Manic Depressive / Bipolar Disorder
Manic depressive illness or bipolar disorder is a medical condition in which people have extreme mood swings. Their mood swings have nothing to do with things going on in their lives. These swings do not only affect mood, they also affect how people think, behave and function. Bipolar disorder is a medical disorder that can be treated.
A person with bipolar disorder may show signs of depression or mania. Bipolar disorder affects approximately 1% of the adult population and is equally distributed between males and females.
Signs and symptoms of depression include but are not limited to:
- Sad mood
- Preoccupation with failures or inadequacies and a loss of self-esteem
- Feelings of uselessness, hopelessness, excessive guilt
- Slowed thinking, forgetfulness, difficulty in concentrating and in making decisions
- Loss of interest in work, hobbies, people
- Social isolation
- Lethargy
- Agitation
- Changes in appetite or weight - eating too little or too much
- Oversleeping or insomnia
- Decreased sexual drive
- Suicidal thoughts
Signs and symptoms of mania include but are not limited to:
- Elevated, expansive mood
- Extreme irritability
- Rapid, unpredictable emotional changes
- Racing thoughts, flights of ideas
- Overreaction to stimuli, misinterpretation of events
- Increased interest in activities
- Overspending
- Sense of grandiosity, inflated self-esteem
- Excessive energy
- Decreased need for sleep
- Increased sexual drive, sexual indiscretions
- Poor judgment
Detailed factsheets:
Types of Bipolar Disorder
What Causes Bipolar Disorder
Bipolar Disorder: What Does It Feel Like
Bipolar Disorder: Medications
Bipolar Disorder: ECT
Bipolar Disorder: Effects on the Family
The most commonly used forms of treatment for depression and mania are medication and psychotherapy. They are used alone or in combination with other treatments. Approximately one in three people with bipolar disorder will remain completely free of symptoms just by taking mood stabilizing medication. Some of the factors that determine the type of treatment are the nature of the symptoms, the severity and duration of the illness, possible precipitating causes and previous response to treatment.
Related Sites
"Bipolar Screening Tool"
The mood disorder screening tool is provided courtesy of Eli Lilly Canada
and Formedic Communications.
Download the PDF version now.
Personal Diary - Mood Tracker
This diary helps you track your symptoms over time. It will provide you
and your doctor with a better idea of how your treatment is managing your
symptoms. The information obtained from mood tracking is valuable in helping
to determine whether your medication has had an effect on your mood. Click here to download a printable copy
of Personal Diary - Mood Tracker.
Recommended reading:
- Duke, Patty & Hochman, Gloria, A Brilliant Madness . New York: Bantam Books, 1992
- Whybrow, Peter C. M.D., A Mood Apart: Depression, Mania, and Other Afflictions of the Self . Basic Books, 1997
- Barondes, Samuel W. M.D., Mood Genes: Hunting for Origins of Mania and Depression . New York, W.H. Freeman and Co, 1998.
- Theriault, Charles & Lea, Pierrette, Richard, On an Even Keel . Publik-Art, 1992
- Jamison, Kay Redfield, An Unquiet Mind . New York: Random House, 1995
Websites about Bipolar Disorder:
Treatment of Bipolar Disorder: A Guide for Patients and Families, Kahn/Ross/Printz/Sachs, 2000. http://www.psychguides.com/Bipolar%20Handout.pdf
Canmat 2005 Guidelines for the Management of Patients with
bipolar disorder: Consensus and Treatment
www.canmat.org/resources/PDF/Bipolar_Guidelines.pdf
Depression and Bipolar Support Alliance - About Bipolar Disorder
http://www.dbsalliance.org/site/PageServer?pagename=about_bipolar_overview