Bipolar disorder or manic depressive disorder?

Although many people often confuse them, or actually use them as if they were different, did you know that in reality both Bipolar disorder As the manic depressive disorder Do they refer to the same disorder or psychiatric pathology? It is a disorder that many psychiatrists and psychologists consider a serious brain disease.

To be more precise, it consists of a mental illness which is characterized by alternate depressive phases with false mania (or euphoria). In this sense, it is common for the bipolar or manic-depressive person to feel at times very happy and lively, more than usual, while later they feel very sad or depressed.

The first situation is known as mania, while the second is known as depression.

What are your symptoms?

Before talking about the symptoms, we must bear in mind that bipolar disorder tends to alternate in two determined and well differentiated phases: the manic episode on the one hand, and the depressive episode on the other. Therefore, it is necessary to differentiate the symptoms that arise in each phase:

Symptoms of the manic episode:

  • Feel very happy, lively and happy.
  • Sensation of being restless and sensitive.
  • Irritation sensation
  • Problems to sleep, or to relax.
  • Feeling very nervous or anxious
  • Feeling more active than usual, wanting to do many things at once.
  • Doing risky things

These episodes tend to be more intense than the symptoms that appear during the depressive phase, since emotions tend to be stronger and occur along with extreme changes in energy and behavior levels.

Symptoms of the depressive episode:

  • Feeling very sad and depressed.
  • Feel worry, with a feeling of emptiness.
  • Having concentration problems
  • Have little memory, forgetting a lot about things.
  • Fatigue feeling, not having much energy.
  • Difficulty sleeping or relaxing

What are your causes?

Fundamentally, two causes have been identified that may influence the onset of bipolar or manic-depressive disorder:

  • The genes. That is, it is a hereditary disease.
  • Abnormality in the structure and function of the brain.

However, to this day investigations are still underway to discover more possible causes that affect the appearance of the disorder.

How is the treatment?

Taking into account that bipolar disorder has no cure, we should know that there are medical treatments that are useful when controlling most of the symptoms:

  • Pharmacotherapy: they usually give good results, although the choice between a group of drugs or others will depend on each patient.
  • Therapy: It is useful to help people with bipolar disorder, helping them to change their behavior as well as to better manage their lives.
This article is published for informational purposes only. It can not and should not replace the consultation with a Psychologist. We advise you to consult your trusted Psychologist.

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