2023-06-27 10:00:00
Manic depression (bipolar disorder) is a mood disorder characterized by alternating periods of depressed mood (depression) and high mood (mania). Of course, the average person feels different moods several times a day. However, in the case of manic-depressive patients, the degree is more severe.
Bipolar disorder has a worse prognosis than general depressive disorder｜Source: Getty Image Bank
Manic depression, overly excited or extremely depressed
At the onset of mania, the person is in an overly high mood or without any particular reason, elated, full of energy and self-confidence, and talking more than usual. At this time, there are so many words that it is difficult for others to stop talking in the middle. In addition to this, they tend to over-immerse themselves in activities without purpose and meaning, such as social activities, excessive stock investment, or unrealistic businesses, even while thinking a lot and sleeping less. In addition, if things do not go the way they want because they cannot control their emotions, they react sensitively, such as being easily excited and expressing anger. It is often accompanied by deviant behaviors such as sexual promiscuity and delusional disorder.
This kind of phenomenon is called a manic episode, and once it happens, it lasts all day, almost every day for a week or more. Manic-depressive disorder is diagnosed when one or more manic episodes occur as a characteristic symptom. Most people who experience a manic episode also experience major depressive symptoms throughout their lives. When depression appears, they are anxious regarding everything, easily despair, often think regarding death, and show the complete opposite of mania. They often show a tendency to avoid people and are often engulfed in delusions of persecution, such as thinking that people around them are ignoring them and laughing at them.
70% of bipolar disorder stems from depression. Most patients experience both mania and depression, but only 10 to 20% of patients suffer from manic episodes. Although there are individual differences for each patient, on average, a manic episode lasts 5 to 10 weeks, a depressive episode lasts 19 weeks, and a mixed episode in which both manic and depressive episodes last regarding 36 weeks. It is known that the prognosis is poorer than that of general depression.
Higher risk of developing adolescence
The lifetime prevalence of bipolar disorder is regarding 1%, and if you calculate the probability only, 1 in 100 people will experience bipolar disorder at least once in their lives. According to a report released by the National Health Insurance Service in 2021, as of 2020, 1,016,727 patients visited hospitals with mood disorders such as bipolar disorder in the country.
The main age of onset is around the age of 18, but it can occur at any time regardless of age or gender. There are also cases of first onset in the elderly, in their 70s. However, looking at the data from the National Center for Mental Health of the Ministry of Health and Welfare and the Korean Neuropsychiatric Association, 20-32% of patients who experienced their first depression in adolescence were later diagnosed with bipolar disorder. Of patients diagnosed with depression for the first time in early adulthood, only a relatively small 5% to 15% were later diagnosed with bipolar disorder.
Manic-depressive patients who are prone to social isolation need attention and help from those around them
Most people with bipolar disorder experience great difficulties in their daily lives due to their symptoms. Because of this, there are many cases where people lose their social and occupational functions and fall into social isolation. The problem is that people with bipolar disorder often have strong suicidal thoughts. Multiple studies have shown that the risk of suicide in people with bipolar disorder during a depressive episode is 15 times higher than in the general population and 2.5 times higher than in people with simple depression.
In fact, a study published in 2014 by researchers from the Department of Psychiatry at Yale University in the United States found that 25 to 50 percent of bipolar patients attempted suicide. In particular, a survey found that most bipolar patients who attempt suicide attempt suicide for the first time in their teens. The research team said, “When comparing the brain images of manic-depressive patients with brain images of normal people, it was confirmed that there was an abnormality in the hook-shaped bundle of fibers that connects the frontal lobe and the amygdala in the brain of manic-depressive patients.” Errors caused by a weakening of the network of the amygdala and frontal lobe that regulates it seem to be the cause of strong suicidal thoughts in manic-depressive patients.”
This means that a manic-depressive patient who is socially isolated and has no interpersonal relationship is likely to be exposed to suicide risk without receiving any help from those around him. For this reason, family members or relatives should carefully monitor the condition of the manic-depressive patient around them, and if the symptoms worsen acutely and the risk of self-harm increases, appropriate measures such as hospitalization should be taken. In addition, patients with bipolar disorder should keep in mind and be careful that drugs or alcohol prescribed without consulting a specialist can aggravate their symptoms, and try to control their symptoms by themselves through regular sleep, eating, and appropriate exercise. do.
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