Symptoms and Treatment of Manic Depression

Manic depression, also known as bipolar depression, is a serious condition affecting people’s mental health.

Characterized by sudden and extreme changes in their mood, Manic depression is said to be called as such because manic = mania refers to the ‘ups’ while depression refers to the ‘downs’. A lot of people actually experience erratic changes in their moods, some times, these so-called mood swings may not just be caused by PMS (pre-menstrual syndrome) or stress. Doctors actually have diagnosed mood swings as a common symptom of depression.

The classical symptoms of manic depression are extreme mood swings to the point of absurdity. These extreme feelings may show up as incongruously excessive irritability at very slight stimuli. Take for example, a person orders a certain ice cream flavor and mistakenly gets served with another flavor. The person afflicted with manic depression will exhibit extreme over-reaction in the form of throwing a colossal tantrum and directing horrendously abusive language at the ice cream vendor. This type of exaggerated reaction cannot be explained as mere acting up of a spoiled brat. These are definite manifestations of manic depression. The manic stage is characterized by periods of excessive energy, liveliness, exuberance, racing thoughts, and irritability. The manic stage may be as short as one day or longer than seven days.

The periods of depression, on the opposite end of the emotional spectrum, would present similar characteristics to that of clinical depression. The person goes through extreme feelings of sadness, despondency, worthlessness, enmity, guilt, and despair. Some might even have panic attacks or a sudden indifference to activities that used to give him a lot of enjoyment. Once a person experiences periods of depression that last for more than a week, and likewise exhibits episodes of mania, he will be diagnosed by a therapist as being afflicted with manic depression.

In spite of being one of the most common, yet severe type of depressive disorder, Manic depression, according to doctors can actually be treated. There’s no reason to worry too much about it, just follow the proper procedures that the therapist will instruct you to do, take the proper prescribed medications as well as the proper dosage in order to help you (or your friend or love one) overcome Manic depression before it becomes too late. Also, individuals who are suffering from Manic depression should always be able to see their therapists on a regular basis so as to be able to release their pent up emotions to some one who can interpret and understand what they’re going to a lot better as compared to “normal” people.

There have also been some encouraging results from the use of natural alternative treatment modalities on manic depression. However, the widely preferred treatment for this condition is still cognitive behavioral therapy from trained psychiatrists. These health professionals remain the most reputable and knowledgeable experts in treating manic depression.

The author is a multifaceted writer. She creates articles for a number of topics such as marriage and relationship advices, great deals on massage equipment and hand massagers, family and parenting concerns, fashion and beauty tips and a lot more.

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