Bipolar Disorder Is Like Having Two Serious Illnesses at Once | Nicole Foubister | Big Think

Bipolar Disorder Is Like Having Two Serious Illnesses at Once
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Big Think and the Mental Health Channel are proud to present Big Thinkers on Mental Health, a new series dedicated to open discussion of anxiety, depression, and the many other psychological disorders that affect millions worldwide.

This week, psychiatrist Nicole Foubister delves into the world of bipolar disorder. Most people are casually familiar with bipolar disorder, although few understand the colossal strain it can have on the lives of sufferers and their loved ones. It's vital for people diagnosed as bipolar to open themselves up to treatment and for people close to them to be aware of the illness' ramifications. What's most important is to understand that no one chooses to be bipolar; you must learn to be calm and patient with people who suffer from it. It's not their fault that they lack mental wellness and their behavior during manic episodes is not reflective of who they really are.
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NICOLE FOUBSITER:

Dr. Nicole Foubister is a professional psychiatrist with a background in child, adolescent and adult psychiatry, as well as board certified forensic psychiatrist. She is currently on faculty at NYU School of Medicine and has been an attending psychiatrist at the NYU Medical Center, where she served three years as the Director of the Young Adult Unit. Dr. Foubister has extensive experience in the evaluation and treatment of many areas of concern including but not limited to anxiety, OCD, depression, attentional disorders, acting out behaviors as well as issues concerning relationships, career and identity.
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TRANSCRIPT:

Nicole Foubister: Bipolar disorder can have lots of effects on a person's day-to day functioning. So, for instance, again, in the middle of an episode of either mania or depression, people who are manic will often do things that are really impulsive and really out of character. And so issues of infidelity can come up, for instance, in a patient with mania who's having a sexual partner or sexual partners outside of the relationship in the midst of a manic episode. People will often spend money that they really can't afford to spend in the midst of a manic episode, which you can imagine will cause a lot of strain for them personally, but also in the context of their families. People in the midst of mania often don't appear to be logical and so they will go to work and will have lots of irritability. And you can imagine, again, that coworkers are confused; bosses are confused; and especially if they don't understand a lot about the illness it can affect their work relationships and their ability to maintain their employment.

You can imagine that if it's hard to get up out of bed and even go to the supermarket and get your groceries for the day that it can be very difficult to go to work and get all the things that you need to get done either in your work life or in your personal life. People will report guilt or sometimes feeling like they're worthless. People will also report that they feel like they're either kind of moving in slow motion, which is known as psychomotor retardation. And occasionally will people report that they actually feel jittery, which is known as psychomotor agitation. In addition, people will report disturbances in their sleep, which are most commonly insomnia. So either difficulty falling asleep, waking up in the middle of the night, or waking up earlier in the morning than one intends to. Occasionally this can be hypersomnia though where people are sleeping, for instance, 10, 12, 13, 14, or more hours per day.

Patients with bipolar disorder often are resistant to receiving treatment, especially during a manic episode. And this is really part of the illness in terms of not understanding that one is sick. Bipolar disorder cannot be cured, however people often find that they will go, you know, periods of time without having any illness or periods of euthymia. It really depends on the individual and how their clinical course goes as well as finding treatments that work. The mainstay of treatments are mood stabilizers. So these are medications that are used to keep somebody from having most notably a manic episode or a depressive episode. Finding the right treatment can sometimes be a little frustrating and patients really need to hang in there as their doctors try different medications to figure out what works best with their neurobiology...

[samcollins]

I suffer from Bipolar type I. It feels like I'm at a constant war with myself. I wouldn't wish this pain on anyone.

[UGKLIFE]

I have this disorder and it's sad cause people don't take me seriously.

[Roedygr]

The manic phase feels WONDERFUL. You have so much energy. Great ideas are popping. It is just that everyone else is such a stick in the mud. However it is the phase when you do things that cause you to cringe with embarrassment every time you think of them for the rest of your life. You are just too candid and too honest.

[RoshannasRhetoric]

I have bipolar disorder as well. It has taken the majority of my life away from me. 41 now, diagnosed at 21. Feels like I’ve been stripped from a lot of things. It’s horrible. I can’t believe I’m still alive. Pretty much got my head down trying to get through this life. It’s sad.

[jackhammer]

Yep, my wife went through a major manic episode lasting 2 months. Told me she wanted a divorce and started sleeping with a coworker. She racked up over $ 2000 in credit card debt on clothing alone. She started doing drugs everyday. She starved herself and Made herself throw up every time she did eat. She mistreated coworkers because she was paranoid They were out to get her. She quit her job and contemplated jumping off a bridge. She got Diagnosed with bipolar one disorder. She's on 3 different medications plus a sleeping pill.. It's been a struggle but she's doing better over the past 3 months.

[jbishop_aries]

Having bipolar is a nightmare, and I feel like sometimes I don't deserve love, air, or anything for that matter

[emelizelaya]

I am bipolar. It hurts to my very core to know for a fact that I will always, somehow affect the people that I love. My mom has restless nights, worrying; my family unaware of what to do because I'm unpredictable; and my friends triggered by me. I gave them pamphlets on how to take care of themselves while dealing with me. I know they'll never leave me, forget me, and it just makes me feel worse. I feel like a waste of space, but I'll also fight for my space. I live to eventually feel okay, so I can give love instead of just take it. That's my purpose in life. To love who love me unconditionally.

[stugats]

who else has been told to snap out of it lifes to short? that really hurts

[bestsnowboarderuknow]

My girlfriend just killed herself in july after being diagnosed as bipolar... Hardest thing I've ever gone through.

[rebekahlochridge]

Sad, I never realized that people suffer like this . As someone with an eating disorder I wanted to know how people with other illnesses live / feel . I wish the best for anyone reading this .

[bystex]

For me bipolar disorder feels like you're either rolling up the rocky hill, almost touching the top, or down it, almost at the bottom. Either way you're going you're going fast and you have no control over it. It starts off okay but then it slowly starts to feel like hell

[teknifix]

My wife was diagnosed with Bipolar Disorder 2.. on the extreme end. When we met I thought she was a little moody, but when she had our second child, she went off the deep end. It was really bad, the doctor just kept putting her on anti-depressants which just made it worse. I did some research myself and suggested BPD, but the doctor just rejected my idea. We moved to a new town, and got a new doctor. He listened, but my wife crashed before she was scheduled to see a specialist and spent a couple of weeks in the psych ward at the hospital. It took about a year to figure out her medication and life is a lot easier now.

It can be a long road, but you have to stick it out to the end. It would've been horrible of me to have left her (many times after her screaming outbursts I'd considered it).

Seek help, and get more than one opinion. When the first doctor wouldn't listen, we should've gone to see someone else. If I could go back, that's probably what I'd do differently.

[parodysatire]

I have bipolar disorder, and I wish I could just scream it from the top of a mountain, and just be accepted for an illness I didn't choose.

[chris-Ribble-Roots]

"in the next 10, 20, 30, 50 years I really see a lot more research being done" Meanwhile I reside in poverty because I can't hold a job down.

[mnkt]

It's true that many people think of mental illness as something that's within the control of the individual. As a person with bipolar disorder, it can sometimes seem very impossible to control my emotions or judge things rationally during a manic episode, unlike with regular emotions which are able to be reigned in more easily.

[beyou]

For someone who doesn't suffer from this illness I'm so happy to finally understand the symptoms, etc that people go through. It's so important to learn about this and I respect you for living your lives daily like this. It must be so unpredictable.

[brandonp]

Bipolar 1 here. It's hell I honestly would never wish this on anyone. You're at war with yourself. I'm still fighting to find a proper mix of meds. Recently got addicted to pills. I'm spiraling and I'm so lost. God help me

[shaunbarnett]

Yes it's rough the way regular people are so dismissive of BP sufferers. I've been told regularly throughout my life to 'get my self together' lol. As if I wasn't desperately trying to do that every single day. It's actually hard for me to believe that none of my family or friends recognised something serious was wrong with me. I would undergo radical transformations of behaviour within very short time frames. When it's happening in your own brain, it's impossible to be logical and sufficiently objective about what is happening. It's essential that outsiders take the time to understand you need professional help.

[djteq]

Man my emotions have been out of whack. I am usually a chill person but this year. I've been extremely irritable hostile and agitated, I randomly had depression for a week, but realizing everything that has happened to me has been making me sad made me feel better. But I've been lashing out. And I don't wanna feel that way

[AutomaticDuck]

I'm on Seroquel and it does make it easier to live with but it's always there. I always either really want to live or really want to die. Most of the time, the thought of me dead makes me truly happy inside. That's messed up.