.

.

Becoming educated is the first step to getting better.

-Bipolar 101: A Practical Guide to Identifying Triggers, Managing Medications, Coping with Symptoms, and More By Dr. White & Dr. Preston

 

 

.

.

.

Bipolar.

.

You’ve probably heard that word hundreds of times.

.

The weather is so bipolar.

My ex girlfriend was so bipolar.

I get happy, then I get sad. I must be bipolar or something.

That political candidate is all over the place. He is so bipolar.

.

Do these statements make sense? No, not at all. Often, the word “bipolar” is misused. It is everyday statements like those above which make “bipolar disorder” unclear to the general public.

.

.

.

.

.

.

What is Bipolar Disorder?

.

Is it moodiness?

Having anger issues?

Being super, duper emotional?

.

.

.

.

.

.

Let’s break it down!

.

.

.

.

.

.

25 Things to Know about Bipolar Disorder:

 

1. Bipolar disorder is not some quirky personality trait. It is a mental illness. It is incurable, chronic and serious. This is not to say that it cannot be treated and managed! Many people with this illness live fulfilling lives and are incredibly successful! I just want to emphasize that it is not a joke.
2. Bipolar disorder is also known as manic-depressive illness. People with this condition “experience unusual and sometimes drastic, shifts in mood, energy, thoughts, behavior, and ability to function that are out of proportion or unrelated to their environments (Bipolar 101).”
3. The shifts are called episodes. They can be recurring and vary in their severity. The episodes may be mania or depression or mixed episodes.
4. Those with bipolar disorder also have periods of stability. For some people, these periods can be long, even lasting years. For others, the periods between episodes can be extremely short, such as people who experience ultra-rapid cycling (multiple episodes within single week or day).
5. A manic episode includes symptoms such as: increased energy/activity, euphoric and/or irritable mood, racing thoughts, rapid speech, little sleep, poor judgement, and engaging in risky behavior.
6. Hypomania is a milder form of mania. While in this state, the person may feel good, productive, and energetic. People in this state will commonly deny that something is “wrong” with them, even if the difference is obvious to others. Untreated hypomania may lead to severe mania or depression.
7. Depression involves symptoms such as: sad/anxious/empty mood, hopelessness, loss of interest in activities, decreased energy, difficulty concentrating, suicidal ideation, and changes in sleep and appetite (too much or too little).
8. Dysthymia is a mild, chronic form of depression.
9. Mixed episodes/states have symptoms of both mania and depression simultaneously, such as manic energy levels with depressive sadness/hopelessness.
10. There are several forms of Bipolar Disorder.
11. Bipolar I, the “classic form” of the disease, has recurrent episodes of mania and depression.
12. Bipolar II disorder has hypomania and major depressive episodes (not full-blown mania).
13. Rapid-cycling bipolar disorder is when a person has 4+ depressive/manic episodes within a year.
14. Ultra-rapid cycling form has multiple episodes within a single week or day.
15. Cyclothymia or cyclothymic disorder is considered a more mild form of the illness, with episodes that are mild depression and hypomania (not mania or severe depression).
16. Psychosis can occur in severe manic or depressive episodes. Psychosis may take the form of delusions (unrealistic beliefs not based in logic/reality) and hallucinations (seeing/hearing/sensing things that are not there). Patients with psychosis may be misdiagnosed with schizophrenia due to this feature.
17. Misdiagnosing bipolar disorder is so common! Many people are initially diagnosed with depression. On average, it takes a decade to be properly diagnosed with BD! Yikes!
18. A trigger is defined as “an environmental, biological, or situational factor that causes symptoms of bipolar disorder to begin (Bipolar 101).” Major triggers for bipolar episodes include: lack of sleep, changes in the seasons, skipping medications, high levels of stress, and trauma.
19. Treating bipolar disorder involves aiming for remission and quickly stopping episodes from escalating when symptoms breakthrough.
20. The stats of Bipolar Disorder can be pretty scary. “According to Kay Jamison of the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine (2000), at least 25 to 50% of people with bipolar disorder attempt suicide at least once, and mood disorders (including depression) are the most common psychiatric conditions associated with suicide (Bipolar 101).”
21. If you have bipolar disorder, you are not alone! Bipolar Disorder impacts an estimated 1-2.6% of American adults, approximately 5.7 million people (Kessler et al. 2005).
22. Unfortunately, a stigma exists around many mental illnesses, including bipolar disorder. People with this condition may be perceived as violent or unstable based on their diagnosis. This isn’t true! Many times, people with mental illness are the victims rather than the perpetrators of criminal behavior.
23. There are so many resources available, from memoirs (“An Unquiet Mind” by Kay Redfield Jamison is a classic) to workbooks (e.g., CBT for Bipolar Disorder) to simple educational books (“Bipolar 101”). The internet also has so many sources as well as mental health groups and communities! It is amazing!
24. Many people successfully treat Bipolar Disorder using a combination of medication and therapy! I think that the combination works wonderfully. Medications help prevent mood episodes and therapy can help in other ways, such as in developing healthy coping mechanisms and in early identification of symptoms/episodes.
25. If you have bipolar disorder, that does not make you weak! You are a mental health warrior!