About Bipolar Manic Depression: Bipolar Manic Depression

Learn about bipolar manic depression and the implications for those suffering from it. Depression not only affects the person who is going through it, but also everyone around them, including friends, family, loved ones, spouses, and children.

Social and cultural aspects of the disorder

Bipolar disorder is not easy to be diagnosed and is a complicated mental illness. The symptoms are so complex as it can be misunderstood for a normal mood swing. It is normal to feel happiness and sadness in life but for those who have bipolar disorder which is also known as manic depression' these feelings can be extreme. This situation if not managed can interfere with their daily life and can also become extremely dangerous.

On a good day the person will be full of energy and be able to achieve much which may also be a concern and then on bad days they feel so depressed that they cant get out of bed.

It usually develops in late adolescence or early adulthood but it is not unusual for some to have their first symptoms during childhood or it could be even late in life. The main problem with bipolar is that it is not accepted as an illness and therefore with delayed treatment it can be too far gone before one actually steps into realization and then makes the necessary adjustments. In the meantime' they would have faced damaged relationships and their performance in school and later in job might be low causing severe damage to their personal lives. The danger is that with a low mood swing it drives to a point of sadness and hopelessness' which could very well be prone to suicide. These mood swings are known as episodes with normal mood in between.

In some cultures there is a social stigma in obtaining psychiatrist treatment and that is a drawback for victims of bipolar disorder who belong to such cultures because they would want to live in denial as much as possible rather than seek psychiatrist help in the early stages. This would create bigger problems as the situation will only worsen when it could have been easily managed earlier.

Most often the behavioral aspects and the experiences involved in bipolar disorder are not usually understood by others nor by mental health professionals' therefore diagnosis is delayed as much as 10 years in some instances. Despite much awareness of this condition' misdiagnosis is still common.

When treating it is important to understand the cultural aspect as treatment would vary according to their culture. It is also important to know the history of the patient and the treatment they are used to in their native countries before prescribing new medication.

It is believed that when depressed Chinese-American patients visit clinics' their emphasis is more on the physical symptoms instead of their depressions as they do not recognize depression as an illness. If you ask different cultures to describe hallucinations' each culture will have a completely different way of describing it. In cultures like India' it is important to involve their family when treating as family is extremely important to their culture.

Response to treatment will vary according to their culture and it is important in a mixed culture like in the U.S.A. to take social and cultural aspects into consideration prior to making a complete diagnosis and treatment is administered.