{"id":23568,"date":"2012-12-03T12:00:24","date_gmt":"2012-12-03T12:00:24","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/?p=23568"},"modified":"2012-12-03T12:22:02","modified_gmt":"2012-12-03T12:22:02","slug":"5-persistent-myths-about-bipolar-disorder","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/2012\/12\/5-persistent-myths-about-bipolar-disorder\/","title":{"rendered":"5 Persistent Myths about Bipolar Disorder"},"content":{"rendered":"

Bipolar<\/a> disorder is a serious and difficult illness that affects all facets of a person\u2019s life: their education, work, relationships, health and finances, said Julie A. Fast<\/a>, author of several bestselling books on bipolar disorder, including Loving Someone with Bipolar Disorder<\/em> and Take Charge of Bipolar Disorder<\/em>, and a coach who works with partners and families.<\/p>\n

Fast was diagnosed with rapid-cycling bipolar disorder II at 31 years old in 1995, a time when very little was discussed regarding the diagnosis. Fortunately, knowledge and media coverage of bipolar disorder have improved dramatically over the years. \u201cI\u2019m astonished at how much more people know about the illness,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Even TV shows are featuring more accurate portrayals of bipolar disorder. \u201cIn the past, people with bipolar disorder were practically frothing at the mouth,\u201d Fast said. Today, writers and producers make it a point to get it right. Recently, Fast served as one of the advisors on the hit Showtime series \u201cHomeland\u201d and talked with Claire Danes about her character\u2019s bipolar disorder.<\/p>\n

While information has gotten much better, many misconceptions still exist and endure.<\/p>\n

Below, you\u2019ll find five persistent myths about bipolar disorder<\/p>\n

1. Myth: Bipolar disorder and depression<\/a> are completely different diagnoses. <\/strong><\/p>\n

Fact: <\/strong>Bipolar disorder and depression \u2014 also known as unipolar depression \u2014 are not <\/em>completely different illnesses, according to Francis Mondimore, MD, associate clinical director of the Department of Psychiatry at Johns Hopkins. In fact, he believes this is one of the most misunderstood ideas about bipolar disorder. (He blames psychiatrists for the misconception.)<\/p>\n

Patients who believe this myth may oppose the diagnosis \u201cif they don\u2019t have the full-blown \u2018manic<\/a>-depressive\u2019 picture and also resist taking \u201cbipolar\u201d medications<\/a> like lithium,\u201d said Dr. Mondimore, also author of Bipolar Disorder: A Guide for Patients and Families<\/em><\/a>.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s more accurate to think of bipolar disorder and depression as \u201cprobably represent[ing] two ends of a spectrum of illnesses,\u201d he said. \u201cThe designation \u2018bipolar II\u2019 has helped crack this a bit, but this is why the term \u2018bipolar spectrum disorder\u2019 continues to gain ground,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

2. Myth: People with bipolar disorder experience dramatic mood swings followed by complete remission of symptoms. <\/strong><\/p>\n

Fact: <\/strong>Some people with bipolar disorder experience this pattern, Mondimore said. (Lithium is typically very effective for these individuals, he said.) However, \u201cMany patients have periods of residual symptoms and less severe but still significant mood fluctuations between episodes of more severe symptoms,\u201d he said. This is especially common if people don\u2019t engage in healthy habits to manage the illness.<\/p>\n

3. Myth: Medication is the only treatment for bipolar disorder. <\/strong><\/p>\n

Fact: <\/strong>Medication is an important part of managing bipolar disorder. But it\u2019s not the only answer. Viewing medication as your only treatment option \u201ccan lead to fruitless reaches for the \u2018right\u2019 medication,\u201d Mondimore said. And it can lead you to avoid making valuable lifestyle changes and seeking therapy<\/a>, he said.<\/p>\n

As Fast writes on her website, \u201cMedications take care of half of the illness, the other half is management.\u201d<\/p>\n

Both Fast and Mondimore stressed the importance of leading a healthy lifestyle, including avoiding alcohol and drugs, cultivating good sleep<\/a> habits, exercising and effectively coping with stress.<\/p>\n

Fast includes medication and alternative therapies as part of her treatment plan. Still, she cautioned against thinking \u201cthat we can exercise, diet, meditate, walk and rethink our way out of this illness.\u201d (In fact, this is another big myth that persists, Fast said.)<\/p>\n

Think of bipolar disorder like any other long-term illness, such as diabetes and high blood pressure, Mondimore said: It requires commitment and comprehensive management.<\/p>\n

4. Myth: After having a severe episode, people with bipolar disorder should be able to bounce back. <\/strong><\/p>\n

Fact:<\/strong> If a person with bipolar disorder experiences a severe episode \u2014 one that requires hospitalization, for instance \u2014 there\u2019s an expectation that afterward they\u2019ll be able to get back to their work and life, Fast said. However, she equated this scenario to people who\u2019ve been in a car crash. You wouldn\u2019t expect someone with broken bones simply to get up and start sprinting.<\/p>\n

5. Myth: People with bipolar disorder aren\u2019t trying hard enough. <\/strong><\/p>\n

Fact: <\/strong>People wonder why someone with bipolar disorder just doesn\u2019t try harder. They think that if they exert more effort, they\u2019d have the life they want. They wonder why everyone else who experiences mood swings can cope with them but someone with bipolar disorder can\u2019t. Sometimes Fast has even wondered the same thing about herself.<\/p>\n

But this implies that bipolar disorder is a choice, she said. \u201cWould you ever say that to someone with diabetes or pneumonia?\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

People just don\u2019t realize how serious bipolar disorder is, Fast said. Thankfully, though serious, it\u2019s highly treatable. Managing the illness is hard work, and finding the right medication takes time. But as Fast said, \u201cKeep trying. Never give up.\u201d<\/p>\n

________________________<\/p>\n

Margarita Tartakovsky, M.S. is an Associate Editor at Psych Central and blogs regularly about eating and self-image issues on her own blog, Weightless<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n

[Note from Antonio C. S. Rosa, TMS editor:<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

[The above article is accurate. I was treated for this condition for some 17 years while living in Honolulu, Hawai’i – USA (\u201877-\u201894) — the worst period of my life. It disappeared when I changed my lifestyle upon moving to Europe in 1994. I never took Lithium again, the symptoms having disappeared completely.]<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Go to Original \u2013 psychcentral.com<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Bipolar disorder is a serious and difficult illness that affects all facets of a person\u2019s life: their education, work, relationships, health and finances, said Julie A. Fast, author of several bestselling books on bipolar disorder, including Loving Someone with Bipolar Disorder and Take Charge of Bipolar Disorder, and a coach who works with partners and families.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[52],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-23568","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-health"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23568","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=23568"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23568\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=23568"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=23568"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=23568"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}