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Bipolar Mania Treatment

Mental health disorders often require a combination of medication and talk therapy as treatment. With some disorders, there is no cure, but rather a plan to manage symptoms. Such is the case for bipolar disorder, especially in the manic stages.

  1. Bipolar Disorder

    • Contrary to some stereotypes, bipolar disorder is not characterized by daily or hourly extreme mood swings. According to the "Diagnostic Statistical Manual- IV (DSM-IV)," bipolar disorder is a mood disorder defined by extended periods of depression-level mental states followed by high-paced manic moods. Depending on the person, periods of mania or depression can last from a few months to almost a year, with a few months in between the extremes.

    Bipolar Mania

    • The period of bipolar mania is referred to simply as mania or a lesser form of mania called hypomania. In these states, a patient can be irritable, hypersensitive and have a severely elevated mood. Large-scale plans, involvement in many projects at once and extreme talkativeness can also be associated with mania. Additionally, there is risk that the sufferer will turn to stimulant and depressive substance abuse, such as using alcohol or cocaine. For some patients, aggressive behavior and a denial of symptoms can also occur.

    Anti-Psychotic Medication

    • Two main symptoms of bipolar mania are psychotic behavior and thoughts, which consist of emotional responses, errors in judgment and ineffective communication. To help control these thoughts and behaviors before they get out of control, patients can be prescribed mood stabilizing medications such as Clorazil, Risperdal and Zyprexa. Some of these medications also help control the opposite side of the bipolar spectrum--depression.

    Family Therapy

    • Family-focused therapy can be effective for bipolar patients. Manic states can aggravate and cause dissension in relationships among family members. With family-focused therapy, everyone in the family can contribute to managing the person's behaviors by helping reduce stimuli and setting boundaries. The goal of the therapy is to educate everyone on the signs and symptoms of manic onset in order to better handle it when it comes.

    Dialectal Behavior Therapy

    • Dialectal behavior therapy is a strategy developed by Dr. Marsha Linehan. In it, bipolar patients go through stages of therapy that ultimately lead to the patients being in better control of their behavior. The focus of dialectal behavior therapy is on a patient and therapist learning to accept and control thoughts, rather than just finding ways to change them. Stage 1 goals include reducing self-threatening behaviors like suicide attempts, and then reducing manic behaviors that interfere with treatment. This stage and other stages emphasize skills training for bipolar patients, building on them with each stage.

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