Progressive Medical Approach

In my personal life I have only distantly been affected from a case of bipolar disorder (BD). In high school, a classmate of mine had a mother who suffered from bipolar disorder and we as a class only found out about it when she committed suicide. I never really understood bipolar disorder before then, and afterwards I only understood it as the mother being very confused and constantly unhappy. In my undergraduate years and now in my beginning graduate career, I am solidifying my understanding of bipolar disorder. I think that by the accounts in the articles from Inder et al (2008) and Rusner et al (2009), as well as the videos “Sweethearts” and “Rapid Cycling” it is difficult even for those with bipolar disorder to fully understand their own condition.

Approximately 0.5-1 percent of Americans will develop bipolar II disorder in their lifetime, worldwide the prevalence is 0.4 percent (Rosenberg & Kosslyn, 2011). Bipolar disorder is one of the main causes of disability, because of its cognitive and functional impairment, the high rate of medical and psychiatric comorbidity, and the relevant suicide risk (Dell 'Osso, et al., 2016). Bipolar II disorder is one of the two most commonly diagnosed subtypes of Bipolar disorder, which are distinguished by the amount of burden the depression causes, the number, frequency, duration, and severity of the depressive episodes, and the occurrence of specific sub threshold episodes (Dell 'Osso, et al., 2016). Although bipolar II disorder diagnosis are on the rise we lack extensive research on the features and treatments of this disorder (Datto, Pottorf, Feeley, Laporte, & Liss, 2016). Bipolar II disorder is now recognized in the latest Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5) under a new chapter dedicated specifically to bipolar disorders. Which proves that bipolar disorders are their own set of disorders in terms of symptomatology, family history, and genetics (Möller, et al., 2014). This allows an enhancement in the accuracy of diagnosis, which in turn leads to earlier treatment. In the DSM-5 it states that bipolar II disorder can lead to effects such as disability, comorbidity, mortality, and an impact on the quality of life (Datto, Pottorf,

The stigma associated with bipolar disorder is unacceptable. The purpose of this paper is to improve the readers ability to understand what bipolar disorder is and how being diagnosed with this disorder affects all facets of daily living. Family, friends and associates of individuals with bipolar disorder are often affected as well. As a result of the stigma associated with the disorder, the effects remain: often multiplied by individuals that have a limited understanding of the disorder. There are numerous myths related to individuals diagnosed with bipolar disorder. Hopefully a few of these myths will be put to rest after learning more about the disorder.

Bipolar disorder has been gaining more and more attention over the last few years. With shootings on the rise, or at least the publicity of them, people are often pointing their fingers at mental diseases including bipolar disorder. An ongoing issue regarding mental illnesses, however, is the population has failed to fully understand what they truly are, the symptoms, and how to treat them.

Nusslock is a professor at Northwestern University. After graduating with a Ph.D. from University of Wisconsin-Madison, he went on to study neuroscience at Pittsburg medical school. This journal focuses on how criteria regarding bipolar disorders may fail to include milder bipolar syndromes. The main argument is the criteria for diagnosing mental illnesses, such as bipolar disorder, is not adequate. He argues there is no reliable criteria equipped for diagnosing mild cases of bipolar disorder. Mild bipolar disorder is significant and should not go unnoticed, argues Nusslock. “Individuals with major depressive disorder (MDD) who display subsyndromal hypomanic features, not concurrent with a major depressive episode, have a more severe course compared to individuals with MDD and no hypomanic features, and more closely resemble individuals with bipolar disorder on a number of clinical validators,” claims Nusslock. His findings prove what he hypothesized. The article gives the reader an insight to how important subtle symptoms are and how no person or behavior deserves to go unnoticed. He suggests there is a fault with how we are diagnosing bipolar disorders. We tend to group patients into a larger category, rather than finding a diagnosis that fits properly. The evidence in this article is a combination of research and Nusslock’s own ideas. Because he is able to combine thoughts and ideas, the information is more reliable. This article may be biased because he seems to be solely talking about his perspective than the opposite perspective. Nusslock continuously reflects on his strong sense of opinion. He seems to be very passionate about bipolar disorder and wants to be a part of making a difference. In my opinion, the information is reliable for one side. It does not show reliability for an opposing opinion because there seems to be no other opinion present. This article is a

Bipolar disorder is a costly and disabling disease. Patients with bipolar disorder may be misdiagnosed with another illness in their initial presentation. Major challenges to accurate diagnosis include difficulties in differentiating bipolar depression from unipolar depression. Significant heterogeneity between different patients of bipolar disorder, such that they would report different

I knew that bipolar disorder could be diagnosed from a young age, however, I was not aware that early onset could mean a more severe psychosocial impairment or more difficulties with interpersonal relationships. 4I loved that both of these articles were about studies that were more client centered. They were not about the best treatment, medication, or statistics on prevalence. It is about how bipolar disorder affects the lives of those with it. We all have a personal identity that is shaped through what we have learned and the experiences we have had.

There is a dark stigma surrounding mental illness in general, and bipolar disorder is no exception. According to the Mental Health Commission of Western Australia, a stigma is “a mark of disgrace that sets someone apart.” Bipolar disorder is incredibly misunderstood by society at large, which leads to this stigma, prejudice, and discrimination. In everyday conversation, the word “bipolar” is frequently used to describe how someone is feeling at that moment. If a person is sad one moment and

Clinical diagnoses of Bipolar disorder, (BP) and schizophrenia (SCH) symptoms that are related to mental illness have increased dramatically within the last several years, and treatment is becoming more specialized. But, unless you study these disorders, or have some degree in psychology, the basis of your knowledge of these disorders comes from media, movies and newspapers. Mass media is the public’s primary source for information so when they decide to present breaking news about some criminal felon who reportedly suffers from mental disorders such as bi-polar or schizophrenia, that is now the population’s idea of the mental disorder. Ultimately misleading the population’s perception due to one story about a single person. .

The manic, episodic nature of bipolar disorder has made difficult for primary care doctors to diagnose and understand. A 2000 study validates this point—69% of respondents with bipolar disorder were considered previously misdiagnosed (Hirschfield 2003). The study would go on to reveal that average bipolar patient receives on average, three and half wrong diagnoses before being correctly identified as bipolar. While as humans we tend to be cognizant of when we are depressed and understand that it is good to go to clinician for this, we are less aware that

Bipolar disorder, also known as manic depression, is a mood disorder that requires careful medication management during a patient’s lifetime (Halter, 2014, p. 227). Bipolar disorder is described as recurrent episodes of mood changes ranging from mania to irritability to depression (Halter, 2014, p. 228). Periods of normal functioning are also recurrent with mood shifts. Often times bipolar disorder goes undiagnosed for many years which is linked to undesirable outcomes such as suicide (Halter, 2014, p. 227). On the other hand, many patients with a definite diagnosis report denying their illness because of the stigma that is associated with mood disorders (Thome, Dargel, Migliavacca, Potter, Jappur, Kapczinski, & Cereser, 2011) . Perceived stigma is an attribute that devalues or discriminates against a human being because of their mental illness (Pedneault, 2014). Stigmatizing attitudes can negatively impact on the patients psychosocial functioning, behavior tendencies and cognitive function.

When trying to distinguish between a Bipolar person and an average Joe, one might have difficulty. As the term suggests, this ailment isn’t as easily seen much like the flu, but expressed in a rather peculiar way: behaviorally emotionally, and mentally. Due to this inability to be seen, it’s much harder for doctors to accurately diagnose somebody who is thought to be sick. Based on the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-IV), a book that has been written and approved by the American Psychiatric Association, doctors will record a patient’s symptoms, behaviorally and emotionally, and see where he or she lands on the spectrum (Sutton 7

Bipolar disorder is a serious mental illness, but the term bipolar is not colloquially used in a way that reflects that. The colloquial usage of “bipolar” equates being bipolar to the changing of the weather, or the wishy-washy opinions of people who can’t decide where they’d like to eat today. The trivial use of this term undermines the severity of bipolar disorder and creates an environment where people affected by bipolar disorder are presented with two options: having their disease undermined by those around them, or being alienated by those around them because people fear what they do not understand.

In life people go through experiences that cause their moods to change for the better or for the worse. The purpose of this paper is to discuss the operational definition of bipolar disorder, identify the additional specifiers, comorbidity, prevalence and discuss the cost of treating the disorder. Also, a detailed explanation will be provided about the population most impacted by the selected disorder and evidence-based approaches to assessing the disorder will be presented. In addition, evidence-based treatment approaches to address the disorder will be displayed. Last, a summary will be shared by relating an intervention from the evidence-based treatment approach to each of the themes of School of Social Work Advocacy, Empowerment and transformation.