Diagnosis and Treatment
The disorder that I will be explaining is classified as a mood disorder known as a bipolar disorder. I will be outlining the current means by which this particular disorder is diagnosed, along with the treatment options that are available, and the causes of this disorder.
A disturbance in mood or a prolonged emotional state is how a mood order is defined (Morris & Maisto, 2005). Some people think that just because they have mood swings that they themselves have a bipolar disorder. This is not true in all cases. A bipolar disorder is a mood disorder which periods of mania and depression alternate, sometimes with periods of normal mood intervening (Morris & Maisto, 2005). Understanding the differences plays a major role in diagnosis of a person who has this type of bipolar disorder.
With bipolar disorder being an offspring of depression, and mania or hypomania there are several different patterns of symptoms. Each of these symptoms is different from one person to the next. There are three forms of a bipolar disorder. The first is known as Bipolar I disorder. This form may cause problems with a person’s place of employment, education, and even with that of a significant other. The second is in the middle and called Bipolar II disorder. With this form a person can usually maintain an everyday lifestyle. Instead of having a full blown episode of either depression or mania they are slightly less severe. The last form of this disorder is known as Cyclothymia. This is the smallest of all three. A person feels more in control with this form due to the fact that the highs and lows are not like that of the other two forms. A bipolar disorder is a something that stays with a person and is known to be a long-term condition. It is very important for the person who has been diagnosed with this condition to keep a close watch on the signs of possible