Bipolar disorder is a mental illness in which the phases of mania and depression alternate. The risk group includes women and people with an unstable psyche. The disease is also called bipolar affective disorder and manic-depressive psychosis. Proper treatment helps patients to control emotions, live in society.
Is bipolar disorder treated
Unfortunately, you cannot completely get rid of the symptoms of bipolar disorder. Well-chosen therapy allows for long-term remission, when the patient manages to restrain his emotions.
Treatment for bipolar disorder includes medication and psychotherapy. Each method is selected individually by trial and error. It is impossible to predict the effectiveness of a drug in a particular patient.
The effect of medications with prolonged use may weaken due to addiction, in which case it is necessary to choose another medicine.
How to treat bipolar disorder
- It is more effective to start therapy after the first attack of mania.
- Use low doses of drugs at the beginning of treatment, gradually increasing them.
- Monitor the patient’s condition in the process of selecting a medication to avoid phase changes.
- Do not interrupt therapy sharply.
The treatment of bipolar affective disorder includes three main treatment regimens:
- Active (short-term). It is prescribed for a quick effect in an acute condition. 1-2 days last. Improvement is observed after 5-7 days. One of the methods is a sharp increase in the dose of valproic acid.
- Ongoing (supporting). Helps prevent exacerbations during the current episode of bipolar disorder. It begins after the first registered attack of the disease.
- Preventive (long-term). May last a lifetime to prevent exacerbations. Most often represents regular courses of psychotherapy.
Other treatments
Electroconvulsive therapy. It is indicated for the ineffectiveness of psychotherapy or medication. Stimulates the synthesis of biologically active substances that improve the condition of patients with depression or mania.
Method of deep transcranial magnetic stimulation. It is used in the absence of the effect of conservative therapy. The procedure simulates the deep layers of the brain, due to which associative zones are activated, behavioral, motor and affective disorders are corrected.
Taking sleeping pills. If the main drug treatment does not help improve sleep, then sedatives are used for this purpose.