Bipolar disorder is characterized by mood instability marked with periods of mania and depression. According to Dr. Annette Lansford, a clinical professor of pediatrics at the University of Illinois School of Medicine, bipolar disorder affects one...
Bipolar disorder, also known as bipolar affective disorder and manic depression, is a lifelong mental illness. The condition is characterized by mood swings that go from extreme euphoria and excitability to periods of deep depression and sadness....
The medication divalproex sodium treats manic or mixed episodes associated with bipolar disorder. This medication can reduce the frequency and severity of these episodes, but also may cause serious medical complications. People who wish to take...
Patients who have bipolar disorder have symptoms of both depression and mania. Depression causes sadness, a lack of energy and changes in appetite, while mania causes euphoria, impulsive behaviors and reduced need for sleep. These symptoms can...
Bipolar disorder is a psychiatric condition that includes major shifts in energy and mood. The severe shifts can make it difficult to maintain a functioning lifestyle. Medictions can help minimize they symptoms and make it easier to cope with this...
The American Association of Family Physicians estimates that 1 percent of the U.S. population will meet the criteria for a diagnosis of bipolar disorder during their lifetime. That's about one-sixth the rate of depression. The average age at...
If you have bipolar disorder, a mental illness characterized by mood swings that fluctuate from depression to mania, you may turn to alternative treatments to reduce the amount of prescription medication you need to take. Many of the medications...
Bipolar disorder, which typically strikes during the teen and adult years, is a complex mental health condition. Drastic changes in mood and activity level are the hallmarks of bipolar disorder, formerly called manic-depressive illness. Many...
Although medication can effectively treat the symptoms of bipolar disorder, many bipolar medications may cause side effects. Many of these side effects may be temporary and can diminish or disappear as the body adjusts to the medication, but some...
Children with bipolar disorder are often treated with medication to control their symptoms. According to Robert Weis in "Introduction to Child and Adolescent Psychology," medication is the first step in treatment and a way to minimize mania in...
Bipolar medications are used to treat individuals with a diagnosis of a bipolar disorder and are notorious for their side effect of weight gain. Since significant weight gain can bring on its own gamut of issues, finding a bipolar medication that...
Bipolar disorder is a mood disorder characterized by cycles of manic and depressive episodes. Bipolar is a difficult condition that affects all parts of one's life and can have dangerous and long-term consequences. Many medications are available...
Bipolar disorder, also called manic depression, causes extreme mood swings in the form of manic episodes (extremely excited moods) alternating with depressive episodes (hopeless, sad moods). When depression and mania occur together, it's called a...
Medication should be the first line of treatment for any child with bipolar disorder, according to the Child & Adolescent Bipolar Disorder. Because of a lack of controlled studies, the U.S. Food & Drug Administration has only approved a...
Bipolar disorder, also known as manic depression, is serious brain illness. While most people with bipolar disorder develop the condition in their late teens or early adulthood, it can affect children. According to the Child & Adolescent...
Bipolar disorders, brain disorders associated with mood swings that can be severe, are common in women of childbearing age. Medications are required to keep symptoms of bipolar disorders at bay, but many bipolar medications have side effects...
Patients with bipolar disorder cycle between mood extremes--- extreme lows (depression) and highs (mania). Medication is used to minimize mood swings, the severity of symptoms and help patients maintain a normal mood. Lithium, anticonvulsants and...
There are almost 6 million Americans aged 18 and older who are affected by bipolar disorder, according to the National Institute of Mental Health. Bipolar disorder is also called manic-depressive disorder because it causes shifts in mood between...
Most people with bipolar disorder need medication to manage their moods and prevent relapse, according to HelpGuide.org. But many people with bipolar disorder quit taking medication when they start feeling better. Others may stop because of side...
A mood disorder that causes patients to cycle through high and low moods, bipolar disorder affects 5.7 million American adults, according to the National Institute of Mental Health. Medications for bipolar disorder diminish the severity of...
Bipolar disorder, or manic depression, is a mood disorder composed of alternating periods of depression and mania. Medications for bipolar disorder help to stabilize mood by reducing the number of manic, hypomanic, depressive and mixed episodes....
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...
Bipolar disorder is classified into subcategories that are dependent on the type of episode, manic or depressive, its severity and rate of recurrence. The "Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders" classifies persons with bipolar...
Bipolar II disorder is the second type of bipolar disorder, according to the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Patients diagnosed with bipolar II disorder have depression and hypomania symptoms; hypomania is a lesser form of mania, which is...
Bipolar disorder is a mood disorder where patients cycle between depression and mania, according to the National Institutes of Health. The treatment a patient needs to control her bipolar disorder symptoms is dependent on the type of bipolar...
Mood stabilizers are the most popular treatment for sufferers of bipolar disorder. These medications help stabilize the patient's mood to prevent them from "cycling," or having the shifts from manic to depression that define the disease....
According to Mark Dombeck, Ph.D., bipolar disorder is a recurrent condition affecting 2 million Americans. Its onset is typically around the age of 20, and 60 to 70 percent of manic episodes occur either before or after an episode of depression....
Bipolar disorder is often referred to as manic depression or manic-depressive personality disorder. People with this disorder experience severe mood swings. Everyone has highs and lows, but bipolar disorder personalities experience erratic mood...
Bipolar disorder is a mental condition that is characterized by mood changes alternating from depression to euphoria or agitation. It was previously called "manic depression" and most frequently appears during the late teen or early adulthood...
Mania, depression, recklessness and listlessness are the extremes associated with bipolar disorder, a mental illness characterized by mood instability that can be serious and disabling. Bipolar disorder is also known as manic-depression or...
