| Treating bipolar |
| Written by Nancy McMahon | |
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Whether you are treating bipolar , schizophrenia, mental illness or the common cold, the first step to treatment is always diagnosis.If you feel that you detect signs of bipolar disorder in yourself or a loved one, it may be a good idea to discuss it, and to possibly pursue psychiatric help from there. Getting a Professional DiagnosisIn this modern age, we all have the internet and can look up the basic facts and traits of bipolar disorder, but that doesn’t necessarily qualify anyone to make an accurate diagnosis.In fact, even medical professionals in the fields of therapy and psychiatry tend to disagree on the exact definition of bipolar disorder, what its signs and symptoms are, and how best to treat it.Short of the most obvious signs, such as hallucinations, extreme delusions or mania, or prolonged periods of depression, bipolar is a hard disorder to nail down and know for sure. This is why we can’t stress enough the importance of seeking professional diagnosis, and, perhaps, a second opinion, before committing to a treatment program. Misdiagnosis and improper treatment can actually lead to more mental disorders than it can solve. Armchair psychiatry just doesn’t cut it when it comes to mental illness.Depending on the severity of the patient’s bipolar disorder, treatment may require anything from light therapy or mental exercises to heavy medication. A problem many people face, especially those who are actually suffering from mental illness, is a distrust of the established psychiatric community.When you picture a stereotypical psychiatrist, you might imagine anything from a buffoonish man in a pipe, playing Tic Tac Toe while you spill your guts, to a power hungry fascist, administering unnecessary shock treatment. Pop culture has not been kind to the psychiatric trade. Distrust of PsychiatryMany people suffering from mental illness such as bipolar disorder or schizophrenia, go years or decades or an entire lifetime without properly treating their bipolar or other mental illness, thanks entirely to a distrust of psychiatry and medication.Rest assured, any horrific imagery of unnecessary shock treatment and frontal lobotomies have more basis in the completely fictional works of Edgar Allen Poe than in the modern science of psychiatric evaluation and treatment.Many people suffering from mental illness base their mistrust in the psychiatric trade on bad experiences from their youth thanks to misdiagnosis or wrongly administered medication. Things have changed in the last thirty or forty years. Both diagnosis and medication have come a long, long way since then.Many people who had bad experiences in some of the more archaic mental hospitals of the 1950’s and 1960’s went the majority of their adult lives fearing treatment until finally giving new treatment methods a chance and finding that, yes, bipolar disorder treatments have come a long way, and it is better to treat your bipolar disorder than to just grin and bear it. Side EffectsKnow that, while some people suffering from bipolar disorder have found their medication to work just fine, others have found certain medications to have negative side effects.Whatever you do, don’t let this scare you away from proper treatment.Know the side effects before taking any medication, talk with your therapist or psychiatrist, and never self-prescribe.Even if you have a poor experience with one medication, there are still options. Some of the medications available include:TegretolTegretol is a mood stabilizer seen as the first line treatment option for most people suffering bipolar disorder. Tegretol may cause side effects like constipation and dizziness, however. These side effects may or may not affect you at all.LamictalA mood stabilizer. Side effects may include weight gain and hair loss, so this is not considered a first line of defence medication.ZyprexaZyprexa was developed for schizophrenia, though it has been shown to calm manic episodes. Weight gain may be a side effect, though. There are several more to consider. Talk with a psychiatrist about getting on medication, do not experiment on yourself. |
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