Women & Bipolar Disorder

Women are more likely to suffer from bipolar disorder than men, and they have different symptoms and experiences with the disorder. Men's and women's anatomies are different, and therefore it is only natural that they experience this disorder in different ways.

Pregnancy

• Women with bipolar disorder have a lot to consider before becoming pregnant. Many of the medications prescribed for bipolar disorder can have a detrimental effect on the health of the baby. A psychiatrist may choose to have the mother stop her medications or switch to one that has less risk of harming the growing fetus. In addition, bipolar women are much more likely to suffer from postpartum depression, especially if medication has been stopped.

Sex

• All people who suffer from bipolar disorder will experience fluctuations in their sex drives (an increase during mania and decrease during depression). Women, especially, may develop insecurities from this and have feelings of worthlessness when they are too depressed to have sex. Partners may not always be understanding, and can actually lose interest during or after episodes. Sexual dysfunction can also be a side effect of antidepressants, which can add to these insecurities.

Bipolar Premenstrual Syndrome

• Women with bipolar disorder experience more intense symptoms of PMS--known as bipolar premenstrual syndrome. Bipolar women tend to be more irritable, irrational and emotional than other women during their menstrual cycles. Symptoms of PMS are not only worse, but they also tend to last longer. In some cases, PMS can actually be a trigger for mania and depression. The medications taken to treat bipolar disorder can sometimes treat this problem, but unfortunately this is not always the case.

Abusive Relationships

• Bipolar women are much more likely to enter into and stay in abusive relationships. Women often blame themselves for the abuse because of their disorder, and they may think that something they did during an episode provoked the abuse. Because they consider themselves responsible, they stay in the relationship and take on the responsibility of making it work. No matter what happens during a depressed or manic episode, no woman deserves to be mistreated or abused.

Hormone Treatments

• Estrogen can be used to treat bipolar disorder in women. Although most estrogen supplements are not considered safe enough to be used for this reason alone, women who are taking estrogen for medical reasons may find that their symptoms improve dramatically. Birth control is one form of estrogen that can help alleviate the symptoms of bipolar disorder. Careful planning for pregnancy is important for women with bipolar disorder, so some form of birth control is important even without the added benefits.