Bipolar Brain Chemistry

1376 Words3 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Chapter 14 central nervous system

Bipolar Brain Chemistry The central nervous system is a collection of cells within the brain specialized to send specific signals throughout the body in order to relay the messages necessary for proper functioning. The way these cells, also called neurons, communicate with one another is through the process of releasing neurotransmitters. A balanced proportion of neurotransmitters are crucial for a healthy functioning mind. In situations where the neurotransmitters get out of sync by becoming too prevalent or sparse within the synaptic clefts, a wide spectrum of mental illness can be the result. Manic-Depression, also known as Bipolar disorder, is an example of the malfunctioning neurons responsible for the regulation of certain neurotransmitters. Through a critical analysis of this glitch in the system, one can attempt to further understand one aspect of the bipolar brain, as well as understand how certain medications may work to alleviate symptoms. In order to understand the effects of said malfunctions, it is vital to brief crash course in what it means to be bipolar. This disorder is typically characterized by periods of intense mania, followed closely by deep, unadulterated depression with “mixed” periods sprinkled throughout. Manic periods are characterized by intense feelings of euphoria. This may seem like a positive, however these phases typically lead to bouts of impaired judgment. Behaviors can become grandiose in nature and look extremely hyperactive. The person may have raised libido, want to stay up all night, and exhibit overall decreased inhibition. The depression that follows these bouts of ecstasy comes quickly, and they are both dark and unforgiving. Individuals with bipolar disorder lack a middle groun... ... middle of paper ... ... Philippe Huguelet, Linda E. Ohl, Robert A. Koeppe, Michael R. Kilbourn, Jodie M. Carr, Bruno J. Giordani, Kirk A. Frey (2000) High vesicular monoamine transporter binding in asymptomatic bipolar I disorder: Sex Differences and Cognitive Correlates. American Journal of Psychiatry. (Vol. 157, pp. 1619-1628). McEwen, B. (1999). Stress and hippocampal plasticity. (Vol. 22, pp. 105-122). New York,NY: Harold and Margaret Milliken Hatch Laboratory of Neuroendocrinology, The Rockefeller University. Retrieved from http://www.annualreviews.org/doi/abs/10.1146/annurev.neuro.22.1.105 Purse, Â. M. (n.d.). Mood Stabilizers Medications for Bipolar Disorder - What Are Mood Stabilizers. Bipolar Disorder Symptoms, Diagnosis, Medications, Treatment - Coping With Bipolar Disorder. Retrieved April 10, 2014, from http://bipolar.about.com/od/moodstabilizers/a/moodstabilizers.htm

Show More
Related

  • A Paper on Bipolar Disorder

    1236 Words  | 3 Pages

    I have chosen to do a paper on Bipolar Disorder. Bipolar is a disorder in when a person’s mood inappropriately alternates between feelings of mania and depression. A bipolar mania is a mental illness classified by psychiatry as a mood disorder. Also individuals with bipolar disorder experience episodes of an elevated or agitated mood known as mania or hypomania, depending on the severity alternating with episodes of depression.

    Read More

  • Dealing with My Bipolar Sister

    1539 Words  | 4 Pages

    Bipolar is a disorder that involves the brain, to what extent is still unclear. Bipolar disorder was, and sometimes still is, called Manic Depression. A person with bipolar disorder will experience clinical depre...

    Read More

  • Categories of Bipolar Disorder

    2518 Words  | 6 Pages

    Bipolar Disorder (Formerly known as Manic Depression) is a mental illness linked to alterations in moods such as mood swings, mania, and depression. There is more than one type, Bipolar I and Bipolar II, and the subcategories are divided by the severity of the symptoms seen, such as cyclothymic disorder, seasonal mood changes, rapid cycling disorder and psychosis. Age of onset usually occurs between 15-30 years old with an average onset of 25 years old but it can affect all ages. (Harvard Medical School; Massachusetts General Hospital , 2013) Bipolar disorder affects more than two million people in the United States every year. (Gardner, 2011)

    Read More

  • Silver Linings Playbooks by David O. Russell

    2568 Words  | 6 Pages

    Geddes, J. R., & Miklowitz, D. J. (2013). Treatment of Bipolar Disorder. The Lancet, 381(9878), 1672-1682. doi: 10.1016/S0140-6736(13)60857-0

    Read More

  • Psychiatric Evaluation and Diagnosis of Virginia Woolf

    773 Words  | 2 Pages

    Bipolar disorder is a lifelong mood disorder characterized by periods of mania, depression, or a mixed manic-depressive state. The condition can seriously affect a person’s reasoning, understanding, awareness, and behavior. Acco...

    Read More

  • Bipolar Disorder

    1909 Words  | 4 Pages

    The severe mood fluctuations of bipolar or manic-depressive disorders have been around since the 16-century and affect little more than 2% of the population in both sexes, all races, and all parts of the world (Harmon 3). Researchers think that the cause is genetic, but it is still unknown. The one fact of which we are painfully aware of is that bipolar disorder severely undermines its victims ability to obtain and maintain social and occupational success. Because the symptoms of bipolar disorder are so debilitation, it is crucial that we search for possible treatments and cures.

    Read More

  • Abnormal Psychology

    845 Words  | 2 Pages

    Hopkins, H.S. and Gelenberg, A.J. (1994). Treatment of Bipolar Disorder: How Far Have We Come? Psychopharmacology Bulletin. 30 (1): 27-38.

    Read More

  • Causes of Bipolar Disorder and Prevalence

    1228 Words  | 3 Pages

    This paper will discuss bipolar disease and is also called manic-depressive illness. It will discuss the causes and prevalence of bipolar disease. It will also discuss the signs of symptoms of the disease. The diagnosis and treatment of bipolar will be discussed. Several studies are included in this paper.

    Read More

  • The Effect Stress Has on Working Memory

    756 Words  | 2 Pages

    Stress has been said to impair response inhibition and working memory. Mika, Mazur, Hoffman, Talboom, Bimonet-Nelson, Sanabria and Conrad (2012) examined what effects chronic restraint stress had on response inhibition and working memory. The researchers hypothesized that stress reduces the response inhibition capacity and impairs working memory. They measured the response inhibition capacity with a response-withholding task known as the FMI, fixed-minimum interval schedule of reinforcement. The researchers measured working memory by using a radial arm water maze, RAWM. In this study, adults male Sprague-Dawley rats were trained on the RAWM and then on the FMI. In order to study the affects of stress, the rats were divided into a restraint stress condition or a control condition. The researchers manipulated the stress condition by either placing the control condition rats in their natural cages and the restraint stress condition rats in a wire mesh restrainer. After the chronic stress was administered, the rats were tested on FMI and on RAWM. The findings of the study supported the researchers hypothesis; chronic stress did impair both response inhibition ...

    Read More

  • Mood Disorder

    1671 Words  | 4 Pages

    According to Dinsmoor, R. S. & Odle, T. G. (2009), bipolar depression refers to a condition in which people experience two extremes in mood. The bipolar spectrum includes; bipolar I, bipolar 2, bipolar NOS (not otherwise specified) and cyclothymia and all are related to disturbances in mood but differ in severity of symptoms. They are differentiated by the “impact the symptoms have on the person’s social or occupational function” (Duckworth & Sachs 2011). Typically bipolar I is more severe than bipolar II and bipolar II is more severe than Cyclothymia, which is a more chronic unstable mood state in which the “highs...

    Read More

  • Bipolar Disorder

    2616 Words  | 6 Pages

    Bipolar disorder is the condition in which one’s mood switches from periods of extreme highs known as manias to periods of extreme lows known as depression. The name bipolar comes from the root words bi (meaning two) and polar (meaning opposite) (Peacock, 2000). Though often bipolar disorder is developed in a person’s late teens to early adulthood; bipolar disorder’s early symptoms can sometimes be found in young children or may develop later on in life (National Institutes of, 2008). Bipolar disorder has been found to affect both men and women equally. Currently the exact cause of bipolar disorder is not yet known, however it has been found to occur most often in the relatives of people diagnosed with bipolar disorder (National Center for, 2010).

    Read More

  • Pat Solitano

    687 Words  | 2 Pages

    In order to be diagnosed with bipolar disorder, the patient must have experienced at least one manic episode. The patient’s manic episodes meet the criteria in multiple ways. The patient’s elevated self-esteem, or grandiosity, can be seen when he views himself as more intellectual than parts of his family because of the literature he reads. This can also be seen when the patient views himself as superior to his love interest, Tiffany, because his sex life has not been as promiscuous as hers. The patient has demonstrated a decreased need for sleep as he stays awake until 3:00AM consistently and wakes up early with plenty of energy to exercise. Increased talkativeness is also present in the patient’s behavior causing many conversations to be very rushed and one-sided. The patient’s stream of thoughts and conversations are often racing. Increased distractibility also affects the patient causing him to interrupt others only to change the subject to whatever topic has gained his interest. Finally, the patient demonstrates increased goal-directed activity. These activities include the following: creating an extensive reading list and accomplishing it in a very limited amount of time, establishing a demanding workout routine, attempting to find the “silver lining” in all experiences, and learning a

    Read More

  • Silver Linings Playbook Movie Analysis

    1093 Words  | 3 Pages

    Bipolar Disorder is the tendency of manic episodes to alternate with major depressive episodes, like a roller coaster. Barlow, D., Durand, M., Stewart, S., & Lalumière, M., 2014, p. 222. Their moods and relationships are unstable and they usually have a very poor self image, recurrent feelings of emptiness and fear of abandonment. Barlow, D., Durand, M., Stewart, S., & Lalumière, M., 2014, p. 444.

    Read More

  • Mental Illness In The Brain

    748 Words  | 2 Pages

    I've always had complicated feelings about mental illnesses. It isn't necessarily something I would think about too much, but that the fact that I was lectured plenty of times on depression, ocd, bipolar disorder etc., but I was never taught on why it occurs. Why does people become such a different person? Most importantly, why does it occur? Mental illness is probably one of the most misunderstood illness, in terms of . At one time it was an illness that no one would dare talk about. It was an illness to be ashamed of and many patients were secretive about them. But now, things have changed and there is more research done and a much greater understanding. Research for mental illnesses are still quite limited simply because of the brain’s complexity. The brain may well be our body's most mysterious organ. Extremely fascinating, and an intensive study topic, we're left wondering: What exactly does the brain do and how? Despite years of intensive research, along with impressive technological advances, answers to many of our questions about the brain are still distant. The reason is quite simple: the brain contains more than ten billion cells interacting with each other through many connections ("Neuroscience Introductory"). It can be thought of as the total human population on Earth and all their interactions with each other. Imagine how much interactions there are among 10 billion different cells and how hard it is to find

    Read More

  • The Main Cause of Mental Illness

    1030 Words  | 3 Pages

    In some cases the causes of mental illness primarily found inside the individual. Some of them have been associated with an abnormal balance of neurotransmitters in the brain. If they are out of balance the communication between nerve cell in the brain disrupted (Royal Australian and New Zealand College of psychiatrist, 2005). Hence, leading to symptoms of mental illness like depression, schizophrenia. On the other hand, genetics also plays a significant role to acquire mental disorder, which is passed...

    Read More

More about Bipolar Brain Chemistry

Open Document