Bipolar disorder, sometimes known as manic depression, causes serious changes in moods, vitality, and other behaviour going from the heights of mania on one level, to the depths of depression on the other. More than just a momentary good or bad mood, the bi polar disorder cycle last for days, weeks, or even for months and unlike normal mood swings, the mood changes of bi polar disorder are so intense that they affect your ability to function.

During one of their manic episodes, a person might quite easily quit a job, go on a spending spree, charging huge amounts on credit cards, or feel completely refreshed after only sleeping two hours. During a depressive period, the same person might feel too tired to get out of bed and be full of self-loathing and feel utterly hopeless over being out of a job and deeply in debt.

The causes of bi polar disorder are not fully understood, but it may sometimes run in families. The first occurrence of bi polar disorder is usually in the teenage years or in the early years of adulthood. The symptoms of bipolar can be confusing and easily missed which is why so many people with bi polar disorder are misdiagnosed and overlooked resulting in unnecessary suffering but had they been given proper bipolar disorder treatment and support, they could lead a rich and fulfilling life.

A person with bipolar disorder experiences alternating highs and lows. Both the manic and depressive periods can be brief, from just a few hours to a few days, or longer, lasting up to several weeks or even months. The periods of mania and depression range from person to person many people may only experience very brief periods of these intense moods, and may not even be aware that they have bipolar disorder.

A manic episode is characterized by extreme happiness, hyperactivity, little need for sleep and racing thoughts, which may lead to rapid speech. A depressive episode is characterized by extreme sadness, a lack of energy or interest in things, an inability to enjoy normally pleasurable activities and feelings of helplessness and hopelessness. On average, someone with bipolar disorder may have up to three years of normal mood between episodes of mania or depression.

Bipolar disorder is recurrent, meaning that more than 90% of the individuals who have a single manic episode will go on to experience future episodes. Roughly 70% of manic episodes in bipolar disorder occur immediately before or after a depressive episode. Treatment seeks to reduce the feelings of mania and depression associated with the disorder, and restore balance to the person’s mood.

With treatment, the outlook for bipolar disorder is favourable. Most people respond to a medication and or combination of medications. Approximately 50 percent of people will respond to lithium alone. An additional 20 to 30 percent will respond to another medication or combination of medications. Ten to 20 percent will have chronic (unresolved) mood symptoms despite treatment. Approximately 10 percent of bipolar patients will be very difficult to treat and have frequent episodes with little response to treatment. On average, a person is free of symptoms for about five years between the first and second episodes. As time goes on, the interval between episodes may shorten, especially in cases in which treatment is discontinued too soon. It is estimated that a person with bipolar disorder will have an average of eight to nine mood episodes during his or her lifetime.

However, one thing to be kept in mind is that there should be support from family and friends so that the affected person may feel more optimistic and secure.

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Bipolar disorder, sometimes known as manic depression, causes serious changes in moods, vitality, and other behaviour going from the heights of mania on one level, to the depths of depression on the other. More than just a momentary good or bad mood, the bi polar disorder cycle last for days, weeks, or even for months and unlike normal mood swings, the mood changes of bi polar disorder are so intense that they affect your ability to function.

If you look closely at the classification of mental disorders published by the American Psychiatric Association (APA) in its Diagnostic and Statisitical Manual version IV (DSM-IV) the majority of ‘disorders’ listed are actually behavioural and not solely mental. How is ‘mental disorder’ to be defined? When does ‘feeling a bit down’ become depression? When does being excited or elated become ‘manic’.

Formerly known as manic-depression, bipolar affective disorder is characterised by wide mood swings from excitability and insomnia to depression. Both extremes vary in both intensity and length.

According to DSM-IV there are several types of bipolar disorder each with differing diagnostic criteria: for example Bipolar Type I is characterised by ‘the occurrence of one or more Manic Episodes or Mixed Episodes. Often individuals have also had one or more Major Depressive Episodes’. (DSM-IV Categories 296.0x – 296.89)

Who hasn’t experienced either manic or depressive symptoms at some time? Does this mean it is a mental disorder or is it sometimes just a normal reaction to events and situations, whether the cause is known or unknown, obvious or hidden?

The difference between bipolar disorder and mental illness according to the criteria classified by the APA and generally accepted by tradtional mental health professionals is simply that there is a huge range of mental disorders and bipolar is just one of the many.

Alternatively, it could be argued that bipolar disorder is not a discrete disorder, if it is a disorder at all. Instead of trying to neatly classify and pigeonhole a patient into a particular category of disorder, we should look more closely at the individual and their presenting symptoms in a wider personal and social context. It may be that the individual is less sick than an irrational society that seeks to label what in many contexts could be defined as perfectly rational behaviour.

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Depression is a prolonged emotional tone dominating an individual’s outlook and mood. Normal moods of sadness, grief, and elation are typically short-lived and part of everyday life, but these can progress into a depressed mental state. Other symptoms often accompany depression but the most common symptoms of major depression are:

• deep sadness or emptiness,
• apathy, loss of interest or pleasure in usual activities,
• agitation or restlessness, physical hyperactivity or inactivity,
• sleep disturbances,
• weight/appetite disturbances,
• diminished ability to think or concentrate,
• feelings of excessive guilt, self-reproach or worthlessness,
• feelings of fatigue or loss of energy, and
• morbid thoughts of death or suicide.

Serious or prolonged depression is often treated with anti-depressive medication. Medicines used against depression generally increase the level of neurotransmitters like serotonin in the central nervous system, or they mimic the neurotransmitters.

The medications mostly used today increase the serotonin concentration by decreasing the removal of serotonin from the space around nerve cells. Examples of this medication type are: Fluoxetine (Prozac), fluvoxamine (Luvox), paroxetine (Paxil), escitalopram (Lexapro, Celexa), sentraline (zoloft).

By bipolar disorder in the manic face, heavy tranquilizers (neuroleptica) are used to stop the manic symptoms. By bipolar disorder, lithium salts are sometimes used to stabilize the condition, and prevent new outbreak of depressive or manic faces.

Psychotherapy is sometimes used by depression, usually in combination with medication.

Sometimes serious depression is treated by applying electric shock through the head, electroconvulsive therapy. The shock induces epileptic eruption of nerve signals through the brain and this gives cramps throughout the body. The cramps are alleviated or stopped by applying anaesthesia before the electroshock. This form of treatment is controversial, since it can cause memory loss and is suspected of causing brain damage. The possibility of brain damage is however denied by most psychiatrists.

By seasonal depression, light therapy maybe useful.

Adjustment of lifestyle should always be considered by depression or depressive symptoms. Lifestyle measures can sometimes be enough to cure depressive symptoms before a serious depression develop. Lifestyle adjustments can be:

- To slow down a stressful life with too much work or activities.

- Enough rest and sleep.

- A good diet with enough of necessary nutrients.

- Some physical exercise.

- Meditation.

- Supplement of vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, lecithin, amino acids and essential fatty acids.

- Stimulants like coffee or tea may help against depressive feelings in moderate amount. However, if you are a heavy user of these stimulants, you should cut down on your consumption.

There exist nutritional products in the marked to help against depressive symptoms. These contain ingredients that the brain uses as building blocks for neurotransmitters, for example amino acids and lecithin. They also often contain vitamins and minerals that the brain uses as tools to produce neurotransmitters, especially vitamin B6.

Supplements may further contain herbal extracts that trigger higher brain activity much like anti-depressive medications, but may have fewer side effects.

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