About Bipolar Disorder

More and more people are diagnosed with bipolar disorder. It affects approximately 5.7 million adult Americans, or about 2.6% of the U.S. population age 18 and older every year. It used to be called manic depression until the 1980's, when the name was changed to bipolar disorder because of the stigma.  

Many people battle with the mania and the depression. Thousands of people die a year from it, and I think that everybody should know more about it so as to prevent their friends and loved ones from suffering and help them get the right treatment.

Bipolar disorder is a mental  illness that includes periods of elation and depression like on a roller coaster. The change between a manic and depressive episode is known as cycling. The length of the manic and depressive cycles is different from person to person. 

Rapid cycling "is a pattern of frequent, distinct episodes in bipolar disorder. In rapid cycling, a person with the disorder experiences four or more episodes of mania or depression in one year."

Mania can make you feel invincible but also makes you restless and unable to sleep. When you have mania you generally have a crazy amount of energy and can’t stop moving or talking.

Depression which not only makes you sad but also makes you doubt yourself. It is physically exhausting and you tends  to want to sleep more and not want to move. It leads to thoughts of suicide. "People with bipolar disorder are 10 to 20 times more likely to commit suicide than people without the illness."

"About 60% of people with bipolar disorder have trouble with drugs or alcohol." It is their way of coping with the illness, if they are not treated right away. It makes their pain feel more managable. When the situation gets serious and no one is there to help that's when some people turn to drugs or alcohol which is bad because taking them can stop the medication from functioning.

Type 1 Bipolar Disorder is "defined by manic or mixed episodes that last at least seven days, or by manic symptoms that are so severe that the person needs immediate hospital care. Usually, depressive episodes occur as well, typically lasting at least 2 weeks" (National Institutes of Mental Health)

Type 2 Bipolar Disorder "is a bipolar spectrum disorder characterized by at least one episode of hypomania and at least one episode of major depression" (National Institutes of Mental Health)