Many medications for bipolar disorder can also lower sex drive. Severe mood swings, along with manic symptoms such as poor judgement and impulsivity, or depressive symptoms such as low energy and disinterest make it tough to find and maintain a job. Many people consider parenting the most stressful albeit rewarding job of their lives.
But any kind of stressor — good or bad — has potential to trigger manic or depressive episodes for people with bipolar disorder. In addition, the erratic behavior associated with bipolar disorder can be confusing and scary to children, who look to parents to provide stability. Helping your partner get and maintain treatment to control symptoms is crucial for providing a safe and secure home for children.
It takes effort to keep any relationship strong, but it can be especially challenging when your partner has bipolar disorder. Payne offers these recommendations:. When someone is first diagnosed, there are often relationship issues that need to be addressed.
Couples counseling can help you:. This gives the doctor a chance to make quick medication changes that may help your partner avoid being hospitalized. Being in a healthy relationship with someone with bipolar disorder requires not only careful management of their illness, but also setting aside time to take good care of yourself.
What does it mean if your partner is bipolar? Hypomanic episodes may include: Increased energy and drive. Rapid speech. Decreased need for sleep. Mania can cause other symptoms as well, but seven of the key signs of this phase of bipolar disorder are:. Like mania, depression can cause other symptoms as well, but here are seven of the key signs of depression from bipolar disorder:.
There are four common types of bipolar disorder, but two of these types are most often diagnosed. The person may end up in the emergency room if left untreated. To have bipolar I, a person must have manic episodes. In order for an event to be considered a manic episode, it must:. Bipolar II is considered more common than bipolar I. It also involves depressive symptoms, but its manic symptoms are much less severe and are called hypomanic symptoms.
Hypomania often becomes worse without treatment, and the person can become severely manic or depressed. There are two other types of the disorder that are less common than bipolar I and II. Cyclothymic disorder involves changes in mood and shifts similar to bipolar I and II, but the shifts are often less dramatic in nature.
A person with cyclothymic disorder can often function normally without medication, though it may be hard. Bipolar disorder not otherwise specified is a general category for a person who only has some symptoms of bipolar disorder. These symptoms are not enough to make a diagnosis of one of the other three types.
Unless you have severe mania, the symptoms of bipolar disorder can be hard to spot. People who have hypomania may feel more energized than usual, more confident and full of ideas, and able to get by on less sleep. These are things that hardly anyone complains about. Learn how bipolar disorder is diagnosed. Once you have a diagnosis, your doctor will decide on a treatment program that works best for you. Sometimes you can have psychotic symptoms during a severe episode of mania or depression.
Symptoms of psychosis can be:. Psychotic symptoms in bipolar disorder can reflect your mood. For example, if you have a manic episode you may believe that you have special powers or are being monitored by the government. If you have depressive episode, you may feel very guilty about something you think you have done. You may feel that you are worse than anybody else or feel that you don't exist. A diagnosis of bipolar I disorder means you will have had at least 1 episode of mania that lasts longer than 1 week.
You may also have periods of depression. Manic episodes will generally last months if left untreated. Depressive episodes will generally last months without treatment. A diagnosis of bipolar II disorder means it is common to have symptoms of depression. You will have had at least 1 period of major depression. And at least 1 period of hypomania instead of mania.
You will experience symptoms of mania or hypomania and depression at the same time. You may feel very sad and hopeless at the same time as feeling restlessness and being overactive. Rapid cycling means you have had 4 or more depressive, manic or hypomanic episodes in a month period.
Seasonal pattern means that either your depression, mania or hypomania is regularly affected in the same way by the seasons. There can be some similarities between bipolar I or II with seasonal pattern and another conditional called seasonal affective disorder. A diagnosis of cyclothymic disorder means you will have experienced regular episodes of hypomania and depression for at least 2 years. But they can last longer.
Cyclothymia can develop into bipolar disorder. Research suggests that a combination of different things can make it more likely that you will develop bipolar disorder. This risk is higher if both of your parents have the condition or if your twin has the condition.
But different genes have been linked to the development of bipolar disorder. Different chemicals in your brain affect your mood and behaviour.
Too much or too little of these chemicals could lead to you developing mania or depression. Stressful life events can trigger symptoms of bipolar disorder. Such as childhood abuse or the loss of a loved one. They can increase your chances of developing depressive episodes. It can help to keep a record of your moods. This can help you and your GP to understand your mood swings.
Bipolar UK have a mood diary and a mood scale on their website. You can find their details in the Useful contacts section at the bottom of this page. Only a psychiatrist can make a formal diagnosis. Your GP may arrange an appointment with a psychiatrist if you have:. Or there is a chance that you are a danger to yourself or someone else. Bipolar disorder can be difficult to diagnose because it affects everyone differently.
Also, the symptoms of bipolar disorder can be experienced by people who have other mental illness diagnoses. It can take a long time to get a diagnosis of bipolar disorder. NICE produce guidelines for how health professionals should treat certain conditions. You can download these from their website at: www. But they should have a good reason for not following them.
Mania and hypomania You should be offered a mood stabiliser to help manage your mania or hypomania. You will usually be offered an antipsychotic first. The common antipsychotics used for the treatment of bipolar disorder are:. Sodium valproate is an anticonvulsive medication. Your doctor will suggest different dosages and combinations to you depending on what works best for you.
Your personal preferences should be listened to. Depression Your doctor should offer you medication to treat depressive symptoms. You may be offered the following medication:. If you would like to take medication, doctors will use different dosages and combinations depending on what works best for you.
If you have an episode of depression you should be offered medication and a high intensity talking therapy, such as:. What is cognitive behavioural therapy CBT? CBT is a talking therapy that can help you manage your problems by changing the way you think and behave.
What is interpersonal therapy? Interpersonal therapy is a talking therapy that focuses on you and your relationships with other people. Bipolar disorder is a life-long and often recurring illness. You may need long term support to help manage your condition.
Your doctor will look at what medication worked for you during episodes of mania or depression. They should ask you whether you want to continue this treatment or if you want to change to lithium. Lithium usually works better than other types of medication for long-term treatment. Your doctor should give you information about how to take lithium safely.
If lithium doesn't work well enough or causes you problems, you may be offered:. Your doctor should monitor your health. Physical health checks should be done at least once a year.
These checks will include:. You should be offered a psychological therapy that is specially designed for bipolar disorder. You could have individual or group therapy. The aim of your therapy is to stop you from becoming unwell again. Family intervention is where you and your family work with mental health professionals to help to manage relationships. This should be offered to people who you live with or who you are in close contact with. The support that you and your family are given will depend on what problems there are and what preferences you all have.
This could be group family sessions or individual sessions. Your family should get support for 3 months to 1 year and should have at least 10 planned sessions. If you want to return to work, you should be offered support with that including training. You should get this support if your care is managed by your GP or by your community mental health team. You might not be able to work or to find any. Your healthcare professionals should think about other activities that could help you back to employment in the future.
Your healthcare team should help you to make a recovery plan. The plan should help you to identify early warning signs and triggers that may make you unwell again and ways of coping. Your plan should also have people to call if you become very distressed. CPA is a package of care that is used by secondary mental health services. You will have a care plan and someone to coordinate your care. All care plans should include a crisis plan. CPA should be available if you have a wide range of needs from different services or you are thought to be a high risk.
Both you and your GP should be given a copy of your care plan. Your carers can be involved in your care plan and given a copy if you give your consent for this to happen.
You can speak to your doctor about your treatment. You could ask what other treatments you could try. Tell your doctor if there is a type of treatment that you would like to try. Doctors should listen to your preference. A second opinion means that you would like a different doctor to give their opinion about what treatment you should have.
You can also ask for a second opinion if you disagree with your diagnosis. But your doctor should listen to your reason for wanting a second opinion. An advocate is independent from the mental health service. They are free to use. They can be useful if you find it difficult to get your views heard. There are different types of advocates available. Community advocates can support you to get a health professional to listen to your concerns.
And help you to get the treatment that you would like. You can complain about your treatment or any other aspect of the NHS verbally or in writing. You can learn to manage your symptoms by looking after yourself. Selfcare is how you take care of your diet, sleep, exercise, daily routine, relationships and how you are feeling. Routine helps many people with their mental wellbeing.
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