There are a variety of different disorders that an individual may
develop over the course of their lifetime. Many of the disorders have specific
symptoms, different intervention methods, and different options available in
order to treat the disorder for the betterment of the individual suffering from
it. Psychopathology has developed over
the years through research in order to incorporate a lot of information and
knowledge into what works for different disorders, how the disorders cause
individuals to behave, and what symptoms may show which can lead to the
diagnosis of a certain disorder. Bipolar
disorder is one of the disorders that an individual may develop which may
impact the individual’s development in life.
Bipolar affects a person’s mood making it difficult for the individual
to regulate between being happy, sad, depressed, or even just a regulated
normal. This paper is going to evaluate three peer-reviewed research studies,
conceptualizing the disorder using the biopsychosocial model, and discuss the
treatment or intervention shown to be most effective for the disorder.
Bipolar Disorder
According to the National Institute of Mental Health (n.d.), bipolar
disorder is classified as a mood disorder which affects man individuals
regardless of age, gender, or even race and is characterized by episodes of
depression and mania. This disorder affects a person neurologically and can
impact their life by affecting the individual’s daily activities. An individual
that is suffering from bipolar disorder will have drastic mood swings going
from a severe depression to extreme happiness all within the space of as little
as a matter of minutes. The swing can
happen suddenly and then the individual may spend hours to days in the next
mood, being extremely happy for a long time or being so depressed they don’t
eat or get out of bed for days. There are four types of bipolar including types
1 and 2, mixed, and rapid cycling bipolar disorder (National Institute of
Mental Health, n.d.).
Bipolar disorder according to Altinbas, Smith, and Craddock,
(2011), occurs almost equally between men and women, being more common in
highly educated individuals, and accounts for the second leading cause of
worldwide disability. Bipolar disorder is different from major depression which
only deals with depression where bipolar deals with both depressive and manic
episodes that may change within minutes. The suicide rate for individuals suffering
from bipolar disorder is 15% with roughly about 2.6% of the adult population of
the United States suffering from the disorder according to Altinbas et. al.
(2011). Bipolar disorder may affect more of the population but is hard to get a
real number on since a lot of individuals don’t see the manic episodes as being
abnormal or that there is anything wrong with it so they tend to not report the
manic side of their symptoms.
In bipolar disorder individuals may experience a difference in
cycles depending on the type of bipolar the individual has. A person with mixed bipolar for instance may
experience mania to normal behavior to depression cycles, or they individual
may experience cycles between the depression and normal behavior or mania and
normal behavior (Merikangas, Jin, & He, 2011). The patterns or episodes of
the moods and the swings can happen quickly and last for a period of time from
a few days to weeks or months before the cycle to another mood hits again. Some
of the common symptoms associated with bipolar disorder include “decreased need
for sleep, racing thoughts, talkativeness, inflated self-esteem or grandiosity,
distractibility, increased physical, mental, sexual activity, or reckless
behavior” (Bipolar Disorder and Genetics, n.d., para. 3). Other symptoms that
can be noted include having visions or delusions, hearing voices, strange
behaviors, and having episodes of mood swings.
Biopsychosocial Model
There is no known cause of bipolar disorder though there are
theories about how the disorder is triggered in individuals. Genetic studies
which have been done have shown transmission of bipolar in first-degree
relatives places twice the risk of developing bipolar disorder when compared
with the general population (Bipolar Disorder and Genetics, n.d.). Individuals
with first-degree relatives such as a mother or father with bipolar are at a
higher risk of developing the disorder themselves when compared to individuals
whose first-degree relatives do not have the disorder. This does not mean that
an individual who has with family having the disorder will themselves develop
the disorder only that studies have shown a higher percentage for development
when compared with individuals without the disorder in their family (Bipolar
Disorder and Genetics, n.d.).
An individual may develop bipolar for a number of neurological
reasons including a certain viral infection or a toxin, physical changes to a
person’s brain, imbalance of neurotransmitters and hormones in the individual,
and periods of elevated stress (The Mayo Clinic Staff, 2012). Neurotransmitter
imbalance is one of the main causes believed to lead to the development of
bipolar disorder. As an individual is unable to control the chemicals in their
brain that regulate their moods cycling between mania and depression may
result. According to the Mayo Clinic Staff (2012), another cause shown in
studies could be physical changes in a person’s brain which have been viewed
through the use of fMRI and PET scans of individuals suffering from bipolar
disorder. The scans done on individuals with the disorder when compared to
healthy individuals has found that individuals with bipolar disorder typically
have small, less functioning prefrontal cortexes (The Mayo Clinic Staff,
2012). Since the prefrontal cortex of an
individual develops during the individual’s adolescent years the abnormal
development may point to the reason the disorder is often seen emerging in
adolescence and it may provide reasoning for the development of the disorder.
Treatments for Bipolar Disorder
The treatment for bipolar disorder includes a combination of
medication and therapy. Medications are
given in order to help stabilize a person’s mood swings, typically
antidepressants, mood stabilizers, and antipsychotics are provided in order to
stabilize the common symptoms and moods of the disorder (Sachs, 2000). Common
medications provided include Lithium which is a mood stabilizer, Depakote to
treat mania, antidepressants like Fluoxetine or Sertraline, and antipsychotics
to relieve symptoms of severe mania (Sachs, 2000). The medication is only part
of the treatment for an individual suffering from bipolar; therapy is the other
part that helps an individual with the disorder. Commonly used therapy which is
effective for individuals suffering from the disorder include CBT, cognitive
behavioral therapy, which helps to teach an individual how to change negative
thoughts or harmful behavior patterns into positive ones, family-focused
therapy, which gives support to the family teaching how the to cope with the
disorder and improve communication as well as problem-solving strategies, and
psychoeducation which provides the sufferer with information and education
about the disorder (Sachs, 2000). The
most effective treatments that work well for individuals is to combine
medications with therapy in order to stabilize moods while gain coping skills,
getting education on the disorder, and learning how to communicate and improve
social interactions.
Conclusion
Bipolar disorder is one of the disorders that an individual may
develop which may impact the individual’s development in life. Bipolar affects a person’s mood making it
difficult for the individual to regulate between being happy, sad, depressed,
or even just a regulated normal. Bipolar disorder according to Altinbas, Smith,
and Craddock, (2011), occurs almost equally between men and women, being more
common in highly educated individuals, and accounts for the second leading
cause of worldwide disability. The patterns or episodes of the moods and the
swings can happen quickly and last for a period of time from a few days to
weeks or months before the cycle to another mood hits again. Some of the common
symptoms associated with bipolar disorder include “decreased need for sleep,
racing thoughts, talkativeness, inflated self-esteem or grandiosity,
distractibility, increased physical, mental, sexual activity, or reckless
behavior” (Bipolar Disorder and Genetics, n.d., para. 3).
The treatment for bipolar disorder includes a combination of
medication and therapy. Medications are
given in order to help stabilize a person’s mood swings, typically
antidepressants, mood stabilizers, and antipsychotics are provided in order to
stabilize the common symptoms and moods of the disorder (Sachs, 2000). Commonly
used therapy which is effective for individuals suffering from the disorder
include CBT, cognitive behavioral therapy, which helps to teach an individual
how to change negative thoughts or harmful behavior patterns into positive
ones, family-focused therapy, which gives support to the family teaching how
the to cope with the disorder and improve communication as well as
problem-solving strategies, and psychoeducation which provides the sufferer
with information and education about the disorder (Sachs, 2000).
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