Case Study: Bipolar Disorder

Mary is a 40 yrs successful business woman in the high-stress high-power world of corporate finance. Mary present herself as a nonsense business professional. She is frank and honest about the events that she has brought her to the office. Mary tells me that although she tell herself that she will only have one or two glasses with dinner, she usually finished the whole bottle. Her talkativeness, high energy, and engaging personality connects with everyone, about five years ago Mary started having problem sleeping and found herself in financial debt. She continuously overworks; she did not appear to be having any other significant problem. In the last several months, she has taken on more and more jobs at work and is more stressed. A few months ago she began to act out more verbally with other co-worker. Currently, she finds herself depressed; she is struggling to keep up with her work commitment. Mary has a live in sister and she is experiencing many forms of distress. Some feel angry because their routine are often disrupted and other feel anxious. Because they continuously anticipate a change in her mood. With her mind racing at night, her inability to sleep and the increasing distress in her work place, Mary decided to talk with someone on her work staff. After assessment, she was admitted to the women’s program at SLI for treatment.

Beginning Treatment:
Prior to her evaluation at SLI, Mary had been diagnosed as having anxiety and depressions, and started on an antidepressant, Paxil. She reported some improvement in her mood, but felt “seventy percent” better. After several weeks, the dose was increased in an attempt to relieve the lingering depression. Within days, her manic symptom emerged. As with many people who have bipolar disorder, the usual antidepressants can induce a manic state and worsen condition.