Bipolar Affective Disorder
- What is Bipolar Affective Disorder?
Bipolar disorder is a treatable medical illness such as diabetes and blood pressure disease. Bipolar disorder is a disorder that affects one of every 40-50 individuals worldwide and is named as bipolar affective disorder, manic depressive illness, bipolar affective disorder. It is seen with equal frequency in men and women throughout the society, and the incidence does not differ due to race, education, occupation or income level.
Among these periods of illness, there is exuberance (mania) on one side, and depression (depression) on the other. These periods are followed by remission and exacerbations, and outside of these periods, the patient quickly returns to normal.
- What Are the Symptoms of Bipolar Affective Disorder?
In bipolar disorder, individuals experience fluctuations in mood that range from highs (mania) to lows (depression) and highs, with regular periods of mood in intervals. Don’t be too energetic, end easily, sleep less, think you are more valuable than everyone else, be more talkative
There are times when spending money excessively, not behaving according to one’s personality, and on the contrary, in a de4pressive mood. During this period, too, his depression is more severe than ordinary suffering, lasts longer, and interferes with daily activities. In this process, symptoms such as decreased appetite, desire for harmony and lack of power are experienced more than once, and feelings of hopelessness and helplessness accompany this state.
- What Causes Bipolar Affective Disorder?
In the middle of the causes of the disease, genetic factors are at a considerable rate, and genetic causes are held responsible for 2/3, another reason is the changes that occur in the transport or levels of the chemical elements that provide the intercellular transmission in the brain. In addition, tense or traumatic events may also cause the first episode of bipolar disorder to occur.
Bipolar disorder arises due to biological, genetic, and different influences from the environment, and affects the centers of the person that control feelings, ideas and behaviors.
When mood disorders are examined, presynaptic (the region where the stimulus is transmitted to the other cell part) and postsynaptic (the region where the stimulus is received) receptors and neurotransmitters are indicated. The most prominent of these neurotransmitters are serotonin, noradrenaline, dopamine and acetylcholine.
- How Is Bipolar Affective Disorder Diagnosed?
The diagnosis of bipolar disorder is made by a psychiatrist as a result of a psychiatric examination. A clear diagnosis may not be made in the first interview, although there is no analysis that will make the diagnosis of the disease on its own, a respite observation may be required. When a person’s first-degree close relatives have bipolar disorder, the probability of being seen in the individual may increase approximately 3-4 times, but heredity alone does not determine the occurrence of the disease. Although some genes thought to be responsible for the disease have been identified, they have not reached the level to be used for diagnosis now.
Periods:
- mania:
Manic symptoms are usually a lot of joy, sometimes anger, enthusiasm, intention, speech, acceleration in movements, increase in self-confidence, feeling very beautiful, increase in physical-mental productivity, needing very little sleep more than once. Distraction, increased spending, receiving treats, increased sexual activity, driving fast, and risk taking can be seen. In periods of increase, skepticism, hallucinatory visions where contact with reality is lost, and symptoms of hearing voices that are not in reality attract attention.
2. Depression:
Decrease in sleep or too much harmony, malaise, loss or increase in appetite, unhappiness, lack of energy, insecurity, feelings of worthlessness and remorse, fatigue, decrease in personal care, and suicidal ideation may occur in later cases.
- Bipolar Affective Disorder Treatment
The treatment is basically done with drugs. Three clusters of drugs can be used: mood stabilizers, antidepressants and antipsychotics. In the case of bipolar disorder, pharmacological treatment is provided with mood stabilizers (lithium, valproate, carbamazepine, lamotrigine, etc.) and drugs that are effective in terms of dopamine hormone (antipsychotic-based). Even if the symptoms of the disease do not recur for a long time with drug treatment, the patron treatment with drugs can be continued.
it is necessary to continue. Because the current information shows that the risk of recurrence of the disease increases when the protective drugs are stopped.
In general, in order to control both manic and depressive symptoms, one drug may not be enough, so more than one drug may be required depending on the current stage of the disease and the severity of the symptoms. The most common mistake in the treatment of bipolar disorder is to stop taking medication and follow up with a doctor when you start to feel better. Stopping the drugs on their own can cause the disease to recur more quickly. Along with the treatment, it is necessary to avoid alcohol use and salt consumption. In addition to the pharmacological basis, psychotherapies enable both the person and the family to adapt to the process and to acquire coping systems.
Although the mainstay of bipolar therapy is drug therapy, psychoeducation, when added to drug therapy, is a very effective technique that has proven to reduce relapses and hospitalizations in all bipolar types. The goal is to understand the disease and the process of the patient and the family, to increase the compliance with the treatment and to improve the quality of life. Because, studies have shown that in bipolar disorder, poor prognosis and relapses (relapses) increase in parallel with the rate of individuals’ susceptibility to tension. In addition, knowing the harms of alcohol or substance use and maintaining a more stable social life are valuable steps in terms of reinforcement. Adapted versions of evidence-based approaches such as cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) and family-focused therapy are useful.
In general, the drugs used in the acute period are continued during the defensive treatment. Since bipolar disorder is a chronic mental disorder that can last a lifetime and progresses with recurrent attacks, the recurrent character of the disorder, leading to disability, high morbidity (number of those who have the disease) and suicide risk, frequency of accompanying alcohol and substance use, and increased number of periods are associated with it. Due to the worsening of the prognosis (the course of the disease), it is strongly recommended to continue with physician consultations and psychotherapy with defensive treatment, in addition to the treatment of crisis periods.
Goals of Conservation Therapy
- Preventing new manic, depressive and mixed symptoms,
- Reducing the number and severity of periods,
- Shortening the duration of the disease crisis,
- Prolonging the respite of healthy processes,
- Preventing suicide attempts,
- Reducing hospitalizations,
- Increasing people’s lifespan functionality.
- What is Seasonal Affective Disorder?
Seasonal affective disorder, called seasonally recurrent depression, is a type of (and recurrent) depression that tends to occur when the autumn and winter days get shorter. The incidence of seasonal affective disorder increases in people who live further from the equator. One of the most valuable features in the course of bipolar disorder is its seasonality, and patients experience mania and euphoria in the spring and summer months, while they may feel depressed and depressed in the autumn and winter months. During the transition from spring to summer, impulsive and reactive behaviors, increased aggressive reactions, outbursts of anger, spending a lot of money can be observed.
- Recommendations for Bipolar Affective Disorder
- Get detailed information about disease symptoms and periods, treatment process, drug use, therapy basis.
- Involve your family in the process and ensure that they are informed.
- In order to follow the disease cycle transitions, keep an eye on early warning signs (unhappiness, mobility, increased spending, sleep disturbances, ideas of death, sudden decisions and risk taking, etc.).
- Disrupting your sleep, drinking alcohol, high tension, etc. Avoid situations that trigger the disease.
- Do breathing exercises.
- Eat regularly.
- Have your medical examinations and mood stabilizer blood level follow-ups done regularly.
