What is bi polar disorder really? I do not know but it seems to be a made up disorder.?

Question

It's kinda like all boys have add the fad that was huge about 10 years ago what exactly is bi polar disorder i mean the earth is bi polar and so am I? Can someone please explain The symptoms or describe personal experinces.

Answer 1

Bipolar Disorder Symptoms



Mania and depression are the opposing phases in bipolar disorder.





Mania: A person in the manic phase may feel indestructible, full of energy, and ready for anything. Other times that person may be irritable and ready to argue with anyone who tries to get in the way.



Unrealistic plans, spending sprees, an increase in sexual affairs, or other reckless behavior, such as wild driving, also may occur.





Less sleep and food than usual are needed.





The person with mania can stay up all night but may find that not much was accomplished because he or she was easily distracted.





The person in a manic phase may talk very quickly and jump from subject to subject. They often exhibit pressured speech during mania.





Self-esteem may be inflated.





Decisions regarding business and finances are often made hurriedly and without careful consideration; poor choices may be the result.





Clothing choices may also change, and the person in a manic phase may start wearing brighter, more flamboyant clothes.





These behaviors, which can be quite upsetting, usually prompt a family member to take notice and try to get the person help.





Most people who are going through the manic phase of bipolar disorder deny that anything is wrong with them and refuse to see a medical professional.





They are grandiose and may have delusions (false ideas) of grandeur (greatness).





Depression: Although mania is said to alternate with depression, most people have more depressive episodes than manic ones.





Sadness and crying spells are common.





People who are depressed may not care enough to wash or comb their hair, change clothes, or even get out of bed in the morning.





These people may sleep too much (hypersomnolence) or have difficulty getting to sleep (insomnia).





Many of these people have no interest in food or have no appetite and lose weight. However, some eat excessively.





People with depression have trouble thinking; they may forget to do important things such as paying bills because they feel so down.





They withdraw from friends.





Hobbies that used to bring pleasure suddenly hold no interest for people who are depressed.





Depression brings feelings of hopelessness, helplessness, pessimism, and worthlessness.





Some people may develop chronic pain or other bodily complaints that do not actually have any physical cause.





People who are depressed may not see a point in living anymore and may actually think about ways to kill themselves.





Some people with bipolar disorder cycle between the two extremes every few months or weeks. Other people with bipolar disorder may cycle several times within the same day.





Signs of mania





Increased activity and gestures (pacing, tapping feet)





Inflated self-esteem





Poor judgment





Racing thoughts





Decreased need for sleep





Poor temper control





Irritability





Pressured speech: The person speaks very fast, as if his or her mouth can't keep up with the rapid thoughts. The person may be unable to respond to social cues to stop talking.





Increased activities with high risk of painful consequences (sexual affairs, gambling, risky investments)





Psychotic symptoms





Delusions (false beliefs)





Hallucinations (seeing or hearing things that aren't real)





Signs of depression





Excessive worry





Excessive guilt





Sadness, crying spells





Loss of energy





Change in sleep pattern (insomnia at night, daytime sleepiness, or excessive sleeping)





Major changes in appetite or weight





Feelings of worthlessness





Trouble concentrating





Social withdrawal





Lack of interest in previously enjoyable activities





Thoughts of death or suicide: Untreated bipolar disorder has a 15% risk of death by suicide.





Many conditions may co-occur with BD such as substance abuse, conduct disorders, eating disorders, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, migraine, and anxiety.

Answer 2

I think that the others here did a great job of explaining bipolar disorder, but I didn't see anyone saying that there are also (usually) normal periods between the mania and depression. I'm doing fine now but I'm on a slew of meds. But I wouldn't change any of them at ALL! I would give anything to not have the EXTREME highs and lows. I'm on an even keel right now so I'm feeling good ... I thank God every day that I consider " normal" ...others mom/dad, friends, docs, all think I'm "such a dear" (how nice) since I've added effexor to the mix. Just so people know, and this *is* important: adding antidepressants to a person with these wild mood swings can push you right into a manic episode....so you have to keep an eye on that as well. So no....it's definitely NOT a made up diagnosis. I wish it were.....it's really kind of a private hell that no one 'gets.' If you leave your phone number, I'll let you hear me talking at 3 a.m. and then YOU can decide if I'm manic or not or am feeling very very down. Sometime, it gets crazy! Being a *little* manic is great though!!! Lots of energy, etc but when it gets pushed too far, you can have a very manic mood and will do stuff you would normally not do. Once I went to Connecticut in a moment's decision ( I was on a plane with in th hour ) because I felt to and I had friends there. I was also going to go to Canada for a weekend...I was going to DRIVE there....that's what mania is like...It's very real but there are "softer" versions of it as well.....there's a bipolar ll, etc...maybe you should get the book, "bipolar disorder for dummies." Seriously, it does exsist!! I bought it from amazon for $20 or so so I could have my friends and family read it so they could understand this diagnosis a little better. I wish you all the best, my doubtful friend..it does exist, unfortunately. Best to you!

Answer 3

BiPolar disorder is a very real disorder. It wreaks havoc on the persons life and their family. My wife has it and is finally stable. We didn't know what was wrong for the first 2 years. Doctors made many diagnosis and prescribed all these medications but nothing worked until she had to be admited into a psych ward in the hospital. This is when we found out what was really going on. It took 1 1/2 years to get her medications straight. She is doing great now. It didn't start for her until after we had our son.



There are several types of Bipolar.



In general we all have highs and lows in our emotions. People with bipolar go from having highs like they can take on the world, conquer the entire western civilization (kind of like Bruce Willis in the Die Hard series - No one can touch him and he is the man or Mel Gibson in lethal weapon)

and then they may go to a deep depression that last for days and days. Sometimes they will go without sleep, having massive rushes of thoughts, anxiety attacks, can't think rationally about anything, can't control their emotions, very critical, grandious, think they are better than everyone else, did I already mention critical, what about critical.



Most of them are on numerous meds and cannot work.



This diagnoses is abused also by people trying not to get the help they need, but there are those with a serious problem.



I hope this helps.

Answer 4

My ex boyfriend had it, and while in college, for example, there was a semester where he would sleep about 13 hours per day (!!!), when he woke up, he'd forget about going to classes because he felt too down, while nothing was different about his life.



That's just an example. And then, while faced with a "difficult" decision, like choosing next semester's classes, he would be so weak, so nervous that he'd cry a lot everyday.



Something that becomes as easy as seeing your adviser and discussing things becomes a huge deal.



He is a wonderful person, motivated, interested in others and society. But his mood inbalance can mess up his life here and there.



So, no, it's not a made up illness.

Answer 5

I am not aware of any such thing as bi polar disorder - I think maybe you did just make it up. However, there is a very well know, well documented and well researched clinical mood disorder known as bipolar disorder. The links below describe it and the second link shows pictures of bipolar brains that may help you understand the profound effects of this very real disease.

Answer 6

I assure you it isn't a made up disorder. I have it.

Typically speaking, bi-polar causes extreme highs and lows. One day you might be feeling on top of the world, feeling like you could do anything! You can't sit still, you have racing thoughts, and then in a blink of an eye you come crashing down and you feel lower than you have ever felt in your life. You crawl in bed and see no hope of ever getting out. It can literally be that extreme.



I can also flip out and go psycho on you for simply breathing in my direction, especially if your breath is rank. Sound made up? If you still think so, come spend a week with me and see what you walk away with afterwards. lol



Not a fun thing to live with.

Answer 7

Dude, if its made up then I have a really good imagination! Its a horrible disorder that can look like several other mental disorders and can take years to diagnose, in my case from when I was 14-23 in fact with misdiagnoses of major depression, cyclothymia and borderline personality disorder before they figured out what I had.



For me I have rapid cycling bipolar type 2 (the type without psychotic features) with mixed affective episodes (this means I have symptoms of hypo mania and depression at the same time) in place of classical mania/hypomania or depression symptoms. I also have seasonal affective symptoms at the beginning of winter and during spring. Some of my triggers include prolonged exposure to stressful environments, long periods of stressful activities large crowds, but most commonly loud noise and not enough sleep. Currently I am undergoing medication trials after a brief relapse with pronouced depression symptoms. I also have insomnia, agoraphobia and social anxiety as symptoms of bipolar.



For me, the difficulty has been get a clear diagnosis and proper treatment. I am medication sensitive with lead me to having problems with lithium and now I am on a combination of tegretol, lamictal and cipramil which has horrible side effects but controls my moods.



The condition is not a life sentence in my eyes and I also refuse to categorise myself as some who is bipolar as opposed to someone who has an illness, that my disability is not an inability to succeed in life. While my life will never be normal in that I have to take medication for the rest of it and I have to care for myself a little more than other people, I have a rich life with a boyfriend, friends and I am in my honours year at college.

Answer 8

LOL - it's not a made up disorder, it's just coming out of the closet now.



Symptoms are so many! The obvious ones that I'm sure you know are depression and mania. But both of these have very uncomfortable and often scary manifestations. Such as extreme anxiety, irritability, agitation, rage, suicide, unable to get out of a bed or take care of oneself, to name the ones that come quickly to mind.



At its worse, delusions, paranoia, and psychosis is experienced.



It's a nasty disorder. It is real, too real.

Answer 9

What causes it?



The symptoms of bipolar disorder are thought to be caused by an imbalance of key chemicals in the brain. The brain is made up of billions of nerve cells that move a constant stream of information from one to the other. To keep the information flowing, the cells release chemicals known as "neurotransmitters." Two key neurotransmitters that are needed for brain function are dopamine and serotonin, which play a crucial role in emotional health.



Many scientists believe that when the levels of these neurotransmitters aren't quite right, it may result in bipolar disorder. For instance, too much dopamine in certain parts of the brain can cause symptoms such as delusions, while too little dopamine in other parts of the brain can cause symptoms such as a lack of emotion and energy.

Answer 10

A close guy friend of mine has it. He can be moody, and it can change like the flip of a switch. There are different levels of bipolar disorder, and my friend isn't in any need of being medicated. He gets down sometimes, but never suicidal. Always easily bored and distracted.

Answer 11

Try google, there are heaps of excellent sites that will provide you with information. It is not a fad, it is real. I have suffered with it for about 35 years.

It is equally common with both sexes, it is not a boys' illness specifically. The reason we hear so much of it in connection with men is possibly because public figures (sports people, celebrities, etc) use it as a cop out for their bad behaviour in the same way they use ADD.

Everyone experiences different symptoms and the worst thing to do is self-diagnose or try and diagnose a friend. It takes a qualified person to diagnose and treat the illness.

Answer 12

I have it and it is far from made up....I really wish it was though. I am on a high amount of heavy antisezuire meds and have fought to have a somewhat normal life for as long as I can remember. I was diagnosed at the age of 7.



This site will tell you everything you need to know about it. Everything.

Answer 13

Very simply bipolar is a chemical imbalance that cause wide swings in mood. Most often these moods have no or little basis in events that are occurring. I think it may be over diagnosed and I think many more are saying they have it and have no clue. I used to pray to God constantly to take away this curse too no avail.

To call it made up is very offensive to those who suffer from it, but maybe that was your intent?

Answer 14

bi polar is manic depression,my mum has had it for years,please read the link about symptoms,causes,etc:

http://www.helpguide.org/mental/bipolar_disorder_symptoms_treatment.htm