Bipolar Disorder

Bipolar disorder is also known as manic depression. It was equal between men and women and normally forms between the ages of 15-25. Bipolar disorder is very common; according to the National Institutes of Mental Health around three in every one-hundred adults are affected by it ("Helpguide"). Unfortunately, there are a number of individuals that have not been analyzed or diagnosed who are displaying symptoms of the bipolar disorder. Bipolar disorder is not a disease that can be transported form one person to another; however, more often than none it is found in relatives of people that have bipolar disorder.

There are a number of symptoms dealing with the disorder: feelings of heightened energy, euphoria, easily distracted, little need for sleep, poor judgment, poor temper control, reckless behavior/lack of self control, very elevated mood, racing thoughts, talking too much, very high self-esteem, eating problems, hyperactivity, one minute and sad and suicidal the next, and more. The individual suffering with a bipolar disorder in most cases may not realize that they are suffering from a disorder. There are different forms of the Bipolar Disorder: Bipolar I Disorder (mania or a mixed episode), Bipolar II Disorder (hypomania and depression) and Cyclothymia (hypomania and mild depression) and Multi-polar Depression (where uni-polar meets bipolar).

Suffering from Bipolar Disease is the most unique of all mental disorders ("Lam 37").. What makes it so unique it the chance of relapses, or going into long periods of regression with or without treatment; physicians call this tendency "hibernate" ("Lam 37").

Bipolar II is not as severe as Bipolar I; it is a calmer version. The episodes of hypomania are shorter and there is an increased need for sleep during episodes of depression. A lot of scientists now believe that people afflicted with Bipolar II may have only one gene linked to mood disorders, whereas individuals with Bipolar I ,a much more complex mental disorder, may have inherited multiple genes linked to mood disorders ("Lam 39").

Cyclothymic disorder is a milder form of Bipolar II but in rapid cycles. Sometimes the mood cycle, swings back and forth and can last for a few days or up to several weeks. These cyclical periods of depression begin during their adolescence or early twenties. A constant influence of a rapid changeable mood causes one to have an unstable sense of self ("Lam 40"). Rapid-Cycling Disorder is characterized by individuals who experience four or more episodes a year. Females are most often to exhibit signs or rapid-cycling disorder ("Lam 41"). Although some rapid-cycling patients do respond to lithium and other mood-stabilizing drugs, rapid-cycling bipolar individuals are still considered among those most treatment-resistant.

The first genetic evidence came from studies into the extent to which the bipolar disease