Recognizing Bipolar Disorder

 

Bipolar Disorder can sometimes be difficult to diagnose. Sometimes it takes anywhere from 10-15 years or longer for a person to be correctly diagnosed. That is because usually a physician only sees the bipolar patient when he or she is suffering during the depressed phase of bipolar disorder. The physician isn't usually consulted during the "normal" phases or even the phases of mania during which the bipolar patient has high energy and creativity or is Drug rehabilitation centre in pune   experiencing euphoria. When the physician does see the patient during the extremely depressed phase he or she doesn't usually ask enough probing questions to determine that there is a flip side to the depression - a side that is just as dangerous.

Bipolar Disorder usually appears during the late teens or early twenties. However, in some people it appears earlier - we are seeing more and more children diagnosed with bipolar disorder. In some individuals, the disorder does not appear until later in life.

The mania may last for hours, days, or possibly weeks, during which time the patient requires little sleep, and may have heightened creativity and grandiose ideas such as starting a new business venture, buying cars or houses, or going on other spending sprees. The depression may last for days or weeks and include changes in appetite and sleeping, loss of interest in activities once enjoyed by a person, feelings of hopelessness and worthlessness, and even thoughts of suicide.

Most people with bipolar disorder don't get to that extreme. We fall somewhere in between. And we fall through the cracks. Our loved ones walk around on eggshells because we are hard to live with and hard to love. We are like living with a time bomb. You never know when we are going to go off, what is going to set us off...and it isn't usually something big - it is something small. But during the periods when things are on an even keel we are some of the most engaging, brightest people and often the life of the party - people that a casual acquaintance could never imagine being depressed. Sometimes those of us afflicted with this disorder know that something isn't right and that we are different and sometimes we don't.

Some people with bipolar disorder think everything bad that happens to them is someone else's fault. Those are the people that are harder to get into treatment.

We now know that when a person is bipolar, treatment with an antidepressant alone only worsens the condition over time and can cause a person who didn't "rapid cycle" previously to begin rapid cycling. This happened to me. That is why proper diagnosis is so important. When a person is bipolar, a mood stabilizer is generally required to achieve stability. An antidepressant is often used asa mood stabilizer. Anticonvulsants are being used regularly as mood stabilizers with great success. And the antidepressants being used today have come a long way.

If you think you or a loved one might be suffering from the bipolar disorder it is important to seek a diagnosis and treatment as soon as possible. It can be difficult to take the first step but it is best, to be honest with yourself or be honest with the loved one for whom you are concerned. It is a huge relief to have a name and an actual illness for your suffering. It is an even bigger relief to know that there is help for this condition and that it is completely manageable.  You can contact us through our website, we have the best treatment for bipolar disorder in Gurgaon.