Bipolar disorder prohibits people with the disorder from having normal relationships with other people

Abstract
Bipolar disorder is more widely known as maniac depression. It happens in the case of extreme emotional activity which interchanges with depression. And on the other hand there are periods of relatively normal state of mind. Almost every person experienced depression. Sometimes even the most optimistic of us may be out of spirits. Fortunately the majority of people don’t stay in blue mood for long. More serious forms of depression however include such symptoms as disturbance of sleep, sluggishness, changes in appetite and weight. Depressed people lose interest to any activity and don’t feel like doing anything at all. At this time they tend to avoid communication or any kind of relations with people (Ian Stuart-Hamilton, 2002). Even the most optimistic and sociable people can be affected by deep melancholy and become introverts for some time. These symptoms characterize so-called clinical depression which needs special long-lasting treatment.
Bipolar disorder includes episodes of mania – a person is extremely energetic and tends to build ephemeric plans. On the other hand periods of relative sanity may last for several days or even months. Some specialists distinguish two kinds of depression:
? reactive (is caused by certain tragic event);
? endogenous (appears without any significant reason).
I consider it’s important to see difference between these two forms of depression because each of them needs special approach. In order to make terms more clear I’d like to give two examples. If a person is depressed by his unhappy family life, distraction from personal problems will lift his spirits. On the other hand if a person gets depressed in spite of successful life, happy family, support of relatives and absence of visual troubles. In this case medical treatment would be more effective. Psychiatrists help to eliminate misbalance in chemical brain substances. In fact etiology of this illness remains unknown.
Nevertheless I can’t say that these are the main factors which cause depression. Some people never suffer from it whatever happens in their lives. Depression may be primary and secondary. In the first case it is the only characteristic psychological disease. In other cases it is relative to some other mental disorders.
It should be admitted that bipolar disorder has certain peculiarities. Lack of sun for example is supposed to dampen people’s spirits. We often get depressed in winter and recover with the approach of summer. The matter is that if there is relatively few sunlight our brain doesn’t get enough chemical substances which causes depressed state of mind and black thoughts. Artificial light in this case may be helpful to some extent. Different symptoms need different treatment. The first step to haul people out of depression is to find out what influenced their sanity.
Bipolar disorder is close to the problem of suicide. People who are likely to commit suicide tend to be depressed. According to mass media these are usually young people. Nevertheless when true scientific statistics greatly impressed me, in fact the highest level of suicide is shown among elderly men. Moreover people of this age have more chances to succeed in their attempts. Reasons vary according to the situation, as each case of suicide is unique. But I have no doubts that many people trying to commit suicide are not sure they really want to die. These people usually choose the most ineffective methods. They can take an overdose of medicines being not aware that it won’t be an easy death. Some people think they will fall into a deep sleep and die painlessly [Peacock, 2000]. Many suicides however stay in conscience and feel crucial agony. This should be emphasized and taken into consideration.
When bipolar disorder hampers normal relationship with people, suicidal behavior may seem to be a fretful attempt to draw public attention. Personally I think that any suicide is undoubtedly based on more serious reasons. People who are absolutely sure in their actions choose quicker methods. Many of them take measures not to be found and saved. This group of people mainly includes those who suffer from bipolar disorder caused by irresistible pain or incurable disease.
The state of depression is reasonably considered to be negative, while good mood is rarely regarded as a dangerous symptom of psychological disorder. One would never have thought that changeable mood is a reason to worry about mental stability. People suffering from clinical bipolar disorder will sooner or later try to commit suicide.
Bipolar disorder greatly influences the life of people, especially their position in society. The period of depression may spoil relationships, cause misunderstanding, contradiction and even aggression. I’d like to emphasize the gravity of this problem, trace its reasons and consequences. Although medicine achieved certain success in treatment of this disease, doctors should also take into account heredity. People who have relatives with bipolar disorder are ten times more likely to suffer from it themselves. It especially concerns children. Speaking about psychological disorder I can’t help mentioning that children in their early age tend to suffer from depressions very often. It mostly relates to teenagers. At this age young people make first attempts to become independent from parents but often face misunderstanding. And at this very age youngsters tend to be extremely sensitive and vulnerable. Many parents complain about their children being too reserved and gloomy. It is difficult for them to socialize with other people. Psychologists say that these are mostly those who lost mother or father. Children painfully react to parental death especially at early age. Some of them get disappointed in life and are afraid to confide other people (Amy Otis, 2006). If they don’t get help in time, it may lead to unsteady state of mind and serious bipolar disorder.
Some psychologists reckon that family warmth and care protect people from psychological disorders best of all. Besides it is curious to know that state of depression and anxiety more frequently occur in families with problematic relations (Ian Stuart-Hamilton, 2002). For example if family members are not used to eat together or celebrate holidays, children are less communicative. In such a way family tradition to gather in the dining-room for a nice talk turned out to be an effective and simple way to get rid of depression. Rare communication with children destroys inner world of teenagers. Poor family relations cause deviant behavior among children (http://www.emedicine.com/med/). Some of them show more aggression towards other people. Others undergo frequent depressions.
Problems of socializing are also caused by bipolar disorder. Although most people are well informed about theoretical aspects of this illness, few of them know how to overcome it and acquire taste to life. In our fast moving world more and more people feel undergo stress and depression. We often painfully react to life calamities, live in constant stress and as a result our brain becomes exhausted. Afterwards people have no strength to enjoy life. Instead they feel completely out of spirits. This causes problems of socializing, family misunderstanding, spoilt relations with colleagues and friends.
What groups of people usually have bipolar disorder? As I have said, one group is under age children, who have family crisis or some personal troubles. The other group includes typical middle-aged people who already achieved much in life and are bored with it. Still other group consists of those who work much and suffer from stress day after day. It leads to neurosis and apathy. It’s common knowledge that work is more efficient in friendly and peaceful atmosphere around. One is unlikely to succeed if everyone around talks about his problems or just sits with obscure and thoughtful air. People with bipolar disorder suffer from insomnia, disappointment and indifference to life (Peacock, 2000).
A lot of famous people were subjected to depressions. Winston Churchill suffered from episodes of deep depression and compared it with a black dog waiting for a chance to attack. Ernest Hemingway committed suicide in the state of grave psychological disorder. Finally outstanding American politician and President Abraham Lincoln also suffered from depression. Hard forms of this disease make people feel broken-hearted and desperate. My examples show that even legendary people with strong characters were attacked by apathy, hopelessness and everlasting distress.
Bipolar disorder is an enemy of civilization. It affects different sides of human life. I want to draw attention to its influence on human relations. Some people tend to keep anxiety and uneasiness inside, hiding their true feelings. On the other hand many people avenge their troubles on nearest and dearest. They often vent their anger, aggression and dissatisfaction with life on husbands or wives, parents and other relatives. Sometimes absolutely innocent sellers, doctors or casual passersby become victims of such people. There is also an auto aggressive behavior when a person directs his anger against himself. It is often expressed in suicide.
Widely known bipolar depression is investigated by clinical psychiatry. It would be especially useful for those who are deeply interested in this problem. We get to know about various hazardous forms of inner conflicts which lead to the destruction of personality from inside. The more we learn about it the more we try to find a rational way out of this problem. Inner conflicts and conflicts with other people are of similar origin. They are caused by the same psychological disorder and unsteady state of mind. Our psyche is formed in the early years of life. Certain situations threaten inner freedom, feeling of safety and self-confidence. People with bipolar disorder often admit that they used to feel isolated and helpless in their childhood. Some of them lost parents. Others were deprived of love and care which led to estrangement and distrust of other people. As a result such people are likely to show extreme susceptibility and hostile strain in personal relationships. Their behavior in society may be careful or even hateful. Sometimes they feel inner necessity in such kind of behavior. In this way I think that psychiatrists should help such patients to renew system of values.
Speaking about treatment of bipolar disorder I’d like to say that it depends on the stage of illness in the first place. I want to draw attention to the problem of teenage depressions (Bipolar disorder in children and teens, 2004). In order to help them to overcome depression, it’s important to engage not only specialists, but family members and teachers as well. Traditional treatment usually starts with antidepressant therapy. Teenage depression in major cases affects the entire family. In this way I would suggest to visit psychiatrist together with parents. Family support will be especially helpful. There are also group sessions which are used depending on the situation. Such sessions help teenagers to understand that they are not alone and there are other people who have even more serious problems (Spearing, 2002). It is the main advantage of group therapy. It makes difficult teenagers more sociable, self-confident and leads to their quick recovery.
There are several kinds of individual treatment:
? Cognitive behavioral therapy. It helps to eliminate wrong understanding and perception of a person. It gives positive results as an effective treatment of both teenagers and adult people. This method helps to cope with stress and life calamities which usually cause depressive state of mind.
? Another therapy is known as interpersonal. It is based on different ideas. It mainly focuses on social relations of people with bipolar disorder. Different people act differently in society. Most teenagers are inclined to depressions. As a result they are often indifferent and apathetic towards people around. It creates obstacles for their normal development. That’s why a lot of specialists use interpersonal therapy which is supposed to improve social relations and haul patients out of psychological disorder. It helps to understand true value of family ties and friendship.
? The most serious treatment is shock therapy. But this method is used in case of continuous bipolar disorder which is hard to cure. Besides this therapy includes using antidepressants. That’s why it should be used carefully. I would not recommend to teenagers.
As my topic deals more with social factor of bipolar disorder I’d like to draw readers’ attention to certain social affects. I must admit that not only depressed people find themselves in unpleasant social situations. People around them also suffer. Teenagers for example often face misunderstanding with their parents. Teenagers are likely to behave aggressively in public. Such tendency makes parents confused. Most parents don’t see reasons for such behavior and usually understand it as poor up-bringing or simple disobedience. Children may also feel depressed if they feel themselves abandoned by everyone and parents in particular. It often takes place when children have brothers or sisters. Sometimes a child feels envy to their brother whom parents seem to pay more attention. Moreover depressed children are often “rara avis” at school. They don’t socialize with other children and in some cases show aggression towards their classmates. Such tendency is often disregarded by teachers. Few of them pay attention to psychological state of pupils. They don’t recognize depressions and inner worries of children. As a result children grow reserved and gloomy. I consider it to be a serious blunder of education. My research is an appeal to improve the situation.
In conclusion I’d like to say that bipolar disorder is still being investigated by specialists all over the world. In XIX century for instance scientists found out that cerebral stroke in the left side of brain causes depressed mood. On the contrary if it’s in the right side a person feels euphoria and sometimes inadequate behavior. It denotes brain connection between positive and negative emotions. Main symptom of bipolar disorder is abnormality of mood and affect. Mood is characterized by inner emotional state, while affect is its external manifestation. Finally I’d like to sum up most important points concerning bipolar disorder:
? People with bipolar disorder are indifferent to life.
? Maniac depression is hard to overcome alone. A person susceptible to emotional distress should feel support and care of parents.
? People suffering from depressions have poor thinking and disability to concentrate on work and learning.
? They find it difficult to contact with other people and mostly tend to live in solitude. Sometimes dissatisfaction with life and society reveals in aggressive behavior towards other people.
Personally I consider that the most helpful method to overcome depression is to feel that you’re not all alone. All of us have a fit of depression from time to time. That’s why in order to prevent unreasonable depressions we should remember that there are people who love us and care about our emotional health.

References
Peacock, Judith. Bipolar Disorder. Mankato, Minnesota: Capstone P, 2000.
Spearing, Melissa. Bipolar Disorder. National Institute of Mental Health. 2002.
Bipolar Disorder in Children and Teens. American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry. July 2004.
E-medicine. Bipolar Affective Disorder. Oct., 2006. http://www.emedicine.com/med/topic229.htm
Ian Stuart-Hamilton. Key Ideas in Psychology. Bipolar disorder. Jessica Kingsley Publishers: London and Philadelphia, 2002.
Amy Otis. Bipolar Disorder Today. Children and Teenagers, 2006. http://www.mental-health-today.com/bp/art.htm