Bipolar Disorder/nnahsuuejeklwjoiu

BipolardisorderIntr oductionBipolardisorder ,formerlyknownasmanicdepression,isaconditionthataf fectsyourmoods,whichcanswingfromoneextremetoanother .Peoplewithbipolardisorderhaveperiodsorepisodesof:depression-feelingverylowandlethar gicmania-feelingveryhighandoveractive(lessseveremaniaisknownashypomania)Symptomsdependonwhichmoodyou'reexperiencing.Unlikesimplemoodswings,eachextremeepisodeofbipolardisordercanlastforseveralweeks(orevenlonger),andsomepeoplemaynotexperiencea"normal"moodveryoften.Depr essionY oumayinitiallybediagnosedwithdepressionbeforehavingafuturemanicepisode(sometimesyearslater),afterwhichyoumaybediagnosedwithbipolardisorderDuringanepisodeofdepression,youmayhaveoverwhelmingfeelingsofworthlessness,whichcanpotentiallyleadtothoughtsofselfharmIfyou'refeelingsuicidalorhavingseveredepressivesymptoms,contactyourGP ,careco-ordinatororlocalmentalhealthemer gencyservicesassoonaspossible.Ifyouwanttotalktosomeoneconfidentially ,calltheSamaritans,freeofchar ge,on1 16123.Y oucantalktothem24hoursaday ,7daysaweek.Duringamanicphaseofbipolardisorder ,youmayfeelveryhappyandhavelotsofener gy,ambitiousplansandideas.Y oumayspendlar geamountsofmoneyonthingsyoucan'taf fordandwouldn'tnormallywant.Notfeelinglikeeatingorsleeping,talkingquicklyandbecomingannoyedeasilyarealsocommoncharacteristicsofthisphase.Y oumayfeelverycreativeandviewthemanicphaseofbipolarasapositiveexperience.However ,youmayalsoexperiencesymptomsofpysicosiswhereyouseeorhearthingsthataren'tthereorbecomeconvincedofthingsthataren'ttrue.LivingwithbipolardisorderThehighandlowphasesofbipolardisorderareoftensoextremethattheyinterferewitheverydaylife.However ,thereareseveraloptionsforbpdthatcanmakeadif ference.Theyaimtocontroltheef fectsofanepisodeandhelpsomeonewithbipolardisorderlivelifeasnormallyaspossible.Thefollowingtreatmentoptionsareavailable:medicationtopreventepisodesofmania,hypomania(lessseveremania)anddepression-theseareknownasmoodstabilisersandaretakeneverydayonalong-termbasismedicationtotreatthemainsymptomsofdepressionandmaniawhentheyoccurlearningtorecognisethetriggersandsignsofanepisodeofdepressionormaniapsychologicaltreatment-suchastalkingtherapy ,whichcanhelpyoudealwithdepression,andprovidesadviceabouthowtoimproveyourrelationshipslifestyleadvice-suchasdoingregularexercise,planningactivitiesyouenjoythatgiveyouasenseofachievement,aswellasadviceondietsIt'sthoughtusingacombinationofdif ferenttreatmentmethodsisthebestwaytocontrolbipolardisorder .Helpandadviceforpeoplewithalong-termconditionortheircarersisalsoavailablefromcharities,supportgroupsandassociations.Thisincludesself-helpandself-managementadvice,andlearningtodealwiththepracticalaspectsofalong-termcondition.Bipolardisorderandpr egnancyBipolardisorder ,likeallothermentalhealthproblems,cangetworseduringpregnancy .However ,specialisthelpisavailableifyouneedit.Whatcausesbipolardisorder?Theexactcauseisunknown,althoughit'sbelievedanumberofthingscantriggeranepisode.Extremestress,overwhelmingproblemsandlife-changingeventsarethoughttocontribute,aswellasgeneticandchemicalfactors.Who'saffected?Bipolardisorderisfairlycommonandoneinevery100adultswillbediagnosedwiththeconditionatsomepointintheirlife.Bipolardisordercanoccuratanyage,althoughitoftendevelopsbetweentheagesof15and19andrarelydevelopsafter40.Menandwomenfromallbackgroundsareequallylikelytodevelopbipolardisorder .Thepatternofmoodswingsinbipolardisordervarieswidelybetweenpeople.Forexample,somepeopleonlyhaveacoupleofbipolarepisodesintheirlifetimeandarestableinbetween,whileothershavemanyepisodes.