Bipolar Disorder: The Difficulty of Living with a Mental Imparity

"Nearly every day, without thinking, I say things like 'So-and-so is driving me crazy' or 'That's nuts!'" Mary Seymour describes as she recounts her daily experiences. "Sometimes I catch myself and realize that I'm not being sensitive toward people with mental illness. Then I remember I'm one of the mentally ill. If I can't throw those words around, who can?" (Newsweek, 16).

That, in the words of a normal adult, would sound like an insult. Mary Seymour, however, is NOT a normal person. Mary suffers from Bipolar Disorder (which is also known as manic depression). Bipolar Disorder is a mental illness, which affects how the brain works; causing an unintentional upending of the mental balance within sufferers to the point where the occasional bad day we all have is a nightmare for sufferers compared not only to good days but to average people on THEIR bad days. However, Bipolar Disorder is a treatable mental illness, so sufferers do not have to let it affect their lives.

Scientists do not known what exactly causes Bipolar Disorder - however, they have managed to pinpoint at least three areas of the brain that seem to be involved in determining whether or not someone has the disorder. These are the Ventral Striatum (30% loss of gray matter), the Prefrontal Cortex (20%-40% loss of gray matter), the Amygdala (slow habituation), the Hippocampus (loss of neuron connections), and the Brain Stem (40% loss of serotonin). (Time, 42).
Bipolar Disorder has a varied list of symptoms. Some sufferers overspend their money. Others are prone to temper tantrums at inopportune times, especially young children with the disorder. Some contemplate, attempt or even commit suicide. Some even experience one or more of these symptoms. (I know. I have Bipolar Disorder myself, and I am guilty as charged on all three counts if you know what I mean. Moreover, I have the guts to be upfront about it - though not all sufferers are.)

According to Science News, "The disorder affects roughly 1 in 100 adults, but almost no data exist for its prevalence among kids and teenagers." As a result, "…a rare long-term study of school-age children diagnosed with bipolar disorder is showing that the condition strikes young people with particular ferocity" took place in 2002. The study found that children were less likely to respond to certain medications and psychotherapy than adults were such that "bipolar symptoms cleared up in only 26 of 89 kids" as reported in the American Journal of Psychiatry that month. By comparison, a "greater proportion - but still a minority - of adults with bipolar disorder benefits from treatment," the report explains. (Science News, 355)

Now I mentioned that I myself have Bipolar Disorder. So let me explain my experiences further. I have lived with both my parents all my childhood life. I am easily annoyed by some of the little things people sometimes do such as complaining like fools, singing songs I dislike (and in some cases hearing them on the radio), acting like they are in charge when they really are not, and so forth. For a long time I had a very short fuse, so to speak, when it came to arguing - in fact, I once got so angry that I smashed a window with a lawn chair, literally breaking a hole through it in the process. Sometimes I was so distraught that I contemplated throwing myself in front of road traffic (again, literally). It is definitely tough to deal with these things. Yet I manage these feelings a lot better than I used to.

Nevertheless, let us go back to Mary Seymour's personal experiences for a minute. Mary describes managing the effects of Bipolar Disorder like this: "Being a functional member of society and having… [Bipolar Disorder] …is an intricate balancing act." Which is an accurate way of explaining the process of managing and controlling the abnormality. "Every morning I send my son to junior high school, put on professional garb and drive off to my job as alumni-magazine editor at a prep school, where I've worked for six years," she continues. "Only a few people at work know I'm manic-depressive, or bipolar, as it's sometimes called." So how does she deal with her abnormality? Let us just say, using her words, that "…my disorder has taught me to be healthier and happier than I was before." That is something I could not have said better myself.
Bipolar Disorder does not have to be a curse you cannot live with. With management, treatment and plenty of patience, bipolar patients can break through demons both real and imagined and live close to normal lives.