Bipolar Disorder: A Diagnostic Analysis

Bipolar Disorder is also a hereditary disorder. Children who have parents who have been diagnosed with bipolar disorder are at a greater risk for expressing the disease than children who don’t have a bipolar parent. Children with uncles, aunts, cousins, grandparents, etc are also at a risk for inheriting the disease. But this risk is extremely low comparatively, but their parents and doctors should still be on the look out for extreme behavioral change just in case.

To be diagnosed with bipolar disorder under the DSM requirements, a person must have a manic episode that lasts at least seven days or has severe symptoms that can possibly send them to a hospital or have sent them to a hospital, and the person usually experiences about two weeks of a depressive episode (NIMH, 2015). People with bipolar disorder can be misdiagnosed. The depressive episodes are very similar to major depression. In some forms of bipolar disorder, psychotic factors are present like hallucinations or delusions which may lead to a misdiagnosis of schizophrenia (Schacter et al., 2015).

Bipolar Disorder is a brain disorder that is characterized by abnormal changes in mood, energy and activity levels (“National Institute of Mental Health”). Manic-depressive illness is also another name that bipolar disorder is commonly referred to as (“National Institute of Mental Health”). This disorder has four basic types including, bipolar I, bipolar II, cyclothymic, and any other which do not perfectly fit the first three. All four of the types have episodes of extreme highs, manic periods, and extreme lows, depressive periods. Symptoms can range greatly and depend on what type of episode the affected is having. Manic episodes can include, but are not limited to: having extraordinarily high amounts of energy, activity,

In a question and answer on the “Myths and Realities about Bipolar Disorder” Dr. Youngstrom a professor of psychology/psychiatry at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and acting director of the Center of Excellence for Research and Treatment of Bipolar Disorder says, “bipolar disorder is about a third as common as depression and less than half as common as attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder in youths, but about twice as common as autistic spectrum disorders (Youngstrom, 2012).” In the United States about three percent or about five point seven

In my previous experiences and conversations with various individuals, the overall interpretation or misconception of bipolar disease is that the person is “”crazy. What do people really consider or mean by the term crazy? As displayed by Team B’s behavior presentation, Bipolar disorder

Mental illness has plagued human kind for as long as we have been on this earth. The science of psychology has made great strides in past century. The stigma of being mentally ill has begun to fall away and people are finally starting to get the help that they need to recover. Bipolar disorder is one illness that we have come to more fully understand. Through assistance from a psychiatrist, family and medication a patient with bipolar disorder can enter remission and live a normal life.

Genetic: Bipolar disorder tends to run in families, so researchers believe there is a genetic predisposition for the disorder. Scientists also are exploring the presence of abnormalities on specific genes.

Since identical twins have the same genes as each other, if one develops bipolar disorder then the other one has a "lifetime chance ... to also develop bipolar disorder [which] is about 40% to 70%" ("Bipolar Disorder Health Center"). During a study, researchers recorded that 65% of the patients in the study had a minimum of one disruption of their daily schedule in the 8 weeks before the manic episode began. So, a keeping to a strict daily schedule is important for an individual who has bipolar disorder because the interruption may cause a manic episode shortly after. In the article "Bipolar Disorder Health Center", it states that "according to one study, today's children and teens are 40 times more likely to be diagnosed with bipolar disorder than they were 10 years ago". This could be due to the fact that the awareness level of bipolar disorder has been raised, which is in line with a statement that can be found in the article "Facts About Bipolar Disorder" that reports:

Bipolar disorder is a chronic illness that requires treatment. Bipolar disorder is a mood disorder that causes drastic emotional changes and mood swings. Transmutations in mood can range from manic highs, to depressive lows. Bipolar disorder is a mental condition that can lead to dangerous demeanors. These may be things such as cutting or inflicting harm to one’s self. Patients will spend 3 times more days depressed than in a manic state. Due to the variations in episodes, Bipolar may be difficult to diagnose. Along with ADHD Bipolar conventionally begins in adolescent adults it can transpire earlier or later in life. Bipolar disorder can run in families. Men and women are equally likely to have Bipolar. Women are more likely to have rapid cycling. Women additionally incline to spend more time depressed than men do. People, who abuse alcohol or other drugs, and some apprehensiveness disorders, like (PTSD post-traumatic stress disorders are more likely to have bipolar disorder. Medications have been very effective in treating this disorder like Quetiapine and Lamotrigine along with clinical therapy. This disorder causes damage to relationships and life’s work and sometimes-suicidal thoughts.

Those who are researching this illness believe that it had a lot to do with genetics but that there are also many other factors involved. In an example by the National Institute of Mental Health, they found that even if there is a pair of identical twins and one develops bipolar disorder the other twin might never develop it.