Bipolar Diagnosis

The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Disorders Revised (DSM-IV TR), a guideline that mental health professionals use for diagnosis, describes bipolar disorder as a mood disorder in which a patient experiences extreme mood swings. Most mood swings occur in cycles, with a period of balance in between. With a bipolar diagnosis, a patient should understand these mood types, subtypes of bipolar, medications and the talk therapy involved with treatment.

Mania

• The high-energy mood experienced by bipolar patients is referred to as mania. In a manic episode, patients can appear to be disorganized in speech, ready to take on various projects and willing to take part in dangerous, high-energy activities. Symptoms can be uncontrollable, making patients subject to self-injury, injury of others or criminal arrest. Manic patients, both treated and untreated, may also experience paranoia and hallucinations. Other negative effects can be hypersexuality and substance abuse of depressants as self-medication to calm the "high." Hypomania is also experienced by patients. Hypomania is also high-energy but at a more controllable level.

Depression

• A depressive episode in a bipolar patient is similar to that described in the DSM-IV entry for major Depressive Disorder. Symptoms include recurring thoughts of death or suicide, extreme fatigue or insomnia, and misappropriated guilt. Some bipolar patients experience depression, for example, after seeing the results of acts committed during a manic phase. Depressed patients may also seem restless and irritable. They may also self-medicate through substance abuse, particularly amphetamines.

Subtypes

• Bipolar diagnosis can have several subtypes, depending on the symptoms and duration of moods. For Bipolar 2 patients, hypomania is experienced rather than mania, but depressive episodes tend to last longer. Cyclothymic patients experience hypomania and depression, but in generally shorter durations with no more than two months of balance in between cycles. Rapid cycling occurs when at least four mood swings happen in a 12-month period, although they could happen at a frequent rate such as weekly, daily or hourly.

Medications

• Bipolar patients often need medications to aid in managing symptoms, especially after initial diagnosis. Since manic symptoms can be highly volatile and uncontrollable due to high levels of brain activity, medications like lithium and Depakote slow down transmission speeds of neurotransmitters. They can also reduce paranoia and hallucinations. During depression, patients might be prescribed anti-depressants that help increase a positive mood by increasing levels of serotonin and dopamine neurotransmitters. Anxiolytics like Xanax may also be prescribed to reduce insomnia.

Psychotherapy

• Much of managing bipolar disorder relies on psychotherapy and psycho education by mental health professionals. They can help educate patients on what the brain is going through during mood swings and recommend coping skills that involve more than just the patient's participation. For example, Family-Focused Therapy involves counseling the whole family and figuring out roles and actions that each member can take to help deal with the affected patient.