Bipolar Treatment: Keeping the Stress Level Down
Bipolar disorder is an illness that involves a person jumping back and forth from intense sadness to intense happiness. These jumps occur on a regular basis.
This mental disorder is a very serious condition where a patient must undergo treatment as soon as possible. The worst thing that can happen to a bipolar patient is to commit suicide. Documented cases of bipolar-related suicides show that those people were in the early stages of the illness when they committed suicide. It directly implies the immediate need of treatment.
The most used medication is lithium. This stabilizes the mood of a patient quite well. There are, however, people that dislike this method because of all the side-effects. Gaining some pounds, constant thirst and trembling hands are some of the many side-effects that come from using lithium.
Other options include anticonvulsants and other drugs such as olanzapine, aripriprazole and modafinil, among others. These drugs have been found to help with the illness without the side-effects of the lithium. DO not expect them to be as effective at healing the disorder as the lithium though.
There are alternatives to lithium. These include anti-convulsants drugs like olanzapine, modafinil, and aripriprazole. These drugs are known to help cope with the mental illness without the known side-effects of lithium. The downside is, these drugs are less potent or effective compared to lithium.
Since the bipolar is a mental illness, medication is more effective when supplemented with psychotherapy. A combination of a good psychologist and medication significantly improves the condition of a bipolar patient.
There are also relaxation methods that have been proved to work as well. Activities like acupuncture and yoga are good ways to calm a person down. Keep in mind, though, that the people with cases that need only relaxation to heal them are very lucky. Many bipolar people really need the medication to get by.