bip0lar-b0nes

[bip0lar-b0nes]

i lost 7 lbs in three days.

🌻 reblog for luck in weight lost!! 🌻

[bip0lar-b0nes]

I wasn’t born with a neurotypical brain, some days I resent that and others I feel blessed. Welcome to bipolar.  

It’s different for everyone, experienced in about 2% of the population. There’s Bipolar type 1, 2, and cyclothymic disorder. Bipolar 1 and 2 are characterized by mania, hypomania and depression. There can also be added features such as mixed episodes and rapid cycling. The difference between Bipolar Type 1 and 2 is mania. Bipolar 2 experiences hypomania while type 1 experiences mania; both can experience majour depression. Cyclothymia is mood swings between minor depression and hypomania.

The symptoms of mania as described in the DSM-5 are inflated self-esteem or grandiosity, decreased need for sleep, increased talkativeness, racing thoughts, distracted easily, increase in goal-directed activity or psychomotor agitation and engaging in activities that hold the potential for painful consequences lasting anywhere from a couple days to several months. The difference between mania and hypomania is essentially the intensity of symptoms, full blown mania can also include psychosis, delusions and hallucinations. The symptoms of depression are pretty much what you’d think they are, depressed mood, anhedonia, changes in weight, appetite and energy levels, feelings of guilt or worthlessness, suicidal thoughts, etc.

Bipolar is a really complex illness, being made even more complicated by the high rates of comorbidities. In a study done by Stanley Foundation Bipolar Treatment Outcome Network with 300 participants, 65% of them met the criteria for at least 1 other lifetime psychiatric disorder. In a National Comorbidity Survey 95% of the respondents met those same criteria. Due to these comorbidities Bipolar is incredibly difficult to diagnose and treat. I’ve been lucky in getting my diagnosis so early on, there’s people I know where it took them 10+ years to get a proper one and others who are still trying. The most common comorbidities are Anxiety, Substance use disorder, ADHD, personality disorders (a recent study found cluster B disorders in about ⅓ of their bipolar patients) and physical illnesses, often due to consequences of the disorder; type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular diseases due to higher rates of obesity and smoking.

To top it off, a study done in 2016 and published in the International Journal of Neuropsychopharmacology found that the blood of Bipolar patients can actually become toxic overtime due to the cyclical moods. They also found the BDNF protein (Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor), a protein that promotes neuron growth and survival and also helps establish neuron connections, was lower in Bipolar patients. As well as lower levels of the EGR3 (Early-Growth Response 3) protein, which is associated with helping the brain cope with environmental changes such as stressful stimuli.

Brain images from this study also showed changes such as reduction in volume and neuroprogression (a mechanism by which the brain re-writes its neuronal connections, a process that’s associated to learning, memory and even recovery from brain damage). In people diagnosed with bipolar this process is associated with a loss of neuron connections and clinical and neurocognitive deterioration. Fun right? That’s just the tip of the iceberg from this study’s findings (if you’re interested in reading it here’s the link https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2016/05/160531104421.htm)

Hopefully knowing more about the symptoms and neuropsychology of the disorder can help you to see a bit more about what it can be like to live with it. It’s tough, but I also see it as a sort of superpower. I’m able to experience life’s emotions to the absolute fullest, whether that’s for the better or not, well that depends on the mood (;