Manic depression, or bipolar affective disorder

Manic depression, or bipolar affective disorder( BAP), is a severe mental illness in whichwave-like change of affective states( phases) - from depressive( anxiety, melancholy, inhibition) to manic( hyperactivity, hyperactivity, euphoria).

According to statistics, bipolar disorder affects about 3% of the world's population, and the disease, most often, begins at the young or adolescent age, usually up to 25 years. Manic-depressive psychosis affects both men and women equally, however, it is noted that women are more likely to have depressive syndromes, while men are manic.

The causes of manic - depressive syndrome are not fully understood, however, genetic( hereditary) predisposition is considered the main factor of the disease development. In addition, traumas and brain diseases, significant neuropsychic stress and features of character traits can play a role.

Manic depression: symptoms and phases ^

Manic-depressive psychosis has many varieties. In some patients, it occurs in the form of an attack of depression, which after a few light years gives way to manic symptoms. In another variant, many depressive episodes can occur, after which a manic attack occurs.

In some cases, there may be only manic symptoms or the simultaneous presence of manic and depressive symptoms that quickly replace one another, literally within a few hours. If bipolar disorder is not treated, the disease will progress continuously, and the intervals between individual phases will be shortened. And, the shorter the intervals, the harder and longer the healing process will go.

The main symptoms of the phase of depression:

• melancholy, anxiety, sadness, emptiness;
• loss of interest in occupations that previously aroused interest;
• irritability and excessive anxiety;
• feelings of helplessness, hopelessness, guilt;
• inability to concentrate on anything and lack of vitality;
• physical, speech and intellectual retardation;
• lack of appetite, insomnia;
• thoughts of suicide.

In addition to psychological problems, there may be problems in the work of the cardiovascular system( arrhythmia, tachycardia, bradycardia) and gastrointestinal tract( spastic constipation).In especially severe cases, the patient may fall into a stupor - stops eating, drinking, going to the toilet, does not react to the speech addressed to him and is in complete immobility and silence.

Symptoms of the manic phase:

• exaggerated self-esteem;
• irritability and aggressive, often provocative behavior;
• pathological mood elevation and causeless euphoria;
• excessive chatteriness and motor excitement.

The patient, who is in a manic phase, loses the reality of perception of what is happening, indefinitely generates completely delusional ideas, does not sit still and can speak almost without stopping for a long period of time.

Manic depression: treatment and diagnosis ^

The doctor diagnoses bipolar disorder after at least two episodes of affective mood changes. If the attack of depression was replaced by an easy manic state, or, conversely, after a manic attack, a mild depression condition occurred, then a single depressive or manic episode is diagnosed.

In view of the seriousness of the disease, treatment of manic depression should be carried out only by a qualified physician-psychotherapist. Self-medication is unacceptable, as it can be very dangerous and lead to unfortunate consequences, including upsetting the intellect, loss of efficiency and suicide.

The treatment regimen is selected after a thorough examination and depends on which phase of the disease the patient is currently in. In the arsenal of doctors there is a large selection of soothing and antipsychotic drugs, antidepressants, neuroleptics and normotimics.

In the appointment of treatment it is very important to avoid the development of phase inversion, that is, the sudden transition of mania to depression, and vice versa. For this, patients, in addition to cupping therapy, are prescribed normotimics - drugs that stabilize the mood. This effect is achieved due to the content in the normotimics of lithium salts, which reduce the tendency to mood changes in 70% of patients with BAP.

It is important to consider that excessive lithium concentration can have many side effects:

• diarrhea,
• nausea,
• vomiting,
• excessive thirst,
• increased urination,
• weight gain,
• tremor and muscle twitching,
• drowsiness,
• heart rhythm disturbances,
• reduction of thyroid hormones,
• headaches.

Therefore, treatment should be carried out with mandatory regular monitoring of lithium in the blood.

Side effects are most often seen with lithium treated elderly patients. Pregnant women and pregnant women planning to take lithium salts are contraindicated, since they can cause heart defects in the fetus. In such cases, modern anticonvulsants are widely used as an alternative substitute, the treatment of which must be carried out under the constant control of the number of leukocytes and erythrophytes in the blood( as there is a tendency to decrease them) and liver function.

After relief of acute symptoms of the disease, to complete the main treatment, patients with manic depression are recommended to undergo a course of psychotherapy - this will help them better understand their illness and learn how to cope with it. It is not necessary to think that the diagnosis of manic depression is a sentence and consider yourself "abnormal."

The results of a large study analyzing the life of a large number of brilliant people showed that many outstanding people( poets, composers, scientists, prominent politicians) suffered from manic-depressive psychosis. It is in the state of hypomania, when the level of energy sharply increases, and thinking becomes clear and clear, they were able to direct forces and energy in the right direction, resulting in the light appeared genius works.

Bipolar disorder suffered from Pushkin, Freyd, Hemingway, Van Gogh, Churchill, Schopenhauer, Roosevelt, Gogol, Goethe, Dickens and many other great minds of mankind. However, the heavy payback for their talent was the equally pronounced phase of depression that came to replace euphoria, when the meaning of life was lost and thoughts of suicide came.

But fortunately, medical science has since stepped far ahead and we are living at a time when modern technologies for the treatment of mental illnesses are improved enough to completely remove the negative symptoms of manic disorders and restore health and peace of mind.
We also recommend you to watch a video of the famous psychotherapist Elman Osmanov about symptoms and methods of depression treatment: