Where can I learn more about bipolar disorder?
I take lithium and a few other meds for bipolar. I’ve read alot about it but would like to learn more.
Related posts:
- How can I wake some one fully that has inherited deep sleep disorder? ( Or is a beddwetter)? My son is a bedwetter. He is 13 and we...
- What medications do people with rapid cycling bipolar disorder take? I’m not planning to take these drugs. The only reason...
Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.
Layperson’s Definition of Manic Depression
One textbook definition describes bipolar disorder as: "a major affective disorder in which an individual alternates between states of deep depression and extreme elation." This is misleading in that bipolar disorder – also known as manic depression or manic-depressive illness – is much more complicated than just alternating between depression and elation.
The American Psychiatric Association’s Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (commonly known as DSM-IV because it is in its fourth major edition) says, "Bipolar Disorder is characterized by the occurrence of one or more Major Depressive Episodes accompanied by at least one Manic Episode." So even if you’re depressed 99 percent of the time, going through just one manic episode qualifies you for a diagnosis of bipolar disorder according to this definition – but that still leaves out a lot of what manic depression really is.
Sorry you’ve had the trouble!
A good place to begin is with WebMD:
http://www.webmd.com/diseases_and_conditions/bipolar_disorder.htm
The physician who prescribes your medications has pamphlets and brochures that describe the different types of bipolar and your medications. Keep taking them!
the best