Bipolar+Disorder

​** Bipolar Disorder ** Bipolar disorder is a mental illness where someone has abrupt mood swings between extreme depression and excitability.

Symptoms can include lack of sleep, unusually high self esteem, being easily irritated or aggrivated, hot-headedness, reckless behavior, being easily distracted, and rash decisions, all of these being in the excited phase. The depression phase's symptoms include a difficulty paying attention or making decisions, a withdrawal from society, unusually low self esteem, thoughts of death and suicide, sadness, and changes in sleeping patterns. These phases can last for days or for months, sometimes intermingling.  No treatments are known to cure bipolar disorder, but antidepressants, antipsychotic medications, lithium, and mood stabilizers can be used to control it, depending of the phase the patient is in. Electroconvulsive therapy can be used to lessen depression, sometimes cure it.

Bipolar disorder is caused by changes in the areas of the brain that control mood.

It is diagnosed by a health care provider that looks at family history, recent mood swings, behavior, laboratory tests looking at thyroi problems or drug levels, and a physical examination to rule out a physical reason for the behavioral problems, among other things.



media type="youtube" key="XNk2dQSgBzQ" height="344"