When someone is diagnosed with bipolar disorder, it means the same thing as manic depression. It’s called bipolar because they will display mood swings that go from one end of the spectrum to the other that are evident in the patient’s behavior. They will have times of depression which can be so debilitating that it registers as clinical depression. At other times, either suddenly or through a gradual transition over a period of hours, the patient may become extremely energetic and even frenetic in their behavior, staying up for several days at a time, which is called mania or a manic episode. When a patient rapidly changes back and forth between extreme depression to extreme mania, it’s referred to as rapid cycling.
During a manic episode, a patient may not just be unusually upbeat and energetic and have delusions of grandeur. This may manifest as extreme drinking, extreme spending, or inappropriate behavior in public. The patient may have psychotic delusions in which they hallucinate and may be very paranoid. The patient may feel others are out to get them or feel that their spouse is cheating on them with everyone they come into daily contact with.
Bipolar disorder may have differing levels of severity from patient to patient. It usually makes itself apparent in older teenagers and young adults between age 15 and age 24. The symptoms can be baffling at first, as they can be erratic and may not appear extreme but just out of the ordinary for that person. If the person is legally an adult, and it may take a long time to get a diagnosis since the person cannot be forced to get an evaluation unless they’ve done something to get law enforcement involved, at which time the person may be legally held temporarily for an evaluation.
Bipolar Disorder Treatment El Paso Tx may involve inpatient hospitalization if the patient has exhibited signs of suicidal thoughts. It may take doctors a while to come up with the right balance of medications to manage the disorder. There is not a cure for bipolar disorder, but once it’s diagnosed, the patient can receive medications and therapy to help them manage the illness.
