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| Sunday, 20 June 2004 |
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Manic moments Mind and body by Umangi de Mel There's joy, there's sorrow, there's poverty and there's abundance... Life contains both ups and downs, highs and lows. That's the plain, old life with its normal attributes. But when one starts experiencing or going to the extremes of highs and lows, which may cause trouble to oneself as well as others around, it certainly won't be a 'normal' attribute of life. Mood swings may not be just another problem caused by female hormones. Triggered by many other factors, they could become a grave problem in society if not detected in time. The victims could be perfectly normal, for months or even for years, but then, Bipolar Disorder is not something easily predictable. It can and is often, as indefinite as the weather. "Bipolar Disorder is probably one of the common, yet major mental illnesses. It is characterised by changes of mood," says Dr. Nalaka Mendis, Consultant Psychiatrist, University of Colombo. Bipolar Disorder, better known as manic depressive illness is a mood disorder that involves conditions of serious mania and depression. The illness seems quite unpredictable as the people who are affected could be as normal as average human beings during certain periods. "It's during a period of time that people tend to feel either sad, depressed and miserable or happy and confident. It's characterised by an alternating pattern of emotional highs and lows," And as Dr. Mendis points out the mood swings extend for weeks or even months. The disturbances or abnormalities of mood could recur in a cyclical nature throughout life. According to Dr. Mendis, the disorder often begins in adolescence or early adulthood and could persist throughout life. Yet he mentions that it's not an uncommon problem. "It's found everywhere in the world, irrespective of gender, race or religion." Varying from euphoria to depression, Bipolar Disorder may be a serious illness which involves risks of being crippled for life. He says it is a fluctuating illness where some could be affected in a mild form, and others could be seriously affected. "It could have a serious impact, which can be severe and life threatening." The severity and frequency of mood swings differ from person to person. There's rapid cycles of frequent and more shorter periods of mood swings, in some people, while some may experience both mania and depression at the same time. Bipolar disorder could range from mild to severe and the intensity of the symptoms could also vary. The illness includes cycles of depression and mania. At one pole, it's severe depression that later comes down to mild depression which includes slight mood swings. And inbetween comes a normal mood. Later the normal mood is replaced with a mild condition of mania, called hypomania and at the second pole, it's mania. Signs and symptoms of the 'manic' phase includes - * Euphoric feelings Symptoms of 'depression' phase includes - * Anxiety, feeling of sadness Dr. Mendis says that Bipolar Disorder is caused by chemical and biological changes in the brain, "It could be due to major changes in the brain chemistry. It also tends to run in the families and therefore could be caused by the genetic background as well." Research reveals that variety of biological, genetic and environmental factors contribute in triggering episodes of Bipolar Disorder. It could also be a cause of stressful life, drug abuse or psychologically traumatic events. Talking about treatment, Dr. Mendis says most people with Bipolar disorder do well with proper medication and treatment. "Medication could reduce the severity of the illness." Apparently those who are affected can obtain balance of their mood disturbances as the illness is a long-term. "By giving proper treatment after recognising the illness, you can prevent the difficulties," says Dr. Mendis and adds that society should support those who are affected by accepting them and treating the disorder as any other illness. |
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