Mood Disorders


It is currently thought that serious mental disorders are the result of imbalances in the brain's chemical activity, and that environmental factors can play a part in triggering the development of mental illness. However, much like other diseases, mental illnesses can be treated. Most people who have mental illnesses can engage in productive lives with the right kind of treatment. Mood disorders are one type of serious mental illness. Two of the most common include depression and bipolar disorder, or manic-depressive illness.

Bipolar Disorder
Bipolar disorder is characterized by extreme mood swings and periods of stability. Heredity may play a part in this disorder; it seems to run in families. Usually, this disorder starts in a person's mid-twenties and continues throughout his or her life. In the absence of treatment someone who is bipolar may be prone to experiencing devastating life events such as the dissolution of a marriage, career loss, substance abuse, and suicide.

Symptoms include both mania and depression. Mania is mostly comprised of: irritability, an inflated sense of self-esteem, decreased desire or need for sleep, increased energy, frantic thoughts, feeling invulnerable, poor judgment, heightened sex drive, and denial. Depression is usually comprised of: hopelessness, guilt, worthlessness, fatigue, losing interest in food or sex, disturbances in sleep, a tendency to think of death or suicide, and suicide attempts themselves. Mania and depression can vary in their intensity and their duration.

As of yet, no lab test exists to diagnose bipolar disorder. This illness can even go unrecognized by the person who suffers from it and their friends, relatives, and co-workers. If you or someone you know shows signs of having bipolar disorder, a medical evaluation is needed to rule out other potential disorders.

The majority of people who have bipolar disorder can be effectively treated with medication and psychotherapy. There are also support groups that may be able to offer emotional support and other assistance.

Depression
Everyone has a few bad days of feeling sad or despondent. But when these feelings last longer than a few weeks, this can indicate depression. The National Institute for Mental Health reports that 3-4 million men are affected by depression, and twice as many women are affected by depression. While we do not yet know the exact mechanisms that cause depression, there are two neurotransmitters implicated--serotonin and norepinephrine.

Symptoms of depression include: changes in sleeping pattern and appetite, worthlessness, hopelessness, guilt, losing interest or pleasure in activities that used to be personally important, tiredness, being unable to concentrate, overwhelming sadness, disturbances in thought, headaches, stomachaches, and suicidal thoughts and behaviors.

To diagnose depression, four or more of the symptoms listed above must have been continually present for more than 14 days. To be "clinically depressed" means that one's depression is severe enough to require treatment. Major depression is characterized by more severe symptoms, like being literally unable to drag oneself out of bed. Seasonal affective disorder, another form of depression, is affiliated with seasonal changes in the amount of available daylight.

Some people who have depression may find that cognitive and behavioral therapy or interpersonal therapy is effective. Many people who have seasonal affective disorder can use special bright lights to help their condition. The three major types of medicate that are used to treat depression include tricyclics, new selective serotonin re-uptake inhibitors,and monoamine oxidase inhibitors.