Bipolar Disorder Treatment, Causes, Types, Symptoms, Medication And Facts

People often think that fat is always bad. Food choices always run from low- from fat to non fat products. But before you rule out all fats, you should know that not all fats are bad. For individuals who are health conscious, they have probably heard the word good cholesterol. Described as good, it means that such cholesterol do not aggravate the development of any cardiac ailments.

Types of Cholesterol

If low density lipoprotein (LDL) is considered as bad cholesterol, high density lipoprotein (HDL) counters as good cholesterol. HDLs are plasma proteins that carry cholesterol in the blood to tissues and liver for excretion. This is why they are considered as good ones. HDLs tend to collect and clear the blood, as well as tissues, from fat or cholesterol deposits; and eliminate them into the bile, down into the intestines, and are released from the body.

Cholesterol Levels

It is important to maintain HDL levels within the range 35 – 70 mg/dL, depending on age.

Low levels of HDLs lead to a risk of developing a heart disease since there is not enough clearance of fats in the bloodstream.

Sources of Good Fats

Now, the question is what fats are considered to be good for the body? There can be lots of them such as essential fatty acids, omega 6 and omega 3, as well as monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats.

Essential fatty acids are not manufactured by the body, and therefore must be included in the diet. Food sources for omega 6 include vegetable oils and peanuts. It has been shown to reduce cholesterol level and occurrence of heart disease, to prolong blood clotting, and to support brain growth.  Likewise, sources for omega 3 comprise cooking oil, fish oil, margarine, and fatty fish. It also reduces the chance to develop heart diseases and lowers arterial blood pressure. Furthermore, unsaturated fats are primarily of plant origin and are liquid at room temperature. Monounsaturated fats consist of olive oil, peanut oil, nuts, and avocados. On the other hand, vegetable oil can be a source of polyunsaturated fats.

One should make good fat choices in order to select those good for the heart. There is no need to completely eradicate fats in the diet. Just be wise enough to make the right choice.

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What was once called manic-depressions and is now more commonly called bipolar disorder is still a serious mental illness. People with this condition can put themselves, their relationships and the safety of others at risk if they are not treated for this condition in a timely manner.

If moods can be thought of poles (as in polar opposites) the moods of people with bipolar disorder can swing unpredictably and wildly between two very opposite emotional states. These two states are often wild elation or agitation and profound depression. It is also true that bipolar people can experience more normal emotional states for extended periods of time even when they are not being treated for their condition.

The wildly elated state is the “manic” side of bipolar disorder. Behavioral symptoms of this abnormal state include restlessness, excessive energy, recklessness, euphoria, delusion thinking and feelings of immense power. Very common behaviors include excessive generosity, uncontrolled spending sprees and impulsive sexual escapades.

Seemingly without warning that mood can alter and the bipolar individual becomes profoundly depressed, angry, suspicious, irritated, confused or simply morose. The bipolar person may be overcome with a sense of worthlessness and sadness, may weep uncontrollably for little apparent reason, and be unable to sleep or take pleasure in anything.

The course of bipolar disorder is complex and unpredictable. Diagnosis can prove difficult. Duration of the bipolar emotional states can vary wildly among bipolar patients and within a single patient as well — from a few hours to a number of years with all the markers in between. Frequency of bipolar episodes also varies considerably.

Psychiatrists familiar with bipolar disorder tend to discuss the moods experienced by their patients as a spectrum of emotions and behaviors. Mood swings experienced by people with bipolar disorder may even be welcomed at times, because they can become exceptionally productive and creative at least for a while.

The destructive and pathological aspects of the disorder come to the fore when patients enter extreme emotional states and lose complete touch with reality. Their mania makes them abandon any respect for the rules of law, finance or sexual morays; they spend wildly and engage in outlandish or completely promiscuous sexual behaviors.

When they become unreasonably depressed they also become a danger to themselves and commonly entertain serious thought of suicide.

Bipolar disorder, for some obvious reasons, has a profound effect on families as well. Many psychiatrists consider bipolar disorder to be the hardest of all the psychological disorders for families to cope with. Perhaps what make this disorder so hard to understand are not the periods of abnormal behavior, but the periods of normalcy. It can be difficult to believe that someone who seems so normal one day can behave so strangely or feel so badly the very next day.

It’s important to remember this regarding bipolar disorder. If you suspect that you or someone you care about has bipolar disorder you should see a psychiatrist. Also take note that effective treatments are available for bipolar disorder as well.

One method of understanding and treating bipolar disorder better is classifying it into separately comprehensible and treatable types. The three types of bipolar disorder differ mainly in the degree to which they exhibit episodes of depression and mania. There are also nuances of behavior that can be described within these types.

Bipolar I Disorder–Bipolar I disorder is a mental illness characterized by the severity of mood swings from mania to depression and back again. To be diagnosed with bipolar I disorder a person must have experienced a minimum of one manic episode. Their behavior in all likelihood during their one or more episodes served to completely disrupt their life.
Experiencing profound depression is also a typical part of life for people with bipolar I disorder. People with bipolar I disorder frequently cycle between the two extreme moods of depression and mania. Hence the older term “manic-depression”. It should noted, as well, that these peoples’ extreme mood swings do not preclude their experiencing prolonged periods of perfectly normal psychological states between their mood swings.
Bipolar II Disorder–Bipolar II disorder is a mental illness that resembles the more severe form of bipolar disorder known as bipolar I disorder. Their moods cycle between mania and depression over the course of time. What distinguishes bipolar II from bipolar I disorder is that the manic or up moods cannot be described as full-on or complete mania. Their highs are labeled with the term hypomania. To be diagnosed with bipolar II disorder a person must have experienced a minimum of one hypomanic episode. People with this disorder are also prone to suffering episodes of depression. Periods hypomania nor depression do not make up the entire live of these persons. They can live lives that are free of the behaviors and symptoms of bipolar II disorder for extended periods of time.

Where Does Something Called Cyclothymia Fit in?
The mental illness labeled cyclothymia can be thought of as relatively mild mood disorder. Its mood swings don’t attain the extreme peaks and valleys of major depression or mania. Researchers estimate that up to 1% of people in the U.S. have cyclothymia. Because it is a milder form of mental illness the onset of cyclothymia can be difficult to identify. Symptoms usually begin occurring in adolescence. The pattern mood swings is irregular and unpredictable. Mood variations are part of a normal psychological makeup and it can prove hard to distinguish cyclothymia. People with cyclothymia can cycle continuously from hypomanic to depressed, without a normal period in between. They are almost as likely to exhibit extended periods of depression or hypomania. Most experts have concluded that cyclothymic disorder is an extremely mild form of bipolar disorder.

All the different types of bipolar disorders exhibit variations within their types. Duration and frequency are the distinguishing characteristics. Both mania and depression can be seen to exist in the same person at the same time. Rapidly cycling bipolar disorders are marked by four or more episodes occurring within a year. In fact many more can occur, much more frequently. Persons with these symptoms are at greater risk for suicide.

By definition bipolar disorder is a mental illness that is characterized by extreme mood swings that fluctuate between the high of mania and the low point known as depression. Conventional psychological wisdom (that is not an oxymoron) says that to be diagnosed with bipolar disorder a person must have experienced a minimum of at least one manic episode. If such an episode needs to be a thing of the past before diagnosis can be confirmed, at risk factor may prove to be elusive as well before the fact.

The exact cause of bipolar disorder is still unknown although bipolar disorder appears to run in families. A tantalizing association that runs along family lines seems to point to a genetic factor without specifically identifying genetic elements that are responsible for bipolar disorder even in part.

Changes in the levels of brain chemicals called neurotransmitters are also cited as likely causes and possible effects of bipolar disorder. Levels of noradrenaline and serotonin are associated with depression and bipolar disorder. It has also been shown that levels of a third neurotransmitter called serotonin have an affect on mood and mood disorders in general.

The full weight of research seems to suggest that disparate factors combine to produce a chemical imbalance in the brain that at least resembles the way that psychotropic chemicals act on the brain, but doesn’t really come close to mimicking their effects in any meaningful way.

Environmental factors have also been considered as precipitators of the disorder. These include stress, alcohol or drug abuse, and lack of sleep. A particularly difficult environmental factor revolves around family studies that indicate that parental behavior that exhibits symptoms of bipolar disorder can provoke occurrences of bipolar disorder in offspring. Nurture cannot be ruled out as a cause, but in most such cases nature is present as a genetic factor which clouds any definitive conclusions regarding behavioral modelling and bipolar disorders. Dramatic life events revolving around romance, bereavement and employment may also trigger bipolar episodes.

Researchers have also demonstrated a link between hormone levels and bipolar disorder. Hypothyroidism has been shown to produce depression and mood instability, with females particularly prone to experience mood swings at puberty.

Ultimately the 6 million individuals diagnosed as being bipolar in the United States are divided evenly between the sexes with the disorder tending to manifest itself differently along sexual lines. Mixed state episodes and rapid cycling of episodes between manic and depressive is seen more in women whose first episode tends to be a depressive one. By contrast the initial bipolar disorder episode in men tends to be manic.

In perhaps another chicken or egg enigma about 50 per cent of individuals who are diagnosed with bipolar disorder have a drug or alcohol abuse problem. Since these individuals are inclined to self-medicate with these substances after episodes of mania or depression it is difficult to determine whether their bipolar disorder led to their abusing drugs and alcohol or whether drugs and alcohol contributed to their bipolar disorder.