. I also find this disorder fascinating, and I wanted to research more about it.

A study reports that bipolar disorder 1 is an illness that is in the brain. This disorder usually surfaces when many episodes of mania and depression occur. This will happen in many intervals, so not all at the same time. Individuals who suffer from bipolar disorder struggle with having full brain factuality (Pinto et al., 2020). Bipolar is a widespread issue. This mental issue is all-encompassing and is difficult to manage. Bipolar disorders affect all aspects of life, including physical health, relationships, family life, and so much more. Those who have bipolar disorder may have a hard time keeping even a part-time job.

These individuals may also have a hard time keeping sustainable relationships going. With the constant emotional changes, it can be hard for these individuals to have a normal life. It cannot be understated how difficult this mental illness can be for patients who have this disorder. It is important to know the symptoms of this mental illness. Symptoms of this mental illness will be explored in this paper. It is also very important to know the treatment for this mental illness. What are some things we already know about treating bipolar disorder? Treatment of this mental illness will also be explored in this paper.

Symptoms

A study reported personality traits that are usually found in individuals who have bipolar disorder have symptoms of mania and depression. Mania is part of the brain that is involved with negative agreeableness. Depression, on the other hand, is connected with negative extraversion. These two combined often lead to bipolar disorder. It is a pattern of mania and depression reassuringly affecting the individual in episodes. Mania is the more common of the two. Most, if not all, individuals who have bipolar will show symptoms of mania, but not all will have depression symptoms (Quilty et al., 2009).

Earlier, it was discussed that mania causes negative agreeableness, and depression causes negative extraversion. There are five total variations in personality. The five are neuroticism, extraversion, agreeableness, openness to experience, and conscientiousness. These five come from The Five Factor Model. Extraversion has a lot to do with how someone will socialize with others and how excited or optimistic they are about something. Agreeableness is about how individuals feel toward others; it involves whether someone trusts others or not.

Is this individual able to get along with others? These are things that individuals with bipolar disorder may have a hard time with (Quilty et al., 2009). As explained before, those individuals with bipolar disorder have a lower amount of extraversion and agreeableness than those who do not suffer from this disorder. Individuals who have bipolar disorder are going to often have a harder time getting along with others and developing strong relationships than those who do not have this disorder. The personality traits that help people have social relationships and trust others are less in effect with this disorder.

Another research article explains mania and depression in a slightly different way. It reports changes in mood and emotion so frequently are known as “mood swings.” Specifically, mania is the high part of that mood swing. That is when the individual is feeling good or excited about life. At the same time, the low part of the mood swings is depression. This is when the individual is feeling down or sad. Energy levels are a lot lower here. This rapid switch between these highs and lows is a symptom of bipolar disorder. This can be disconcerting for friends and family who are close to the individual who suffers from bipolar disorder (Bipolar disorder – Symptoms, 2004).

Another study talks about specific symptoms that are found in adolescents who are later diagnosed as having bipolar disorder. This article reports that we are not spending enough time examining “mood instability.” Keeping track of mood instability is very important because severe fluctuations in mood like this can be dangerous. Some dangerous thoughts could even lead to suicidal behavior (O’Donnell et al., 2018). Studies also have shown that it is particularly important that we treat children who have these mood disorders. The younger the person who is diagnosed with this mental illness, the disorder is more severe. This cannot be treated lightly.

Adolescents are susceptible to having this disorder. They are usually going to show symptoms of mood instability. Symptoms can show up in a five-year period, suicide attempts, aggressive behavior, psychotic symptoms, and higher than usual levels of cyclothymic temperament. These specific symptoms can give clues to the clinician that this adolescent may be suffering from a bipolar disorder (O’Donnell et al., 2018). This research shows that symptoms of bipolar disorder not only show up in adults but also can appear in children and adolescents. It is important to be aware of these symptoms so knowledge can be acquired of what these symptoms mean collectively. The sooner an individual can receive help and safe medication, the hopes of their recovery increase. This is very good news for those patients who have bipolar disorder. There can be better days ahead when they are not controlled by this mental illness.

Findings from an article report that those with bipolar and who have high levels of mania have a decreased ability to detect sad or negative facial expressions. Examples of some of the facial expressions they have a hard time detecting are sadness, disgust, and fear. In comparison to this contrast, those individuals who have high levels of depression have an overwhelming ability to detect these same facial expressions. In fact, they may believe they are seeing sad or disgusted facial expressions when, in reality, they are not. They have a harder time distinguishing between happy and sad facial expressions (Zhang et al., 2018). This research makes sense because oftentimes times, humans will portray how they are feeling on the inside to their outer experiences. Those who are not mentally stable may assume that they feel the same way as everyone else.

Treatment

A form of treatment for bipolar disorder is medication that is taken orally. Individuals usually are prescribed for mediation by their psychologist or clinician. According to an article talking about treatment for bipolar disorder, it states that there is a wide range of choices when it comes to pharmacological or medication options. Unfortunately, though, even with this wide range of variability, there is still only a small amount of individuals who recover within a year of being diagnosed with bipolar disorder (Pinto et al., 2020). There is research done on bipolar disorders and how to treat them, but more research needs to be done to widen the knowledge for treating this disorder. It can be difficult for clinicians to always diagnose the perfect medication for each patient every time.

Another article reports that there is a Mood Disorder Questionnaire that can help psychologists screen where individuals are on the spectrum of bipolar disorder. Research has been done on this questionnaire, and it suggested that this screening can help boost sensitivity where the risk of bipolar disorder is higher (Dumont et al., 2020). Screening tools are usually used when individuals are first diagnosed with bipolar disorder. Psychologists want to learn where on the spectrum these individuals are. This knowledge can help them properly diagnose a medication that will hopefully help individuals with bipolar disorder. Questionnaires are not always foolproof, but they can be helpful to guide clinicians in the right direction.

A study finds that in order for medication to be successful for those who have bipolar, clinicians must see their patients regularly and make any adjustments that are needed. Clinicians need to focus on whether the medication that has been prescribed is working as it should or if it needs to be changed in any way. Clinicians may change medications if there is a negative side effect, a negative response, or no response to the medication that was prescribed to the patient. If changes are not made, the patient experiencing these responses may stop taking their medication because it is not helping. Other times, there is nothing wrong with the drug that is being administered; sometimes, it is the patient who may display new or more serious symptoms that then need a stronger medication to treat. That is why it is so important that clinicians keep a close eye on their patients (Hodgkin et al., 2018). It is not uncommon for doctors in any medical profession to need to change medication for their patients sometimes. It can be difficult to properly prescribe a perfect medication to each patient all of the time.

Challenges in Medication Management

A very informational article that I found talked about several potential drugs that may affect function and could be used for patients with bipolar disorder. Lithium has a low chance of improving functioning mainly because it could have adverse effects. Also, previous studies have been done on Lithium, and they suggest that it can decrease suicidal behavior. Another drug listed is Valproate. It is known to be pretty effective for several patients. It also can help patients who have issues with irritability. Valproate can also help with cognitional function.

This drug may cause weight gain, but other than that, Valproate has fewer negative effects than other drugs that are commonly used for bipolar disorder. Another drug that can be used is called Quetiapine. This drug does prove to increase functioning. It can have benefits for depression and mania. Fortunately, this drug can also help with sleep problems and can help enhance cognitive functioning (Bowden & Singh, 2006). This article shows that there are many kinds of medications that can be prescribed to patients with bipolar disorder. Clinicians must think about the pros and cons of each drug. Clinicians also must decide which medication will fit each patient for their individual needs.

Another research study talks about how they studied two drugs to see how effective they would be on patients with bipolar disorder. They found that amphetamine and methylphenidate are pretty effective drugs for those who have bipolar disorder. These drugs were well received by the group that was given them. There were little to no adverse effects from either drug. Most of the patients stayed on stimulants, and this led to their improvement. The success of the individuals who were involved was significant. Many were able to go back to have productive lives because of their recovery. There were a couple that did not react as well to the drug, and they did not benefit from it (Carlson et al., 2004).

Conclusion

In conclusion, bipolar disorder is a mental illness that is primarily known for two major symptoms. The first symptom is mania. This is when a patient will feel extreme highs, like very excited and an elevated feeling. And then suddenly, the same patient will feel extreme sadness. This is the low part of the spectrum, also known as depression. Patients with bipolar disorder experience this swing of highs and lows more often than people who do not have bipolar disorder. The severity and frequency of these mood fluctuations differ from each patient, but it is this pattern that is most often seen.

Adults have bipolar disorder, but even children and adolescents can be diagnosed with bipolar disorder. Treatment for this mental disorder may differ depending on the patient and their specific symptoms, but the most common form of treatment for this disorder is medication. The medication that is diagnosed for patients with bipolar disorder has a very wide range. Clinicians can choose which medication they think would work best for their patients. There are questionnaires that can be given to help clinicians make a good choice. Even when this choice is made, though, clinicians may need to go back and revisit their patient’s medication and change it if necessary. Bipolar disorder can be treated, and there are many patients who have had recoveries and now live very normal lives.

References

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Bipolar disorder – Symptoms and help for a loved one. (2004). South African Psychiatry Review, 7(2), 35–36
Carlson, P. J., Merlock, M. C., & Suppes, T. (2004). Adjunctive stimulant use in patients with bipolar disorder: treatment of residual depression and sedation. Bipolar Disorders, 6(5), 416–420. https://doi-org.ezproxy.uvu.edu/10.1111/j.1399-5618.2004.00132.x
Dumont, C. M., Sheridan, L. M., Besancon, E. K., Blattner, M., Lopes, F., Kassem, L., & McMahon, F. J. (2020). Validity of the Mood Disorder Questionnaire (MDQ) as a screening tool for bipolar spectrum disorders in anabaptist populations. Journal of Psychiatric Research, pp. 123, 159–163. https://doi-org.ezproxy.uvu.edu/10.1016/j.jpsychires.2020.01.011
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