Introduction
The paper will explore and build on a bipolar case study as exhibited within an individual life. The study will first create the profile condition of the individual. The second part will involve the etiology of the disorder. The third and fourth parts will involve diagnosis and treatment respectively.
Overview of Bob Profile
Bob is a 35 years old man. He has grown up in well-off family. Bob says he experiences severe events of mania. During these manic episodes, he hardly sleeps and always become restless. Other times he becomes easily irritated for apparently no good reason. As a result, he does not want to interact or associate with anyone. Where the episodes do not influence his feelings, he says that thoughts of taking risky behaviors become irresistible. For instance, he reports of the endless need to spend a lot of money buying expensive things that he doesn't even require or need. The riskiest behavior of all during the episodes is that of enjoying driving his car like a race car. He says he feels goods while overtaking other motorists at high speed. The behavior is so compelling that he observes none of the set traffic rules and puts a lot of people at risk during this period. He further says that he has survived several accidents caused by the risky behavior. Emerging as a survivor from accidents makes him feel like a hero while under the influence of manic episodes.
After some time the manic episode fades away. He assumes his real self again. Evaluating what the manic condition compels him to expose himself and others to makes him very much worried and concerned. The reflection results in depression and loss of energy. He feels worthless upon realizing what he has been doing to himself and others. He says that reality sets him to the lowest moment of his life. During the low moments, life seems worthless. The feeling has, at times motivated ,him to attempt suicide. He attributes his continued existence to his dear family members and close friends who have thwarted all his suicidal attempts.
Etiology of the disorder and purported risks factors
The foundations of Bob's disorder may be traced back to his mother. His mother Lucia suffers from severe depression episodes to the extent that she becomes hospitalized. The depression events were also a major bother to Bob’s grandmother’s family. According to Bob, his mother’s condition may have been further worsened by his father. Since childhood, Bob says that he has been experiencing problems with getting the required attention, especially in class. His teachers failed to understand his challenge and thus always used to punish him for constantly lagging behind in almost everything he did. The situation further translated into poor grades. His father got summoned to schools now and then as result of poor performance. Constant summoning made Bob's father turn against him and his mother. He attributed Bob’s poor performance to lack of commitment by his mother. He would call them names and even move away from them for months, leaving them alone and not providing for their basic needs such as food. The situation forced Bob’s mother into frequent episodes of depression modes. The environments at home and school became a living hell for Bob. No place had a favorable environment for him. His close friends at home turned to foes at schools to avoid being ridiculed by other students. The severe manic episodes started to manifest during this period when the society around him seemed to be against him.
The ordeals explained above provides the various risk factors that may dispose one to Bipolar Disorder. One of the risk factors evident in Bob's case is inheritance (Miller, 2007). Bob's mother's family had bouts of depression. She turned out to be depressed too. As Bob argues, his mother's depressive condition may have been further influenced after being exposed to unfordable environment. Bob may have also inherited some of the genetic depression risk factors from his mother. Various scientific studies have established that a majority of the bipolar cases have been contributed to by the inherited risks. More than 50% of those diagnosed with bipolar disorder always have cases of similar in their family (Ketter, 2010). The situations show that the disorder is to some extent inherited from parents.
Although one may inherit the disorder traits, the rate of manifestation is influenced by environmental factors within where the individuals live. The risks easily manifested as bipolar disorder in the environment within which Bob was living. The constant negligence and abuses he received from his friends and father act as a catalyst for the depression and bipolar condition. The environment is the major risk factor for Bipolar disorder or depression (McIntyre, 2009). The environment has the required insight for developing the appropriate skills for coping with the depression.
Diagnosis
Bob’s condition took a turning point when one of his teachers discovered his situation after joining high school. The teacher advised Bob's parents to take him to a psychologist for assessments. Using DSM-IV diagnostic tool, Bob was found to suffer from a mood disorder. The mood disorder was further analyzed and turned out to be a Bipolar disorder. Since Bipolar disorder exists in three main forms or types, Bob was found to have Bipolar 1 ((UK), 2006). The condition was confirmed by daily depressions and maniac episodes.
The disorder was found to be characterized by frequent periods of crazy mood swings and abnormality. The episodes occurred on a daily basis and lasted for a period of two weeks. The disorder made Bob engage in activities that seemed to offer unique excitement and pleasures ((UK), 2006). The urge to engage in the activities didn't allow Bob to explore or consider some of the consequences that would result from these activities. Some of the consequences involved physical injuries resulting in a painful ordeal. The worst experience as shared by Bob involved the feeling after the episodes are over. Major depressive episodes were always experienced, combined with the loss of interest in engaging in any of his usual activities regardless of how pleasurable the activity may be. The ordeal was found to cause a major distraction to Bob's daily functioning.
The following are some of the feelings that overwhelm Bob after the manic episodes and negatively influence his daily functioning. One of the feelings is fatigue. The fatigue symptom makes him always try to avoid attending work meetings or even not attending work at all. The second feeling is worthlessness. The feeling has at several times made him contemplate suicide (Tondo, Isacsson, & Baldessarini, 2003). Finally, the guilty feeling at times overwhelms him. The guilty feeling occurs especially when he realizes a loss that he has made his family incur during the manic episodes. A good example, in this case, involves a scenario when Bob spent $20,000 within one day touring some of the high-end places within the country using air transport. You see how crazy and intoxicating the disorder is? He poses.
When asked how he feels during the episodes and after the episodes, Bob says that it feels good to rather be completely under the influence of the disorder than experience the post-episodic feelings. Although the episodes vary in strength and expose him and others to huge risks, he argues that the feeling is worth experiencing. What Bob fears most is the inevitable fluctuation effects left behind after the episodes. The fluctuation in feelings is like a free fall from a high point. He says that he feels fully torn apart and nothing in life seems to have value anymore.
Treatment
The treatment of the disorder involves the use of various techniques that would help slow the rate with which depressive episodes appear. No single technique is known to offer a full solution to the problem thus a combination of the strategies must be applied together ((UK), 2006). One of the strategies involves hospitalization where pharmacological treatment is offered. Hospital setting treatment helps to stabilize the bipolar condition.
The second form of treatment involves use of psychological treatments. Psychological treatments help to alter behavioral changes that pose huge risks to the patient. The behavioral intervention adopted must have proven scientific evidence that they bring about the desired results (McIntyre, 2009). Psychological support interventions would help Bob change his dangerous behaviors such as reckless spending and driving. Psychological treatment would also offer social support that would integrate Bob back to normal social life. The treatment would also help restore his normal sleeping pattern. Abnormal sleeping pattern has been found to result in abnormal moods.
Cognitive therapy is the other form of treatment that must be offered. Cognitive therapy will be of great importance to Bob’s condition. Cognitive therapy would help Bob to evaluate all his thoughts while making decisions (Ketter, 2010). The move ensures that excess and risky behaviors are easily avoided. The avoidance would be achieved by tracking all the past thoughts and behaviors and embracing ways to avoid those that are negative in future.
Conclusions
According to the case study, Bob has been diagnosed with Bipolar Disorder 1. The study has further explored the situation that surrounds bipolar disorder conditions and proven that his situation is a result of both inherited and environmental factors. Bob's mother’s family had bipolar cases in the past. The condition has manifested in Bob’s mother and then in Bob. The presence of disorder from one generation to another proves beyond reasonable doubt that the condition’s attributes are inherited. Secondly, the environment within which Bob and his mother live also shows how the environment puts individuals at risk of getting the disorder. As the article shows, the condition does not have unique methods of treatment and, thus, professionals rely on a combination of methods aimed to reduce the rate of occurrence and the negative influence it may have on an individual. The discussed methods are, however, not only the methods available; thus, more has to be incorporated into the treatment therapy so as to experience faster results. If properly implemented, the treatment methods should produce long-term positive results.
References
(2006)., N. C. (2006). Bipolar disorder: The management of bipolar disorder in adults, children and adolescents, in lifestyle advice. British Psychological Society.
Ketter, T. A. (2010). Diagnostic features, prevalence, and impact of bipolar disorder. Journal of Clinical Psychiatry, 71.
McIntyre, R. S. (2009). Understanding needs, interactions, treatment, and expectations among individuals affected by bipolar disorder or schizophrenia: The UNITE global survey. Journal of Clinical Psychiatry, 5-11.
Miller, K. (2007). Bipolar disorder: Etiology, diagnosis, and management. Journal of the American Association of Nurse Practitioners, 368–373.
Tondo, L., Isacsson, G., & Baldessarini, R. (2003). Suicidal behaviour in bipolar disorder: Risk and prevention. . CNS Drugs, 491–511.
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