What is Bipolar Disorder?
Bipolar disorder is a mental condition characterised by mood swings that are severe. Mania, or an excessively high mood, is one of the symptoms. They can also contain depressive episodes. Bipolar disorder is also known as manic depression or bipolar syndrome.
People with bipolar disorder can struggle to manage daily tasks at school or work, as well as maintain relationships. While there is no cure, there are many treatment options that can help relieve the indications.
Statistics:
Researchers at Johns Hopkins University interviewed all first-degree relatives of bipolar I and bipolar II disorder patients and found that bipolar II disorder was the most common affective disorder in both family groups. The researchers discovered that 40 percent of the 47 bipolar II patients' first-degree relatives also had bipolar II disorder, while 22 percent of the 219 bipolar I patients' first-degree relatives had bipolar II disorder. Researchers discovered only one parent with bipolar I disorder among bipolar II patients. They came to the conclusion that bipolar II is the most common disorder in both bipolar I and bipolar II families.
Children with one biological parent who has bipolar I or bipolar II disorder have a higher risk of developing bipolar disorder, according to Stanford University research. According to the findings, 51% of bipolar offspring had a psychiatric condition, the most common of which were severe depression, dysthymia (low-grade, persistent depression), bipolar disorder, or attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Bipolar parents with a childhood history of ADHD were more likely to have children with bipolar disorder rather than ADHD, according to the report.
Researchers have discovered that first-degree relatives of people diagnosed with bipolar I or II disorder had a higher risk of severe depression than first-degree relatives of people who have never had bipolar disorder. Scientific studies also indicate that the lifelong incidence of affective disorders in families of bipolar disorder patients rises with the number of diagnosed relatives.
What causes Bipolar Disorder?
Bipolar disorder tends to be caused by a number of causes.
Genetic: Bipolar disorder is more common in people who have a family member who suffers from it. A variety of genetic characteristics may be at play. People with bipolar disorder are more likely to have a first-degree relation with the illness, such as a sibling or parent. Researchers are looking for genes that may play a role in the development of bipolar disorder.
Biological characteristics: Neurotransmitter or hormone imbalances that affect the brain can play a role, according to research.
Environmental factors: Violence, mental stress, a "major loss," or another traumatic event in a vulnerable individual can cause an initial episode.
There is also mounting evidence that the severity of the condition is influenced by environmental and lifestyle factors. Bipolar disorder can be made more difficult to manage by stressful life events, as well as alcohol or substance abuse.
In addition to a genetic correlation to bipolar disorder, evidence suggests that bipolar parents' children are often exposed to severe environmental stressors. Living with a parent who has a history of mood swings, alcohol or drug abuse, financial and sexual misdeeds, and hospitalizations are all examples of this. While generally children of bipolar parents may not develop bipolar disorder, some children of bipolar parents may develop ADHD, severe depression, schizophrenia, or drug abuse.
Bipolar Disorder and the Brain
Bipolar disorder is thought to be triggered in part by a problem with particular brain circuits and the activity of brain chemicals called neurotransmitters, according to experts.
Norepinephrine (noradrenaline), serotonin, and dopamine are three brain chemicals that play a role in both brain and body functions. Serotonin and norepinephrine have long been related to psychological mood disorders including depression and bipolar disorder. Dopamine regulates nerve pathways within the brain that control pleasure and emotional reward. Psychosis and schizophrenia, a serious psychiatric illness marked by reality disturbances and illogical thinking patterns and actions, tend to be linked to disruption of circuits that interact using dopamine in other brain areas.
Women's symptoms include:
More energy and goal-oriented task high or irritated mood
Pretentiousness or inflated self-esteem
Reduced sleep rate of talking higher than normal quick speech flow and flights of ideas or speeding thoughts
Being prone to distraction
Impulses for enjoyable experiences, such as shopping or sex, on a regular basis without regard for the consequences
A serious type of feeling "low" or "down" is a common symptom of depression in both men and women with bipolar disorder. Some people may lose interest in simple aspects of life, such as eating, while others may be unable to participate in daily activities like going to the supermarket or going to work.
Women with bipolar disorder are more likely to have depressive episodes, according to research. Men are more likely to have a "mixed state," in which depression and mania coexist.
Since women are more likely than men to seek medical help for depression, they are more likely to obtain an incorrect diagnosis.
If a woman is diagnosed with bipolar disorder, it is most likely bipolar II, which suggests she has had depressive episodes as well as hypomanic ones.
A woman with bipolar disorder II is more likely to alternate rapidly between episodes, according to the fifth edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5), issued by the American Psychiatric Association (APA).
Women with bipolar disorder are also more likely to have a higher genetic risk of alcohol use disorder and a higher prevalence of lifetime eating disorders, according to the DSM-5.
According to a study Women's bipolar disorder may be triggered by childbirth. Postpartum episodes are what they're called.
Childbirth significantly increased the likelihood of a serious episode, according to a study published in the journal JAMA by Trusted Source.
According to the same report, being a new father does not increase the likelihood of serious mental illness.
The exact mechanism that causes a bipolar episode after childbirth is unknown. Hormonal fluctuations, sleep disturbances, and other changes that occur after childbirth are all possible causes.
A woman with bipolar disorder should consult her doctor about the effects of pregnancy and any medications she is taking.
Hormones can contribute to the onset of a bipolar episode after childbirth, and the menstrual cycle may exacerbate symptoms. However, there is less evidence of a connection than there is for childbirth.
Hormones present during menstruation time can slightly alter the effect of lithium, a treatment for bipolar disorder, and thus reduce the medication's effectiveness.
In an article published in Psychiatric Times, Dr. Laura Miller, the director of women's mental health at Brigham and Women's Hospital, says that menopause can also play a role.
Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT), lamotrigine, benzodiazepines, and psychotherapy were also more common in women than in men.
The authors concluded that doctors had gender differences because there was no scientific justification to use different procedures based on gender.
Women, not just those with bipolar disorder, are more likely than men to receive antidepressants and combination therapies, according to the article.
Is Bipolar Disorder Passed Down Through Generations?
Bipolar disorder appears to run in families, according to several reports of bipolar patients and their family. Twin studies have some of the most compelling evidence. According to studies of identical twins, if one twin has bipolar disorder, the other twin has a higher risk of having bipolar disorder than any sibling in the family. According to the findings, an identical twin (of a bipolar twin) has a 40% to 70% risk of developing bipolar disorder in their lifetime.
Sleep, wakefulness, feeding, sexual activity, impulsivity, learning, and memory are all linked to the chemical serotonin in the brain. Researchers conclude that mood disorders are caused by irregular functioning of brain circuits that use serotonin as a chemical messenger (depression and bipolar disorder).
References:
- Diagnostic and Statistical Handbook of Mental Disorders, American Psychiatric Association. American Psychiatric Publishing, Arlington, VA, 5th ed., 2013.
- Bhaskaran[34] explained the use of long-term benefits of electro convulsive therapy in a case of manic depressive disorder, and Venkoba Rao[35] described a case of rapid cycling.
- R. Kotwicki and P. D. Harvey. A three-year, three-cohort review of the stability of psychiatric diagnoses was conducted as part of a systematic study of standardised diagnostic procedures in outpatient psychiatric recovery. May–Jun;10(5–6):14–9. Innov Clin Neurosis. 2013 May–Jun;10(5–6):14–9. 23882436 is the PMID number for this article. [Free article from PMC] [PubMed] [PubMed] [PubMed]
- A. Ferrari, A. Baxter, and H. Whiteford A systematic examination of the global distribution and accessibility of bipolar disorder occurrence results. 2011;134(1–3):1–13 in J Affect Disorder. [PubMed] [PubMed] [PubMed]