Long-term Effects of Bipolar Disorder
Welcome to the topic, “Long-term Effects of Bipolar Disorder”.
Bipolar disorder is a brain illness that brings changes in energy, a person’s mood, and the ability to function properly. People with bipolar disorder face intense emotional conditions that typically occur during different periods of one or more days to weeks, called mood episodes.
These mood episodes are classified as manic/hypomanic or depressive. People with bipolar disorder usually have some periods of neutral mood as well. When cured, people with bipolar disorder can live productive and full lives.
Long-Term Effects:
Bipolar disorder is a long mental disorder. There’s no exact treatment, but you can cope with it with talk therapies, medications, and other types of treatment. Even so, there are potential long-term effects. Here’s what to know about the long-term effects of bipolar disorder.
Brain Changes
Research indicates bipolar disorder may damage your brain over time. Professionals think it’s because you gradually lose amino acids. They help in the building of the proteins that make up the protective lining around your neurons.
With the passage of time this disorder may affect:
- Attention
- Memory
- Concentration
- Overall executive function
The frontal lobe of the brain also might not work. That’s the area of your brain that helps in remembering words and making decisions.
Medication
Some of the medicines used for the treatment of bipolar disorder can change how the body of patient functions the longer you use them.
Lithium:
It is a mood stabilizer that may cause problems with certain body organs.
These include:
Kidney:
It can damage your kidneys resulting in a type of diabetes called nephrogenic diabetes insipidus. Your kidneys fail to control the fluid balance due to the lack of responsiveness of hormones. Its symptoms include feeling more thirsty all the time and peeing a lot.
Thyroid:
Your thyroids don’t make enough hormones the condition is called hypothyroidism. This condition can lead to:
- Feeling cold
- Depression
- Fatigue
- Dry skin
- Weight gain
- Trouble thinking quickly
Parathyroid:
When your parathyroid glands can’t manage the level of calcium it results from hyperparathyroidism. It’s a less common long-term effect, but it can result in:
- Joint or bone pain
- Kidney stones
- Abdominal pain
- Nausea
Young girls are more at risk. If your doctor recommends you lithium he will test from time to time whether it is working right or not.
If your mania and depression are not under-control you might also take an antipsychotic along with mood stabilizers. Over time, antipsychotics can increase the risk for:
- Diabetes and Glucose intolerance
- Obesity
- Dyslipidemia (abnormal lipid levels)
- Movement disorders like Parkinson’s disease
Bipolar Disorder and Suicide
Some individuals with this disorder may think of suicide.
Read out these warning signs and take them for immediate treatment:
- Isolating yourself
- Depression (changes in sleeping, eating activities)
- Talking about hopelessness, helplessness, or suicide
- Having more accidents
- Acting recklessly
- Taking more risks
- Abusing alcohol or drugs
- Focusing on negative and morbid themes
- Talking about death and dying
- Giving away possessions
- Becoming less emotionally expressive, or crying more
What Happens Without Treatment?
If you leave bipolar disorder untreated its symptoms will become worse. Your mania episodes and depression tend to last for longer times and happen more frequently, especially with increasing age.
You may think of suicide a lot. If you’re having thoughts of death, contact Sands Treatment Center.
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5 Delicate Signs of Bipolar Disorder
Welcome to the topic, “5 delicate signs of bipolar disorder”.
Bipolar disorder is a psychiatric disorder that affects the nervous system and the functioning of the affected individual adversely. This is a disorder in which the patient goes through fits of mania followed by fits of depression and extreme mood swings. Treatment of bipolar disease is a matter of identifying the signs and carrying out an appropriate diagnosis to comprehend the extreme mood swings and emotions that a patient may go through.
Read on to know the 5 delicate signs of bipolar disorder.
1-Mood swings:
This is one of the top signs of bipolar disorder. While most people go through mood swings in a certain form or at some time or the other, individuals who are suffering from this disorder will show extreme mood swings and emotions in a matter of days and weeks. This occurs due to the hormonal changes in the brain of the affected individual.
Also, while normal people retain their basic nature through their mood swings, individuals suffering from bipolar disorder will not have any fixed persona apart from the one dictated by the swings of mood. Extreme mood swings and the frequency of the same are one of the key symptoms of this disorder.
2-Mania phase:
Extreme mania or happiness followed by the sudden desire to do a lot of things at one time is one of the extreme moods that may be seen in such individuals. They will abruptly have a lot of energy and enthusiasm. Most of them will unexpectedly show a hyperactive side that may not have been seen for weeks at a time.
This mania phase is one where nothing will faze the affected individual and he will show an irrationally high sense of positivism nearby on hazardous behavior like taking gambles and risks which may also have serious physical dangers.
3-Depression phase:
The depressive phase is the other side of the maniac phase. Most individuals suffering from this disorder will also show a side of helplessness and hopelessness for weeks and months before the mania grows in again.
This depression phase is one where all will appear bleak and it will become hard to persuade the patient into exiting his or her room, or even to have a usual conversation with other individuals. During this phase, the affected individual will tend to escape through social scenes and have very little to do with their friends and family.
4-Memory and concentration:
When a person is fluctuating between such extremes with no neutral phase, there are many other roles that will take a beating. The concentration and memory of the patient will collapse and there will be a severe decline in their perception as well.
5-Suicide attempts:
During the depression phase, one must be cautious to remove all kinds of sharp objects, sleeping pills, medicines, and even guns from the vicinity of the individual as they will be silently engrossed with death and thoughts of suicide. This is one of the main signs which will also require to be undertaken to carry out treatment for bipolar disorder and depression that stalks from the same.
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Causes of Mental Illnesses
Although the specific causes of mental illnesses are not known, it is becoming clear over research that many of these illnesses are caused by a combination of psychological, biological, and environmental factors.
Biological Factors behind Mental Illness
Some mental illnesses are associated with abnormal functioning of nerve cell pathways or circuits that connect specific brain regions. Nerve cells within the brain pathways converse through chemicals called neurotransmitters. “Tweaking” these chemicals — through psychotherapy, medicines, or other medical procedures — can help pathways run more proficiently. In addition, weakness or injuries to certain regions of the brain have also been associated with some mental conditions.
Some other biological factors that contribute to these illnesses are the following:
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Genetics (heredity)
Mental illnesses also run in families, signifying that individuals who have a family member with a mental illness may be to a greater extent at risk of developing them. Probability in families is passed on through genes. Specialists found that many mental illnesses are associated with abnormalities in some genes rather than just one or a few and how these genes respond to environmental factors are different for every individual (even identical twins). That is why an individual inherits a vulnerability to a mental illness and doesn’t certainly develop the illness. Mental illness itself arises from the combination of multiple genes and other factors — such as a traumatic event, abuse, or stress — which can affect, or trigger, a condition in an individual who has an inherited exposure to it.
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Infections
Many infections are associated with damage to the brain in turn resulting in a mental illness or worsening of a previous illness. For example, a disorder known as pediatric autoimmune neuropsychiatric disorder developed because of the Streptococcus bacteria has been associated with the development of obsessive-compulsive disorder in children and other mental illnesses.
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Brain defects or injury
Defects in or injuries to certain regions of the brain have also been associated with some mental illnesses.
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Prenatal damage
Some evidence suggests that interference in the development of the early fetal brain or any trauma at the time of birth — for example, lack of oxygen in brain cells — may be a factor in the occurrence of certain illnesses, e.g. autism spectrum disorder.
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Substance abuse
Long-term substance abuse has also been linked to paranoia, depression, and anxiety.
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Other factors
Exposure to toxins such as lead plays a great role in developing mental illnesses. Poor nutrition also contributes to their development.
Psychological Factors behind Mental Illness
Psychological factors behind the development of mental illnesses include:
- Severe psychological trauma in childhood, such as sexual abuse, and physical or emotional disturbance.
- Neglect
- Big loss at in early age, such as the loss of a parent
- Reduced ability to relate to others
Environmental Factors behind Mental Illness
Some stressors can prompt an illness in an individual who is susceptible to any mental illness. These stressors include:
- Dysfunctional family life
- Feelings of insufficiency, low self-esteem, anger, loneliness, or anxiety
- Changing schools or jobs
- Death or divorce
- Cultural or social expectations
- Any type of substance abuse by the individual or his parents.
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