BIPOLAR DISORDERS

BIPOLAR DISORDERS
Bipolar disorder is included in the category of mood disorders. In the previous editions of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders or the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM), this disorder, which was considered with depressive disorders under mood disorder, was evaluated as a separate section from depressive disorders in the latest version. Bipolar disorder, one of the two main types of mood disorders, is also defined as a two-way disorder. Mood disorders are highly associated with suicide, and therefore a detailed explanation of the topic of bipolar disorders will be given in this article.

What is a Mood Disorder?
As is known, the concept of mood refers to the average state of emotions over a certain period of time. Mood disorders are psychological disorders defined by emotional, cognitive, behavioral, and somatic symptoms. (Gurcan Yildirim D. 2022, p.135.). This disorder can also be expressed as a deviation of emotional states from the normal. For example, one of the symptoms of this disorder is that an individual has stressful, depressive thoughts when there is no adverse situation in his life, or vice versa, an individual is full of energy and happy when there is no situation in which to be overly optimistic.

Bipolar Disorder
Bipolar disorder is known as a mental health disorder that changes with extreme fluctuations in emotional states. The most common feature of bipolar disorder is that both depressive and manic or hypomanic episodes occur together. (Gurcan Yildirim D. 2022, p.125). The differences between bipolar disorders are determined according to the characteristics of manic symptoms, that is, the severity and duration of the manic symptom help determine the category of bipolar disorder.

WHAT ARE THE DSM-5 DIAGNOSTIC CRITERIA FOR MANIC AND HYPOMANIC EPISODES?

Manic Episode Diagnostic Criteria

• Symptoms should be seen for at least a week.
• A disorder in an individual's mood leads to a significant deterioration in social and occupational functioning.
• A person with a manic episode may need to undergo inpatient treatment in a hospital.

Hypomanic Episode Diagnostic Criteria

• Symptoms should be seen Decently for at least 4 consecutive days.
• The disorder in the individual's mood is not at a level that will lead to a deterioration in social and occupational functioning.
• This disorder is not severe enough to require hospital treatment.

Symptoms
1. The appearance of increased self-confidence or grandiosity in the individual.
2. The manifestation of a decreased need for sleep.
3. Experiencing an increase in speech.
4. The appearance of flights in thoughts.
5. The individual's experience of distraction.
6. Experiencing increases in goal-oriented behaviors or psychomotor agitation.
7. The person's participation in activities that will have negative consequences. For example, careless driving, and spending a large amount of money on gambling.

o In order for a person to be diagnosed with bipolar disorder, at least 3 of the symptoms must be seen and differ markedly from their usual behavior (Gürcan Yildirim D. 2022, p.126).

Types of Bipolar Disorder
1. Bipolar I Disorder
A person must have had a manic episode at least once in his past life to receive this diagnosis. There are no criteria other than this.

2. Bipolar II Disorder
For a person to receive this diagnosis, he must have experienced a major depressive episode at least once in the past, and, at the same time, he must have experienced a hypomanic episode. An important criterion for this diagnosis is that there should be no manicure episodes in the person's past life.

3. Cyclothymic (Cyclical) Disorder
If this disorder is compared to other bipolar disorders, it manifests itself in a more chronic but less severe way than other disorders. For the diagnosis, it is expected that the person has been experiencing hypomanic and depressive episodes for at least two years. The important point here is that these periods are not severe enough to meet the diagnostic criteria of mania, hypomania, or major depression. The main feature of what is known as a cyclical disorder is the transitions that are constantly being experienced between Deceptive and elevated moods.

Treatment of Bipolar Disorders
There are treatments in both biological and psychological fields. The most commonly used drug in biological treatments is lithium, which helps to regulate mood fluctuations. It is known to regulate depressive and manic symptoms. However, medications such as emotion-regulating drugs, anticonvulsants, antipsychotics, and antidepressants are also used.
In psychological treatments, it is known that the provision of psychoeducation on the subject is of great importance and helps biological treatment. Along with this, the provision of family education also helps the situation.
Finally, interpersonal social rhythm therapy and cognitive behavioral therapy are also used in treatment.

RECOMMENDATIONS
In order to better understand the subject, the life and work of Kay Redfield Jamison, who has completed important studies on bipolar disorder and has also been diagnosed with bipolar disorder, can be reviewed.

BIBLIOGRAPHY
D. Gürcan Yıldırım.(2022). Duygudurum Bozuklukları. Tuna E. ve Ö. Öncül Demir (ed.) DSM-5’ E Göre Anormal psikoloji. (2;102-138). Nobel Yayın Evi.