Manic Depression Symptoms

Manic depression symptoms, now better known as bipolar disorder symptoms, refers to signs a person has because of this illness. Manic depression, also known as bipolar disorder is a psychological disorder that affects one’s mood.

Basically it results in mood swings but they are no ordinary ones that most of us would face as part of the ups and downs of everyday life. Such mood swings can cause one to experience different degrees of mood states ranging from extreme highs to extreme lows. They are not character flaws but are the result of biological changes in the brain.

Estimated to affect approximately 1% of the adult population, this disorder comes in second after depression as one of the most common disorders. Both men and women are equally susceptible to this illness. In serious cases, sufferers may even resort to committing suicide to reduce their sufferings.

At present, there is no cure for bipolar disorder. However, it is a medical condition that can be treated and managed with medication. As such, it is important for all to recognize manic depression symptoms. That will allow proper treatment to be given so that relapses are minimized. While it is often agreed that bipolar disorder causes the patients’ mood to alternate between mania and depression, it is important to recognize the signs for each.

Win Bipolar Disability Benefits

For mania, the more common signs include reduced sleep, being more sociable, engaging in more activities and increased irritability. A milder form of mania known as hypomania can cause people to have new ideas, plans and interest, engage in more risky activities and having increased sex drive.

On the end of the spectrum, common symptoms of depression include losing interest and motivation in activities and people, having persistent worry or anxiety and having sleep disruption. Sometimes, sufferers may even have mixed symptoms as they went through experiences of mania and depression simultaneously.

The thing about manic depression symptoms is that once you are able to identify the warning signs early, you have a better chance of coming up with the appropriate strategies to reduce and even prevent a relapse.

Bipolar Disorder Causes – Are You At Risks?

Bipolar disorder causes are said to have come from many sources. However, not all is true. One of the main causes of this mental illness that we could verify is the genes. There has been a strong link between the illness and the genes.

In fact, it has been found that the closer you are related to the person who has the disorder, the more likely you are to develop it. That also means that your chance of developing it decreases the more distantly related you are.

However, it does not mean that you will necessarily develop the disorder if someone in the family has it. While it will most likely run in the family, it can also happen in people without any family history. It appears that genetic can only offer part of the answer.

Scientists have pinned down the genes causing bipolar disorder to chromosomes 22 and 13. If you really want to know, schizophrenia is also attributed to the same genes. Presently, there is no tests that can tell who will or who will not develop bipolar.

That said, if you believe you have a higher risk for developing bipolar, you should make efforts to keep away from drugs, alcohol and undue stress. This is because other factors like environment, drugs and stress can also come into the picture.

Drugs, for example, have been known to cause symptoms of bipolar disorder. Stimulants can set off a manic episode while drugs like cocaine can trigger off mania or even depression. Studies have shown that people who are already predisposed to such disorder may trigger off these psychotic symptoms unknowingly.

Now that you know what are some likely bipolar disorder causes, it would do you alot of good to know more about bipolar disorder.

Latest Medication For Bipolar Affective Disorder – Zyprexa And Risperdal

At one time, it was believed that only adults suffered from bipolar disorder. The general consensus at the time was that the condition was set off sometime in the teenage and adolescent years and gradually worsened if left untreated as the kid grew into an adult.

Interestingly, to counter this view, recent years have seen more and more children diagnosed with the condition. Some scientists, researchers, and psychiatrists believe that this is due in some way to improve diagnostic methods, processes and means, while others think it is a stark reality of how many more people really are suffering from bipolar disorder, suggesting some unseen environmental trigger that has spiked the rise.

Whichever of these two schools of thought may be true there is a reality that neither can deny: there are kids – children – with bipolar disorder! Taking statistics from the Archives of General Psychiatry to study mental illness, only 3 percent of children in the United Stated were projected to suffer from bipolar disorder. As at the year 2000, this uncomfortable figure had risen to a more alarming 15 percent! And lest I forget to mention it, this figure continues to climb with each year that passes.

Ok, there is the genetic link that has been proven to be a factor in the cause of bipolar disorder in children. Parents who have suffered from some kind of depression or psychosis are more than likely – about 60 to 70 percent of the time – to birth children with various forms of depressive disorders as well. A good portion of these kids, as you might have surmised at this time, end up with bipolar disorder.

However, you are going to have to agree with me that even the population of the United States is not growing that fast. This points very clearly to some other factor – very likely an environmental factor – that must cause the set of symptoms that lead to bipolar disorder. In other words, more serious research is required to determine what this factor is.

In the meantime, our manic and depressed kids need to be treated; otherwise we would be breeding an entire generation of crazy people who will not hesitate to harm themselves or others. In response to this, there are effective antipsychotic drugs and mood stabilizers that do incredible wonders for children with bipolar disorder. Risperdal, for instance has been shown to yield good results – the FDA only recently approved it. Also, if you can get a prescription for Zyprexa, you may be able to do your bipolar child a lot of good.

Even with these medications, you have to see that your child also gets some psychotherapy so that they can balance out their emotions and learn to handle then along with the other treatments that they are getting.

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