Bipolar – What is it?

Therapy4u Associates Limited Counselling, Weight Loss, Cognitive Behav June 11, 2013

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The Ancient Greeks were the first who documented and recognised changes in people’s energy levels and moods and coined the term “melancholia” (their word for depression) used to describe the symptoms or “mania” as they understood it.  The term ‘bipolar’ as a basis of the modern understanding for manic depressive illness was first recognised in 1854 by Jules Baillager and Jean-Pierre Falret. German psychiatrist Emil Kraepelin (1856-1926) used Kahlbaum’s concept of cyclothemia to develop these concepts to study and categorise untreated bipolar patients, and first used the term ‘manic depressive psychosis’.  “Manic-depressive reaction” was first seen in the American Psychiatric Diagnostic Manual in 1952. This term was influenced by the work of Adolf Meyer who “introduced the paradigm illness as a reaction of biogenetic factors to psychological and social influences” (Wikipedia march 2011). It was the German psychiatrist Karl Leonhard who, in 1957, first proposed and introduced the sub-classification of bipolar disorder, ‘bipolar (for those with mania) and unipolar (for those with depressive episodes only’) (Wikipedia march 2011).

During a manic episode, some of the symptoms could be:

·         Constant feelings of euphoria and/or elation

·         Being overtly promiscuous  or an increase in sexual awareness and behaviours

·         Spending more than the usual and without care or reason as to how it is to be funded

·         Not being able to sleep for long periods (usually 4/5hrs) early rising, full of energy

·         An extreme impairment in judgement, constant changing of plans and an overestimation of one’s personal capabilities

·         Disjointed, incoherent thinking, rapidly changing ideas, talkative, and possibly feelings of great optimism

Not everyone will suffer from all of these symptoms of Mania. These are just some of the most common.  A person’s sense of self and identity can often be altered/distorted by this illness, if the symptoms are severe, the term ‘psychosis’ (losing touch with reality) is used to cover this.

Most sufferers of bipolar will also at some-time experience depression, this can follow on from a manic episode, or be the result of another trauma, or even a change in the weather (depression is more prevalent for some in winter months).

Some symptoms which are commonly experienced are:

·         Self-blame, self-doubt, feelings of worthlessness and emptiness inside

·         Negative and pessimistic feelings about almost everything and everyone around

·         A sense of isolation from family and friends alike

·         Not sleeping well, early rising, or not wanting or being able to get out of bed until late

·         Lack of motivation and energy to do everyday things, such as eating, drinking, washing, general care of themselves

·         Lack of concentration

·         Thoughts of suicide, planning suicide, death in general.

Depression is different and far more pronounced than feeling sad and miserable, which we all have at times. It is the incapability of rational thoughts, feelings of uselessness, guilt, hopelessness, desperation and the inability to think normally, the impossibility of doing normal ordinary things every day, feeling different.

It is also possible that some sufferers may experience hallucinations, hearing, seeing, tasting and smelling things, or see or sense people who are not there, during both the depressive and or manic episodes, or also believe irrational beliefs (delusions).  These are again termed psychosis or a psychotic episode. As stated earlier not everyone who has bipolar will have all the above symptoms.

Here are a few of the many famous people who have bipolar disorder, either in the present or in the past, all can be found online on websites of public record:

Russell Brand (comedian and actor) – “In a low-key admission, he said he was finally diagnosed with bipolar disorder – manic depression – after he kicked drugs for good in 2002."     

Frank Bruno (boxer) – was hospitalized for a short period and is currently on lithium.            

Neil Cole (former Australian Labour party politician) – "Associate Professor Cole was the first politician in Australia or overseas to admit to having a mental illness, namely bipolar mood disorder."    

Carrie Fisher (actress and writer). – "’I ended up being diagnosed as a bipolar II,’ says Fisher."  

Stephen Fry (actor, comedian and writer) – "As a sufferer of the disorder, Stephen Fry speaks to other sufferers to find out about their experiences and visiting leading experts in the UK and US to examine the current state of understanding and research." Stephen has also recorded a documentary about the life of the manic depressive which aired on the BBC.  

Paul Gascoigne (footballer) – "His second book, centres on his therapy - for alcoholism, eating disorders, OCD, and bipolar disorder, among others."     

Jenifer Lewis (American actress) – spoke about her diagnosis on Oprah in September 2007.   

Others are Patty Duke (actress), Rosemary Clooney (singer and actress), Patricia Cornwell (American crime writer), Richard Dreyfuss (actor, BBC Documentary, Connie Francis (singer), Mel Gibson (actor and director), Robert Hansen (serial killer), Vivien Leigh (actress), Spike Milligan (comedian) and Catherine Zeta-Jones (actress).  As you can see, they are all talented people; maybe this is in part due to the condition.

 

There is still on-going debate as to the validity of using antidepressants by patients with bipolar disorder.  As some studies have shown, their use can be a trigger for mixed, hypomanic or manic episodes, especially if not used in conjunction with a mood stabilizer, therefore possibly giving a worse outcome for the patient.  There is also a belief that natural omega 3 fatty acids, when used in conjunction with the usual drug treatments, could have beneficial effects on reducing depressive symptoms, although the studies done are small in number and are varying in the quality of results.