Bipolar Disorder Treatment Overview

Bipolar disorder is a highly treatable medical condition. The usual treatments for manic depression involve a combination of medication and therapy. Because bipolar disorder affects people differently, there is no single treatment that will effectively treat everyone. Bipolar disorder is often treated with a mood-stabilizing medication and an antidepressant. The doctor will determine what medication is best to treat the symptoms that the patient is experiencing. The patient’s reaction to the medication is closely monitored to judge its effectiveness.

It is usually up to the individual to decide which therapeutic approach will be most beneficial to them. There are four main therapeutic approaches used to treat bipolar disorder. These include cognitive therapy, behavioral therapy, interpersonal therapy, and social rhythm therapy. Behavioral therapy helps the person with bipolar disorder by helping the person to increase behavior that help reduce stress and decreasing behavior that causes stress. Interpersonal therapy is focused on improving the person’s relationships. Interpersonal therapy can include family therapy. Social rhythm therapy encourages the individual to build quality interpersonal relationships and develop healthy, daily routines to help minimize stress.

Cognitive therapy is what people usually think of when they hear the word therapy. It involves identifying and talking about your thoughts and feelings. Throughout a person’s life, they develop patterns of thinking. It may be helpful for someone with bipolar disorder to take a look at their own thought patterns as these patterns often affect a person’s mood. For example, if people with bipolar disorder tend to put themselves down whenever anything bad happens to them, they may find themselves feeding thoughts of worthlessness and guilt, which can trigger a depressive episode. If they learn to control and change their thought patterns, they may be able to avoid some depressive episodes or limit the severity and duration of the episodes when they do happen.

Support groups can be a helpful part of treatment. By attending a support group, the person with bipolar disorder can share their experiences with bipolar disorder with peers who understand what it is like to live with the disorder. There are additional therapy methods available in a hospital or treatment program that might not be readily available to those who are not in such a treatment program. Group therapy, psychodrama, and art therapy are examples of some additional therapeutic activities that are usually only available in hospitals or treatment centers.

It is critical for the person with bipolar disorder to accept that bipolar disorder is a generally a lifelong condition. Although the individual may experience a time when the disorder is in remission, the risk of the symptoms reemerging is great. Often, people with manic depression will neglect their treatment once they feel better. When they are stabilized on the medication, they mistake the effective control of the symptoms by the medication as a remission of the disorder. When they go off the medication, the symptoms are likely to reoccur. Therefore, the bipolar patient must continue using the pharmacological and psychotherapeutic techniques that helped them even when they feel better.

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