Bipolar Disorder in Psychology

Category: Term Paper

The g2conline.org discusses bipolar disorder in the field of psychology. There exists two types of bipolar disorders, namely the type 1 and the type 2. Type 1 is usually distinguished by one or more mixed episodes whereas type 2 is distinguished by hypomania plus one or more main depressive episodes. In this article, it is vivid that it is hard for a normal person to distinguish bipolar disorder from schizophrenia due to the fact that both disorders are genetical and have common symptoms. Other concepts include the connection between aspects such as genes, biochemicals, cells and brain anatomy. Cognition and environment are not less important.

Bipolar affective disorder is a condition that was once known as manic-depressive illness. Generally, the article states that bipolar disorder entails the two different poles of mood, namely the low pole regions and the high pole areas. The low pole region is responsible for depression whereas the high pole expresses severe mania. In bipolar disorder, mania is suggestive of its type I and type II Bipolar disorder varies from schizophrenia in what we on average refer to as an episodic illness. This is significant that people go through the cycle of periods of getting ill and recovering again.

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The main argument regarding bipolar disorder in this article is that it is highly heritable. Consequently, new ways of identification of the relevant genetic mechanisms have increasingly become significant. This argument is supported by the fact that the research on family and twins showed that they have had identified bipolar disorder (BD) in their nervous system as a genetic condition for a long time. The possibility of this condition being heritable for the other genetically connected members was 70%. Despite the fact that many of the bipolar genes have been recognized, none of these have been unmistakably defined as casual. Genes usually have the strongest bond between people of the same family and, thus, they can involve the genetic basis of schizophrenia and other conditions of mental disorder such as depression. This is due to the fact that most common disorders usually share the same symptoms. New methods include peculiar genome scans that offer new techniques of understanding these composite genetic activities.

Bipolar disorder is a condition in a psychiatric diagnosis whereby people tend to experience disruptive mood swings. These mood swings can result in conditions such as symptoms of depression. Bipolar disorder is usually characterized by the occurrence of one or more cases of energy levels that are unusually elevated. It also concerns mood and cognition in the case of the presence or absence of one or several depressive symptoms. This is a psychological condition that is caused by physiological, environmental and genetic factors.

The physiological factors include alteration or abnormalities in the functioning of some of the brain circuits. In accordance with the kindling hypothesis, individuals who are genetically prone to bipolar disorder usually report cases of raise of the lateral ventricles’ size, as well as white matter intensities. Therefore, the physiological factors entail changes in the chemistry of the brain. The environmental aspect is based on some evidence that this disorder differs seasonally, with mania being the most common aspect in spring and depression more common in winter. Evidence also suggests that environmental aspects play a key role in the growth and course of bipolar disorder. It affects those people whose psychosocial variables can interrelate with genetic nature.

The genetic contribution plays a very important role in bipolar disorder. Genetic research has recommended many chromosomal areas and candidate genes that appear to be linked with bipolar disorder's growth. However, the results are not reliable and often simulated. Bipolar disorder depends on a hereditary predisposition. This means that one is born with the condition, and there are regularly a few blood relatives who have it. Nevertheless, it is vital to note that a person might fail to show any symptoms until it is activated by some other factors such as the ones discussed above.