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Bipolar Disorder

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Bipolar Disorder

University of Phoenix
Psy 103
September 7, 2009

Bipolar Disorder How would a person know if they had bipolar disorder? Would they just assume that their extreme feelings were normal? Most people would indeed assume that their extreme happiness was normal. However, those people might begin to suspect a problem after they have lain in bed for days not wanting to do anything. These extreme feelings define bipolar disorder. The person is extremely happy or sad with no middle area. Even doctors have a difficult time diagnosing this disorder. The doctor must consider hereditary factors, biological influences, states of consciousness, and the person’s personality. All these factors play a part in the diagnoses and treatment of bipolar disorder.
General Behavior Diagnosing bipolar people is difficult because of their general behavior. Bipolar people do show outward signs that a problem exist. However, most people have no idea what bipolar is, let alone the symptoms. Especially since the bipolar disorder has four stages or episodes. Each stage of this disorder can be dangerous. The manic part of the disorder has the person feeling good. They might do risky activities because they think they are invincible. The manic stage can make the person irritable or angry. During the depression episode they will feel very sad for a long period. They do not want to eat, get out of bed, or their normal activities. The depression stage can last for months, making this the most dangerous of the episodes. The hypomania episode is a miss leading stage for them. During this stage, they feel good and believe they are being productive. However, they can become manic or depressed with no warning. This stage does not get in the way of them functioning with family or work.
The mixed mood stage allows them to move from one episode to the other. The hypomania and mixed

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