“Qualified professionals will know if the person really has bipolar disorder. I say this because many people seek informal diagnosis, in sources such as Google, and this can be dangerous, causing her to become increasingly anxious and alert about her problem", he said.
World Bipolar Disorder Day coincides with the Dutch painter's birthday Vincent Van Gogh, who was posthumously diagnosed as a probable carrier of this disorder. According to data from World Health Organization (WHO), Bipolar affective disorder currently affects around 140 million people worldwide.
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This condition causes extreme changes in mood, which can range from periods of euphoria and hyperactivity to periods of deep depression. Research carried out by the National Institute of Mental Health in the United States found that people diagnosed with bipolar disorder have a reduced life expectancy of up to nine years, compared to the general population. As the study also revealed, the suicide rate among individuals with bipolar disorder is about 20 times higher than in the general population.
Treatment
Denis Coelho reported that treatment for patients with the disorder involves psychotherapy, medication or both combined. He explained that within the spectrum of bipolar disorder there are cyclothymic depressions that make diagnosis difficult. Therefore, we do not have a precise idea of how many patients there are with this condition in Brazil, although the country is among those with the highest rates of anxiety and physical and mental exhaustion at work.
In addition to medication and psychotherapy, the person must include lifestyle changes in the treatment, such as practicing physical exercise, having a balanced diet and avoiding the consumption of alcohol and drugs. “I always tell my patients that treatment has biological, mental, social and spiritual aspects. Biological, because it involves taking care of your body comprehensively, with physical exercise and good nutrition; mental, always with good thoughts and trying to have good feelings; social, seeking to maintain good relationships that are not abusive or toxic; and spiritual, in the sense of the person believing in something that can really take them out of an 'exis' situation and into a better condition.” He highlighted that these elements will positively influence the treatment, as they reduce the feeling of stress and anxiety and mood changes, increasing the feeling of pleasure.
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Diagnosis
According to the Ministry of Health, the diagnosis of bipolar disorder is often difficult and can take, on average, ten years to be established due to “wrong treatments, lack of communication between the professionals involved, lack of knowledge about how the disease manifests itself, both be little known due to the confusion of its symptoms with those of other types of depression, in addition to prejudice and self-stigmatization”. The ministry indicates that the individual's history can contribute to the conclusive diagnosis, as previous mood changes, current or past episodes of depression, family history of mood disturbance or suicide and lack of response to treatment with antidepressants signal bipolar disorder.
Repetitive and exaggerated behaviors raise the alarm for bipolar disorder. “When the individual begins to realize that their life is not going as healthily as they would like to be. In other words, when he is experiencing a loss in the functionality of his life, in his way of producing, of relating to friends and family. When the subject himself is the first person to feel that something is not working well”, said the psychologist.
Coelho clarified that extreme variations, such as manias, exaltation, compulsive behaviors, are among the symptoms of this type of disorder: “the person stays awake for hours, or even days; make compulsive purchases; having compulsion to eat or have sex. Any habit or behavior that characterizes exaggeration or compulsion”.
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Another pole is depression, when a person has a drop in mood and productivity. “When these states are out of balance and show exaggerated peak moments, whether of euphoria or depression, they constitute a strong sign that the person should seek help, that is, when these poles are very disparate, the differences are very clear and occur in periods successive. It's usually like this. The patient experiences very strong euphoria and then comes the crash, with depression.”
No cure
The Ministry of Health highlights that bipolar disorder has no cure, but it can be controlled. Adherence to treatment can bring important results, including reducing the chances of recurrence of crises; control of the evolution of the disorder; decreased chances of suicide; reducing the intensity of possible episodes; and promoting a healthier life.
Denis Coelho also drew attention to the need for society to understand that bipolar disorder is a real medical condition, which requires treatment to help control symptoms and improve quality of life.
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(With Brazil Agency)
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