Manic

Manic episodes are marked by extreme highs generally or can be periods of irritability. Of course, everyone experiences times when they feel on high or a little cranky but for those struggling with bipolar these episodes will experience these emotions for an extended period of time (at least a week) and it will interfere with occupational or social situations detrimentally.  Manic episodes may be marked by:

* Grandiosity
* Insomnia
* Racing thoughts
* Extreme talking
* Distractible
* Extreme activities- sexual, shopping, thrill seeking or risky behaviour

Depressive

During depressive episodes usually last at least two weeks and are marked by a depressed mood or lack of interest in anything pleasurable. Bipolar depression will be a variance from the person's normal mood and school, work and social interactions will be negatively impacted. Signs of a major depressive episode:

* Hypersomnia – sleeping too much each day
* Insomnia
* Feelings of worthlessness
* Fatigue
* Inappropriate guilt on a daily basis
* Suicidal thoughts
* Weight loss or weight gain without effort (5% or more of total body weight)

Medication

There are several medication options for people struggling with bipolar including lithium a mood stabilizer and lamotrigine for managing depression. Lithium is one of the only drugs that has been shown to reduce suicidal tendencies common during bipolar depression. You should discuss all medications carefully with your physician and make sure you take it as prescribed. This is one very important factor of dealing with bipolar disorder. If you are having trouble with a particular medication – discusses it with your doctor so that you can adjust the dosage or change medications under their supervision.

Therapy

Psychotherapy in conjunction with medication is the most recommended treatment option. Very seldom will medication alone be effective at helping someone struggling with bipolar. The best treatment plan is one that offers you medical and psychiatric care. You will need to learn how to identify when an episode is coming on, deal with the disorder as a whole, regulate your mood more effectively and improve the relationships around you.

Conclusion

Until recently bipolar has carried a stigma. Many people delay treatment because they want to avoid being labeled as crazy, unreliable or even dangerous. New therapies and medications are slowly changing the perception of this disorder. It also helps that well-known faces are coming forward and admitting to struggling with bipolar as well, for instance it was just recently released the famous actress Catherine Zeta Jones is dealing with the disorder. You can live a healthy and relatively normal life in spite of dealing with bipolar depression and manic episodes. Work closely with your medical team and make informed decisions about your treatment plan.

Who is helped by bipolar support groups?

Bipolar support groups are helpful for the families as well as the patient. By talking with others experiencing the same things, the support system kicks in and lets you know you are not stranded all by yourself in the situation.

Benefits of bipolar support groups as a patient

At times like these, it helps to know that you are not the only one experiencing the problem. As a patient, you realize you are not alone and that there is help available. You may possibly find help that you did not know was available to you. When you begin to see that there are other people that feel the same way you do, it helps.

Many sufferers of bipolar disorder feel that they are all alone. One of the symptoms of the condition is a feeling of helplessness or hopelessness. In talking to other bipolar sufferers, you see that there are ways to combat the onset of the extreme highs and lows it brings. Medication which is part of bipolar treatment can do only so much. Coming to a realization that many people live with bipolar disorder is the first step to recovery.

Benefits of bipolar support groups as a family member

Bipolar disorder affects people around the patient just as much as the actual patient. Sometimes, the patient can become violent, combative or even suicidal in extreme cases. The stress of dealing with these things can take its toll on you. As a result, the closest people to them may start to feel isolated and helpless.

Bipolar support groups can assist you in learning how to deal with your loved one's condition. The realization that some of the things they might say or do are not intentional. Many times, the actions of a bipolar sufferer stem directly from the chemical imbalance commonly associated with the disorder.

You may be surprised to find that there are more people going through the same things that you are; some have even worse situations. Together, you learn new ways to deal with the day to day of living with or caring for a loved one with bipolar disorder.

The leaders of bipolar support groups are usually individuals that have successfully overcome the condition themselves or helped a family member get past it. Either way, the folks you come into contact with have personal life experience in this area. They are there to help.

Where do I find bipolar support groups?

Most local hospitals have bipolar support groups available. You just need to ask. Alternatively, you could search for them online at your favorite search engine. The local results will tell you where the groups are located, what they offer, who leads or sponsors them and give you directions to get there.

Most insurance coverage has contingencies for mental disorders of this nature and will cover the treatment, even if only partially.

Nature of Bipolar Treatments

Bipolar disorder is a condition that usually requires long-term treatment. Since it is a relapsing and often chronic condition, bipolar treatments go beyond medication and therapy sessions to effectively prevent episodes. To stay symptoms free, doctors recommend patients to join bipolar support groups as part of an effective treatment strategy. Along with medication and lifestyle changes, the social support provided by support groups allows patients to turn to the right people who are knowledgeable and understands the true nature of their brain disorder and relate to other people who are fighting the same battles against bipolar disorder.

The Role of Bipolar Support Groups

For bipolar disorder patients, every day is a battle against the disease. Not only are episodic bipolar symptoms challenging to the person afflicted. It also affects their entire families, friends, work and other relations. It would be helpful for both the patients and their families to talk with other people who are going through the same issues and things that they face due to the disease.

Active participation to support groups for bipolar disorder is seen as a crucial part of the healing process. This will not only facilitate quality bonding time between the family and the patient but also educate both parties on the nature of the disease and gain better understanding of the actions and behavior of the patient. Support groups offer great opportunities for patients and families to gain awareness and learn how to maintain harmony in living with the twists and turns of bipolar symptoms. This segment of treatment convinces patients that the disease does not need to overrule their lives. Support groups allow patients to relate and socialize with fellow patients, which is helpful in regaining self-confidence and in motivating them to endure the demands of their treatment regimen. This explains why bipolar support groups are included in strategically planned bipolar treatments.

Benefits of Bipolar Support Groups

Research has shown that psycho education, psychotherapy and mood-stabilizing medications combined with antipsychotic medications make up the most effective treatment for bipolar disorder. Support groups do not only facilitate interaction or dialog and form a concerned community for people living with the disease. They also promote awareness through psycho-education, which is often facilitated by a fellow patient or a knowledgeable bipolar expert.

For mild cases, a lifelong therapy with mood-stabilizers is important in dramatically decreasing the suffering and suicide risks of patients. However, most patients are non compliant, stopping their rounds of medications after a year. The social support and encouragement that patients get from their participation to bipolar support groups is helpful in enduring the rounds of recommended treatment.

Bipolar Disorder Symptoms

Bipolar disorder is a condition that involves dealing with two completely different spheres of mood disorder. The first is the "up" phase known as mania and the other sphere is the "down" phase known as depression. Some have an extremely inaccurate understanding of these symptoms as they assume mania is a positive symptom that counterbalances the negatives of depression. This is not the case as mania can prove to be extremely dangerous.

Bipolar Mania

Mania can include symptoms such as racing thoughts, excessive energy, irritability, insomnia, delusions, and even hallucinations. These are certainly harmful symptoms since they can impair judgment and cloud cognitive thinking. Mania also contributes to attention deficit issues since the ability to concentrate is clouded by such seemingly irrational thinking.

The depression based symptoms of bipolar disorder can be somewhat jarring since they can have a seriously negative impact on a person's mental state. A severe sense of sadness, despair, anxiety, hopelessness, and extreme loss of energy are all common forms of depressive symptoms. At their worst, such a state of mind can lead to thoughts of suicide.

More Symptoms

Bipolar disorder symptoms do not appear in a 50-50 manner. In other words, you do not alternative equally between mania and depression. The swings could involve being manic 75% of the time and depressed 25%. Really, there is no standardization in regards to how the condition manifests. Regardless of how they do, the fact remains they do definitely have a serious impact on a person's mental state.

The presence of bipolar symptoms should lead someone to seeking an evaluation from a qualified mental health professional. Generally, a board certified psychiatrist would be the best professional to speak with. Based on a proper evaluation, the steps to finding a proper treatment method can be undertaken. With the proper treatment, the impact of the bipolar symptoms can be diminished to the point they do not affect the person's life in too severe of a manner.

Various Treatments

The treatments employed to deal with bipolar disorder can vary. Often, prescription medication is employed to deal with the condition. Counseling and therapy is employed as well and can often lead to good results. Cognitive behavioral therapy is also used and can reverse a number of problems in the onset of the condition.

Those wishing to learn more about the condition of bipolar disorder should explore the various resources available.

What is hypomania? Different in nature from bipolar mania and bipolar depression symptoms, it has  continuous abnormal level of joyful mood, which can for some people last 4 to one whole  week. It is a gentler  and milder level of mania symptoms, characterized by persistence abnormal happiness  and behaviors which we will try and  discuss through this article.

Bipolar Mania

To really understand hypomania one must first know bipolar mania, because it is from the mania symptoms that we can gauge hippomania. Mania is part of  bipolar disorder and its social effect can be very disabling especially when this mania symptoms are  severe.  There is usually a great feeling of happiness when you're  manic, but it is a fact that some people also get angry and agitated when they are a going through hippomanic.

The symptoms of Hypomania

•    Those effected tend to expect too much of their capabilities.
•    They can feel very high  self-esteem or “having an exaggerated belief in one's importance.”
•    There alcohol consumption can increase.
•    They can have lots of plans but are not able to  see risks involved in their undertakings.
•    Making so many plans.
•    Tend to  involve themselves in enjoyable activities
•    Uncharacterized  sexual flirting  increases.
•    Want to do too many things all at once.
•    Lack of interest in  sleep.
•    Usually very sensitive.
•    Wanting to take many responsibilities.
•    Goal-directed activity increases.

Common Mistakes

The hypomania account listed are not really negative, but what makes this symptoms  scary is that those with the disorder can make bad to very bad choices when they are with  increased energy. The second most common error is because they feel good with hippomania, they stop taking bipolar treatment medications.

What you can do  Hypomania sufferers.

•    Make sure they have a god nights rest. If they  are not able to sleep, do not hesitate to consult a  doctor. Not having enough sleep can  lead to bipolar depression.
•    Avoid  jumping  to any important decision if you are hippomanic, wait until you are okay to make those important decisions.
•    If possible try and keep your thoughts directed and focused.
•    Make sure to keep your money in some safe and reliable hands who can make tough decisions for you. This will greatly help you in the future. Many have the headache to pay their huge credits after coming out of hypomania or mania episodes.
•    Try and be involved  in relaxing and calming social activities, but not an environment that can stimulate the symptoms.
•    Try and avoid social gatherings which involve disco, dance and the drinks at the bar. This is a very dangerous  environment because it can trigger hypomania.
•    Always be open about your feelings and consult with your friends or families so they can understand them to.
•    Talk to your local doctor before it becomes uncontrollable.
•    Try not to consume too much alcohol, sugar or caffeine and always eat well balanced meal.

Finally

It is important for friends and families to  recognize the signs of this mood behavior, because most of the time people with hippomania tend to  deny that anything is wrong with them. This disorder if not treated well by bipolar treatment can become severe bipolar mania or  turn into bipolar depression.

Around the world, medication is the standard and most proven treatment for bipolar. Some patients can be maintained on a single drug, but many others have to use a combination of prescribed medications, some call "med cocktail", to stabilize the disorder. These drugs depend on a few factors, the person's unique mood symptoms, their body and brain makeup and some unforeseen factors like other medicine being taken for other conditions. Here are some resources and important information on understanding these prescribed drugs.

• Zyprexa – Olanzapine

This was the first FDA (Food and Drug Administration approved antipsychotic medication for the treatment of bipolar mania. Research has shown that it is in line with Lithium for the use of mixed episodes. However, weight gain is the side effect of this medication.

• Risperidone (Risperdal)

Risperidone has a similar effect as Lithium. This medicine works well for a long-term stability. Side effects such as weight gain can be a concern.

• Clozapine (Clozaril)

Usually works to reduce bipolar symptoms and has been very successful in the treatment of difficult cases. The only concern is that it may reduce blood cell count.

• Quetiapine (Seroquel)

This is a fairly new medicine which is used to treat intense mania and rapid-moods cycles.

• Ziprasidone (Geodon)

Recently used medication for bipolar with similar results is also used for very severe mania symptoms. It can have a swift effect on the symptoms.

• Valproate (Depakote)

Approved by the FDA in 1995, it became the first anticonvulsant drug for treating bipolar mania. For those who are going through rapid cycle, this drug is often used as a first line treatment.

• Carbamazepine (Tegretol)

Not yet approved by FDA to treat mania, many have found its side effects very difficult to endure.

• Lamotrigine (Lamictal)

This is a second-generation drug to treat convulsions, while it is still in the experimental stage, it is fairly good alternative medication.

• Gabapentin (Neurontin)

This drug comes under the anticonvulsant drugs and is mostly used with other prescribed medications to bring a more desired result.

• Topiramate (Topamax)

This is the newest anticonvulsant in the market, which goes together with therapy. Although it may seem to create some problems with the mind functioning, it has no side effect especially with weight gain.

• Olanzapine (Zyprexa)

The first antipsychotic medication to be approved by the FDA for the treatment of mania. It is quite as effective as Lithium to treat mixed episodes of bipolar, but weight gain is the main problem with this drug.

• Risperidone (Risperdal)

Similar to Lithium, it seems to work very well in long-term stability, but weight gain is a great concern with this medication.

• Clozapine (Clozaril)

This medicine is well known for its speed to reduce the bipolar symptoms. It has been very successful in the treatment of difficult cases. The only concern is it may bring down the count of blood cells.

• Quetiapine (Seroquel)

Seroquel is fairly new, used in severe mania and rapid-cycling. The side effects include dry mouth constipation and many more.

• Ziprasidone (Geodon)

Used for severe mania symptoms, it has been proven to act swiftly to stabilize bipolar mania. The side effects can be constipation, vomiting and for women the stopping of menstrual period to difficulty getting pregnant.

Final Words

As with any bipolar medication, most people do tolerate it quite well with no side effects. But if side effects do happen, please consult your doctor or a healthcare provider.

Bipolar disorder symptoms swing from one cycle to the other. Some may start from  manic episodes, return to normal before cycling into a depressive mode. Because of the two main symptoms of bipolar disease it is possible to divide bipolar disorder symptoms into the two different main mood types; manic  and depressive symptoms. There are over twenty symptoms in bipolar and victims do not usually have all of the twenty symptoms to be considered bipolar. Some symptoms may be stronger than the others and some may not show at all. A person can only be called bipolar when either depressive or bipolar mania symptoms is severe, and frequent. For better information on the symptoms of bipolar we will try to take this feeling of guilt, hopelessness and worthlessness in detail.

What is Guilt?

“Guilt” is first a feeling of responsibility or remorse for something wrong we have committed, this can be either real or imagined as we will see later on. It is our conscience convicting us for the actions and thoughts. While it should be taken as a gift, most people try and talk their way out of it and as it were quench it. Some may describe it like a nagging voice in us. Unless you are a good actor guilty feelings can be seen in our body language and the words we speak. In those with bipolar this guilt feelings seem to come from nowhere, there is no outside source.

Hopelessness

There are three main aspects to feelings of hopelessness; the future does not look bright, loss of inspiration, and no expectations. It is  a pattern of thinking where the person believes that they are trapped in misery with no way out of the situation.

Worthlessness

According to Dr. Beck, worthlessness is a depression mode, where we  feel “the Four Ds”, We feel;

•    Deprived,

•    Defective,

•    Defeated,

•    and Deserted.

Most people would see this as the contributing factor to feelings of low self-esteem.

Destructive Patterns of Thoughts

Connected to like a “switch" in the mind of a person these destructive patterns of thinking can be triggered to cause a flood of hopeless and abhorrent thoughts. Thoughts such as "I am a bum and a failure," "I am always doing things wrong," "Nobody  loves me," "Nothing will get better," "I am not entitled to anything," "I'm not a good person," "Nobody wants to be with me," "No one likes  me," "I don’t trust anyone," and the list continues, until the person's own thinking pattern takes them into a deep, dark and depressive pit.

Important Tips

To help anyone with this type of bipolar depression, do not;

•    Try and stop them doing something you do not like, “don’t do this, don’t do that” sort of thing.

•    Tell them it hurts your feelings.

•    Beg them to do something you want done, because if they cannot do it, the outcome is guilt.

•    Show distrust. Either by words or actions because negative actions will cause negative reactions in the person with bipolar.

•    Negative words or actions.

Anything negative will have a disastrous effect which can  make them more guilty to continue on with their self injuries. Always keep in mind that bipolar is a brain disorder and the person with this mental illness are fighting themselves to stay afloat and you may be the only one who will help them stay alive. For a start always use positive words.

Thoughts and attempts of suicide

Many believe that because of the thought patterns mentioned above, suicide and attempts of suicide is the only way out of those thought patterns for those with severe bipolar symptoms. Thoughts of suicide is the result of negative thoughts, which has no source whatsoever, being present and entertained by bipolar depressive people.

Medical Help

If your friend or relative are showing strong depressive symptoms of bipolar, please seek medical help. Early intervention is critical to the treatment of bipolar depressive disorder symptoms.

Psychiatrists verses Psychologists

According to law, Psychiatrists are in fact medical doctors who can diagnose and prescribe bipolar medications to their patients. On the other hand  psychologists are no allowed to do this, because the law made by health government, states that only medical doctors can prescribe medication to their patients. The word psychiatrist is a word divided into two, mind and medication.

Psychology and Bipolar

Psychology according to the Greek is the study of the mind, spirit and the soul. It is the study of the human mental functioning and observable activities. Those in this profession specifically study facts that deal with the human perception, their personality, our behaviors, knowledge, emotion, feelings and human relationships. Some psychologists go deeper in to the study of the unconscious mind. While psychologists can identify a mental problem they are not in a position to administer medication because of the law and knowledge in the field of medicine.

Psychiatry and Medicine

Psychiatrists spend many years learning about the body and the brain and how they work. And when something goes wrong with the body, medications can help the brain or the body work better. Some diseases in the mind can cause the brain to function wrongly, like bipolar disorder. When a mental illness is diagnosed from a psychologist they are usually referred to a psychiatrist in the hope that prescribed drugs may help the person get better. Patients may continue to see psychologist for counseling but for medicine they have to be referred to a psychiatrist.

The Field of Neuropsychiatry

Neuropsychiatry is the field of medicine and those who work in this field are called Neuropsychiatrists. When medications for mental illness were first discovered, there have been numerous ways to study and understand why mentally ill patients behave and think in the way they do. To do this, doctors study the brain as directly as they can. With new tools on offer the results have been amazing because now they can link bipolar disorder to certain chemicals in the brain called “neurotransmitters”.

Hope of Working Together

We can only hope that scientists can find a permanent cure or fix these mental illnesses, bipolar. While we can only wait and hope, we have to do with whatever is available, whether they be medication or therapy. From family members to those who are producing bipolar medication we are all in it together to help those with bipolar illness get better.

To understand the hows and whys of bipolar medication and bipolar symptoms, it is important to take a closer look at the brain, especially the cerebral cortex. It is a structure within the brain, a gray matter that plays a key role in how we see, touch hear, speak, remember and feel our emotions. It is the thinking part of the human system.

The Nerve Cells (neurons)

The Cortex is packed with nerve cells not larger than a pin head and houses 30,000 cells. Each neuron will communicate with other neuron, by chemicals and electric signals. These neurons (nerve cells) are separated by a gap called the synapse; this brain synapse is where neurons pass messages from one to the other. This simple chain of events, electric zap, followed by chemical changes, followed by another electrical zap is the basis of all brain activity. It is how neurons speak to each other.

Interconnecting System

There are 100 billion neurons in the brain, each neuron after receiving its information is hooked up to another 50, 000 neurons. One hundred billion neurons times 50 thousand connections = brainstorms. A neuron by itself cannot create ideas. To make it much easier to understand how bipolar medicine works or does not work we will try to give an example on a telephone network functions.

Our Telephone System Network

If you are trying to get in touch with somebody five hundred miles away all we have to do is take up a working telephone, dial their number and within minutes or seconds we are speaking and hearing each other. It sounds simple but it’s not. From one telephone to the other, it is connected by transmitters and these transmitters have three main things to keep it working. There is the generator (power source), the radio transmitter (receiving and giving radio signals) and the tower (to hold the radio transmitters). If one of these three goes wrong, signals cannot be received or be transmitted to the other transmitters.

Repairing Transmitting Stations and Medications

To repair these transmitting stations a repair person is sent to fix the problem. Let say the person sent can only fix one thing, the radio, but, the generator (electric power source) happens to be the culprit. You may have a person sent to fix but not in their power to fix it. When bipolar medications is taken, it then gets into the circulatory system and into the cells, once in the cells it operates to get the desired result, but if the medication enters the human system, like the repair man, who cannot fix the problem, bipolar symptoms will stay on.

Two or Three medications Into One

In some cases repair people can do the three tasks, fix the radio, generator and the tower. Some bipolar medications are put into one hoping like the repair man to be able to fix any of the three problems or all three.

Right Diagnosis

Doctors, like chief engineers have to pinpoint the actual problem before sending people to repair the problem. If let’s say they have identified correctly there is a bigger chance of the problem being fixed, but if there are lots of guess work, the odds against fixing the problem is great.

Finally

All of us think that all bipolar medications will fix the problem we want fixed. What we think and what actually happens in our human system is completely different. When one takes in bipolar medication there is always the hope that it will get the desired result.

We all love to spend money and experience the joy of buying some good or a beautiful something like a car, a house or anything good for our selves or members of the family. It is normal that we enjoy the fruits of our labor once in a while by indulging in a few things, while living within our means. But, some people can have an obsession with spending and running into huge debts, which may look innocent and seem unimportant. On one side they like to spend, and on the other they are crying out for help with the huge debts they have accumulated. If you or members of the family are spending so much money and are worried about your spending be aware, because manic spending is a well-known side effect of uncontrolled bipolar disorder. For many, the formula “bipolar mania = money problems + headaches,” is quite real.

Red Flags

One of the most common bipolar mania symptoms is impulsive and irrational spending. Dr Ronald R. Fieve, an expert, describes bipolar excessive spending in his book as “the lifestyle of the manic-depressive who is in a high tends to be a glorious scattering of money". These wild spending sprees can take many forms;

1. Shopping Sprees

Some bipolar children with  mania symptoms spend money on stupid little gadgets just for the sake of spending, or people with credit cards will go on shopping sprees, buying crazy manic purchases which we can call funny and outrages like 4 i Pods. One to be used in the morning, one for midday, the third for the afternoon and the remaining one for the evening. These people may go on wild shopping sprees with a self-medicating overtone.

2. Crazy Investment
Because of the grandiose crazy thoughts, these people will go into crazy investments thinking that nothing can go wrong. With these people there is no sense of logic and risk because their mind is blocked, all they are thinking about are these big crazy ideas.

3. Expensive Gifts
Have you heard about the car dealer who gave a car each for his staff as a gift? Well, he was suffering from bipolar mania. The buying of these extravagant gifts can be for families, friends or for charity. They usually do this because of the need to impress that they are a good person.

4. High Sex Libido
Because, bipolar mania symptoms also comes with the acting out of this strong sexual urges, on some very distressing scenarios bipolar mania patients are known to spend large sums of money on travel, hotel accommodation, pornography, prostitution, champagne, lingerie, and on any emotional outlet they get their hands on. What makes this scenario worse is, most do not have the money to pay for all these.

5. Gambling
This is a high addiction outlet, gambling to the point of losing everything. This comes in the form of horse racing, online poker and Las Vegas type of gambling.

What can you do?

The variations of these forms of mania episode are endless. And as much as you can, take cash, credit cards and ATM cards and put it somewhere safe. If you think they are out of control, consider taking their car keys and hiding it, which they may not like, but it may mean fewer headaches in the future. The second one is get them to take their medication or seek a doctor for diagnoses. It is better to be paying very little now on bipolar medication than loosing large sums of money on dept accumulated during the mania episodes.