Bipolar Disorder and Manic Depressive Illness

You can turn to several different professionals for advice and treatment. The following list describes physicians’ areas of expertise and ways in which they can help:

• General physicians (such as your family doctor) can diagnose your condition and then refer you to a specialist.
• Clinical social workers are specially trained to deal with emotional disorders. They can counsel and educate you and your family.
• Psychiatric nurse practitioners special ize in dealing with people with emotional disorders. They can give you tests, diag nose your depression, and provide med ication and therapy.
• Psychotherapists can help you cope with your feelings and symptoms.
• Clinical psychologists can test you, diagnose your depression, and also provide therapy.
• Psychiatrists are medical doctors who specialize in mental health. They can test you, diagnose your depression, and provide medication and therapy.

There are two stages involved in treating bipolar disorder: acute and preventive.

Acute-stage treatment aims at controlling and ending temporary manic, hypomanic, depressive, or mixed episodes. Once the episodes are under control, preventive-stage treatment aims to keep them from happening again. Preventive-stage treatment is long-term and ongoing.

During both of these stages, treatment consists of three parts:

• Medication: Prescribed drugs that can control both manic and depressive symptoms.
• Psychotherapy: Counseling that helps you and your family to deal with the problematic feelings and behavior caused by manic depression.
• Education: Opportunites for you and your family to learn all about bipolar disorder and the ways to cope with it.