1. Antidepressant Medication
Antidepressant medications are designed to treat the depressive symptoms of bipolar disorders. Persons during the depression state of bipolar disorder may experience sluggishness or even thoughts of suicide. Antidepressant medications may take as long as a month to be effective, yet these drugs have been effective in treating the depressive phase.
Serotonin reuptake inhibitors are the most popular antidepressant medications. These drugs treat bipolar disorder by limiting the amount of the neurotransmitter serotonin that is available in the brain. If these drugs do not curb symptoms through careful monitoring of dosages, there is a wide range for a doctor to choose from. It is important not to stop taking these medications without a doctor's supervision.
2. Mood Stabilizing Medications
It is important to stabilize the mood of a person with bipolar disorder. A person in the manic phase of bipolar disorder may experience racing thoughts, agitation and anxiety. Mood stabilizing medications can reduce the anxiety and calm the person during the manic phase. More importantly, these medications can also keep a manic phase from becoming uncontrollable.
Lithium was the first drug developed specifically for bipolar disorder and is the most well-known. It works by stabilizing both the manic and depressive stages, bringing a person back to normalized range of function. Persons who take lithium need to have frequent blood tests to make certain that it is being prescribed in the correct dosage.
3. Seizure Medications
Some seizure medications used to treat Parkinson's disease or epilepsy have shown some success in treating bipolar disorder. These medications may improve agitation and allow a person to think more clearly on a daily basis. It appears that these drugs work with nerve centers in the brain that can slow down or minimize excessive activity, thus reducing the duration of a manic phase of bipolar disorder. In addition, these drugs can stabilize mood similar to using lithium. These medications may be combined with other drugs to treat several symptoms at one time.
4. Antipsychotic Medications
Since the possibility of delusions or hearing voices exists in some persons with bipolar disorder, antipsychotic medications may help treat it. Some of these medications have been previously successful in treating serious psychiatric disorders like schizophrenia. These medications generally work by restoring the balance of neurotransmitters in the brain that can affect bipolar disorder. These medications may also be prescribed if anticonvulsant and mood stabilizing drugs are ineffective. Bipolar disorder is notoriously difficult to treat even with proper medications, so one should not be surprised if several medications are needed to achieve balance.
