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QF Focus Magazine
Ups and downs... Bipolar
“Sometimes I feel so powerful and active and nobody can stop me doing crazy things... and the next day I am down and depressed, and want to stay in bed the hole day, feeling weak and tired. These abrupt changes in my mood affect my partner and family; they do not know what to do with me. Neither do I...” (Typical description of a bipolar disease patient).
Bipolar disorder has become a more and more “common” psychological disorder these days. It is very important to recognise the symptoms at an early stage to heal the disease and improve the lives of the sufferers and their relatives. The manic part of this disorder comes along with
an overload of euphoria and self-esteem and it is hard for patients to accept the inadequateness of their behaviour. According to the worldwide accepted diagnostic classification system DSM-5 (Diagnostic And Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders), very specific symptoms describe a bipolar disorder and should be confirmed by a health professional in order to take necessary steps. Knowing about these very individual symptoms helps to tailor the treatment as close as possible to the needs, to obtain the maximum success.
Recommended treatment Talking about the different possible treatments, the cognitive behaviouristic approach is the first choice, especially when the symptoms are still in a mild or mildly progressed state. Free of medication and side effects, the patient learns first of all how to recognise his abnormal and strong mood changes. In a next step the patient learns how to cope with the situations, such as doing ‘un-depressive’ exercises when feeling down and limiting themselves regarding inadequate behaviour when having a manic phase. Learning this coping behaviour, plus the improvement of management of their emotions is the key to controlling this disease. Professional advice is important during this stage because trying to handle these situations without the experience and knowledge of a psychologist or psychiatrist is nearly impossible and not at all recommended. Especially close relatives often suffer a lot and the situation can get easily out of control. Therefore, do not hesitate to get professional help to find advice in your language with treatments tailored to your needs.
Mirko Bruns, Graduated Psychologist, Centro Internacional De Atencion Psicologica. San Luis/ Torrevieja. Telephone: 630 341 888 email:
mirko.bruns@
gmail.com, visit:
www.psicologo-torrevieja.com or follow me on Facebook! See advert below for other services offered.
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