All types of bipolar disorder are treatable, and motivated patients are often able to manage the disorder with minimal to moderate negative impact on their daily lives. However, untreated mood episodes of bipolar disorder have a severe negative impact in every domain of life including the family system.
Damaged Emotional Ties
Although manic episodes do not manifest in all patients as verbal abuse, some patients do become verbally abusive, creating a history of emotional damage in the family. Depression episodes may also cause other family members to feel neglected.
Financial Problems
Financial problems often arise from either manic episodes, which include excessive spending, and from depressive episodes where the patient will fail to meet the responsibilities of his job. The combination of uninhibited spending and impaired job functioning are a recipe for financial disaster for the entire family.
Communication Problems
The unpredictability of mood swings often leaves family members feeling unable to communicate with the patient. With a history of being overly sensitive during manic episodes and uncaring during depressive episodes, family members learn to avoid communication at all---as it always seems to lead to further misunderstandings and conflicts.
Compensatory Problems
Family members often learn to compensate for the duties and responsibilities neglected by the ill person. Over time, these extra efforts often leave the family feeling overburdened and mistreated. The ill person may, in response, begin to feel guilt or shame. Frequently this leads to an increase in overall anger and division in the family.
Problems Associated with Chronic Stress
With stress as a part of the daily functioning of the family, all the problems that accompany stress frequently manifest in all members of the family. Emotional problems such as acting-out behaviors, insomnia, substance abuse, addictive patterns, chronic anger and even aggression are often found in these family members. Physical signs of chronic stress, such as insomnia and high blood pressure, are also seen in these family members.
Family Stability Problems
A functioning family is attentive and responsive to all its members' needs. With an imbalance of this type dominating the family, the entire family as a system can become unstable. This instability affects all the family members, including the mentally ill person---creating a higher risk of relapse.
Parenting Problems
Untreated bipolar disorder creates an especially negative impact on children in a family. Childhood experiences lay the foundation for our lifelong beliefs and thinking patterns. The stress and stability problems of this type of family often give children a distorted view of relationships and families, leaving them at risk of developing unhealthy intimate and family relationships as adults.
References
- "Family environment in families with versus families without parental bipolar disorder: a preliminary comparison study." In Bipolar Disorder: 7: 617-622. Soledad Romero et. al.;2005.
- The Bipolar Disorder Survival Guide: What You and Your Family Need to Know; David J. Miklowitz; 2002.
- Surviving Manic Depression: A Manual on Bipolar Disorder for Patients, Families and Providers; E. Fuller Torrey M.D. and Michael B. Knable D.O.; 2005.
