Delusions of Reference in Bipolar Disorder

Bipolar disorder and schizophrenia are two of the most dangerous and misunderstood mental illnesses. Although they are separate disorders, they share delusional thought processes and other features that can become serious quite quickly. The delusions cause people to detach from society and reality and patients are often stuck in their own small, private and torturous illness until proper treatment can be obtained.

Definition

• In the practice of psychology, a delusion of reference occurs when a person mistakenly believes he is the object of remarks, behaviors and ridicule that usually turn out to be benign or have absolutely nothing to do with him. The bipolar person achieves this type of delusion by projecting himself onto each topic of conversation, remark or reaction, truly believing that he is being targeted. Delusions of reference also occur when a bipolar person mistakenly believes that random events, songs, television shows or even daily events are meaningful and hold significance only to him.

Commonality

• Delusions of reference are extremely common in bipolar disorder. They accompany paranoid and psychotic thoughts that often trouble and impair bipolar patients on a daily basis. Those with bipolar disorder often feel the delusions deepening when they enter into a manic phase. However, delusions still may be present in the depressive phase and heighten the paranoia a person suffers naturally from bipolar disorder.

Negative Social Interaction

• Social interaction becomes a problem for the bipolar patient, not because she lacks social skills but because of delusions of reference. Slight remarks, odd smiles and whispering all are transformed into snide remarks with hidden meanings, dirty looks and whispered tales about the person suffering from bipolar disorder. Bipolar sufferers fine-tune their ears and eyes during social interactions and often expect that they will be the topic of distasteful discussion or ridicule or that others simply are trying to ruin their good names with slander. Not only does the person with bipolar disorder believe that others slander her, she believes they do it with malice and pleasure. She may then mistakenly lash out and verbally or physically attack another person. By trying to mistakenly protect herself from ridicule, the bipolar patient actually may become the topic of much speculation and ridicule.

Mania

• When bipolar patients go into mania, every symptom they display becomes more radical than it was in the depressive state. Mania also has the effect of over-inflating the person's ego; many bipolar patients believe the reason people are slandering them and being malicious is because others are jealous of a certain spectacular skill or talent they have. Delusions of reference are very dangerous during the manic phase--during this phase, a person with bipolar disorder behaves abnormally by taking risks, fighting, gambling, engaging in unprotected sex, working on little sleep and pushing himself to work harder on less downtime. Mania is a phase in which uncontrollable thoughts run wild through the brain.

Conclusion

• With time, it is hoped that the general population will begin to see that delusions are very frightening and painful ordeals and not something that a person with bipolar disorder can turn off as she sees fit. Delusions become powerful truths to the person and cause her a large amount of emotional, physical and mental distress. Even though medication cannot cure delusions all the time, it may help the patient understand the larger picture and begin to work through her delusions and see the truth for what it really is.