About 2.4% of people worldwide have been diagnosed with bipolar disorder at some point in their lifetime. This is a disorder in which the individual goes through drastic mood changes. Bipolar Disorder is a mental health condition that causes mood swings, emotional highs (mania and hypomania) low (depression) and this ultimately impacts the energy, behavior, thinking and actions of the individual. A person with bipolar disorder shows drastic mood swings, their mood changes within hours at one point in time they may feel happy, excited, and confident but within an hour of time their mood changes to another dimension where they start feeling hopeless, sad, and sluggish. In this article, we will cover what is bipolar disorder, its symptoms, and most importantly what are the needs of the people dealing with bipolar disorder.
Inside the Emotional Storm:
Individuals with bipolar disorder may experience periods of intense emotional states which include Manic Episode and Depressive Episode. The mania episode is a period of abnormal rise in mood with irritability and high on energy, excitement, and confidence and makes delusions at peak. Symptoms of mania is suddenly feeling joyful; Less need for sleep; easily getting distracted by anything; pressured speech or difficulty in talking; Racing thoughts and ideas; making risky decisions etc. Hypomania is a less severe form of mania that lasts from an hour to four days the symptoms are same as the mania but the intensity of the symptoms is relatively low, in a simple way it means when a person is low on their delusions, and hallucinations which don not impacts or intervene their everyday life.
Also read: BIPOLAR DISORDER – TRIGGERS AND WARNING SIGNS
Bipolar Battles:
The depressive episode is period when an individual loose interest in almost everything they loved to do before and gets surrounded by sadness and grief. It typically lasts at least four weeks. The symptoms of depressive episodes can be feeling sadness; losing interest and pleasure in activities; changes in eating patterns and weight; insomnia or hyper insomnia; problems in concentrating and decision making, feeling exhausted and continuously thinking of suicide.
Mood episode varies from person to person, one can experience a different kind of episodic pattern. Some may experience frequent changes in the pattern and for some the episodic period may last for a longer or shorter span of time. There is no cure suggested for bipolar disorder but it is treatable. One can take therapy and proper medication, in which therapy will be helpful in assessing the self and the symptoms, and on the other hand, medication will help in stabilizing the mood changes and reduce the severity of the disorder.
Also read: Know About the Mood Disorders and Its Impact on Our Mental Health
The person who is dealing with bipolar disorder may have a variety of needs and this need depends on the individual and the severity of the disorder. Some common needs include:
Education:
If a person is suffering from any disease or disorder, they should have some basic knowledge of the cause. Those with bipolar disorder and their loved ones need to acquire sufficient knowledge about the disorder. This will enable them to easily recognize changes in themselves and their symptoms, facilitating the timely initiation of proper medication or treatment. This will help the sufferer to deal with the disorder in a healthy manner and will able to develop coping mechanism.
Medication:
When an individual is able to understand the changes within them. They should reach out for the proper medication procedure. Medicines are helpful in reducing the symptoms of bipolar disorder and help to stabilize the mood changes with the severity of the episodes.
Therapy:
Therapies like psychotherapy, and cognitive behavioural therapy will be helpful to decrease the severity of the episodes as proper sessions will be provided which help the individual to self-introspect themselves and learn how to cope up with the challenges and manage the symptoms of the disorder. With that it will also help to identify the trigger point of the disorder.
Also read: Seasonal Affective Disorder: Understanding how the weather affects our mood
Support:
With proper medication, treatment, and therapy peer support is also and common need for a person who is dealing with bipolar disorder. Support from the loved ones is important as they will encounter the mood changes of the sufferer. Support can also be provided by letting them interact with those with similar problem. It will help them to understand their situation in an easier way.
It is important to remember that the needs of people with bipolar disorder can vary depending on the individual and the severity of their condition. If you or someone you know has bipolar disorder, it’s important to work with a mental health professional to develop a treatment plan that meets your individual needs.
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