Some Facts of Manic Depression

Manic depression is an endogenous (based on a hereditary predisposition) mental disease that manifests itself in the following phases (conditions):

• manic;
• depressive;
• mixed.

The patient undergoes a sharp phase change suffering from this disease. A mixed state is characterized by a combination of different symptoms of this disorder. There are a variety of options for this phase. The manic-depressive disorder often takes severe and pronounced forms. It requires mandatory professional therapy.

Who is suffering?

Nowadays, there is no single understanding of boundaries and the definition of this type of mental disorder. This happens due to its pathogenic, clinical, nosological heterogeneity.

Problems in accurately assessing the prevalence of manic depression are due to the diversity of its criteria. So, according to some estimates, the proportion of sick people is about 7%. With a more conservative approach, the figures are 0.5-0.8%, which is 5-8 patients per 1000.

The first signs of such conditions are characteristic of young people. At the age of 25-44, about 46% of patients suffer from this disease. After 55 years, the bipolar disorder occurs in 20% of cases.

This disease is more common in women. Moreover, they are more characteristic of depressive forms.

Very often, patients with manic depression (about 75% of cases) suffer from other mental disorders. This disease is clearly differentiated (distinguished) with schizophrenia. Unlike the latter, manic depression of any severity practically does not lead to personality degradation.

Bipolar disorder in children

This disease in childhood is much less common than, for example, schizophrenia. In this case, most often there are no evident manifestations of manic and depressive attacks.

Manic depression in children over the age of 10 years is quite common. It is most pronounced. In practice, typical cases were noted even in babies 3-4 years of age.

Symptoms

Manic depression is a disease in which a person has a depressive anxiety state. Most often, a sense of anxiety has no foundation.

This disease can be easily distinguished from melancholy. Patients become isolated, speak little, and are extremely reluctant to talk to a doctor. A person with a symptom of anxiety does not tolerate long pauses.

Patients also show various health problems. They appear in the form of a lack of appetite, bradycardia, constipation, weight loss, and chronic insomnia. Such people often generate crazy ideas and express suicidal thoughts.

Severe cases occur in 2 stages:

• loss of control;
• numbness.

In these cases, you need to call an ambulance and hospitalize the patient in a special medical institution.

Treatment

Treatment is mandatorily required. It should be carried out by an experienced specialist since there are frequent cases of remission of this disease. As a rule, MD therapy is carried out in several stages. At the same time the following therapies are conducted:

• medication with special drugs selected individually. With lethargy, agents are prescribed that stimulate activity, and when excited, they calm the nervous system.
• electroconvulsive therapy in combination with special diets and therapeutic fasting.
• mental correction.

Forecast

If the patient has only manic-depressive syndrome without concomitant diseases, the patient responds well to therapy, after a short time, he/she can return to his usual life.

The most effective treatment is when a person visits a specialist after identifying the first signs of bipolar disorder. The neglected forms of this disease can result in irreversible personality changes. In this case, the therapy will be very long and often inconclusive. Manic depression is not a “sentence” for a person. Timely treatment can return the patient to normal life in the vast majority of cases.