Bipolar Disorder

Bipolar disorder is a mental illness that is characterized by dramatic shifts in mood, mental clarity and energy in a person. People who suffer from bipolar disorder experience a varying degree of high and low moods that remain and can last for days, weeks or even months at a time. These episodes of mania and depression are not your typical ups and downs most of us experience in our lives. But, if left untreated can lead to an unpredictable lifestyle filled with high anxiety, impulsivity, irritability, risk taking, insomnia, hallucinations, psychotic symptoms and lack of clarity, extreme depression, loss of hope, energy deficits, lack of motivation, delusions and thoughts of suicide.

Bipolar disorder affects both men and women at the same rate. The average age is about 25 years old. It is estimated that 2.8% of the U.S. population is diagnosed with bipolar disorder with nearly 83% classified as severe.

Symptoms

Symptoms will often vary from person to person. It’s not uncommon for someone to go for a long time between episodes. While others will move rapidly in succession from one extreme to another. The most severe cases of bipolar disorder will include hallucinations or delusions that can often be confused with schizophrenia.

Manic states of bipolar disorder are expressed by an elevated mood that can turn into feelings of irritability, poor judgment, impulsivity, reckless decision making that include risk taking behaviors.

The depression stages of bipolar disorder are often debilitating. Many people are unable to get out of bed. Complain of having difficulty falling or staying asleep. Any minor occurrence seem to be overwhelming. Chronic thoughts of personal failure, negativity, sadness, guilt and helplessness become obsessive and can lead to thoughts of suicide.

Four Types Of Bipolar Disorder:

Bipolar l: People who have suffered from one or more manic and depression episodes. But to be diagnosed as bipolar l, a person’s manic episode must last at least for seven days or be admitted to a hospital.

Bipolar ll: People who experience a shifting depressive to manic episodes. But, the prevalent low mood is not followed by a full manic mood.

Cyclothymia: Having brief periods of normal moods that last less than eight weeks while experiencing the chronic unstable mood swings of mania and depression for at least two years.

Bipolar “other specified or unspecified”: When someone does not meet the criteria for either bipolar l, ll or cyclothymia but experiences clinically significant abnormalities in mood ranges.

Treatments:

Medication: Antipsychotics, anti depressants and mood stabilizers.

Psychotherapy: Typically cognitive behavioral therapy

Complementary supportive health programs: These can include self management strategies, education, exercise, faith support, meditation and prayer.

Neurofeedback Therapy

Neurofeedback has shown in some to rapidly smooth the transition and normalize the degree of high and low mood elevations of those who suffer from bipolar disorder. Many sufferers claim that their manic and depressive episodes are farther apart and /or less severe after undergoing only several neurofeedback treatments. Some people reduce their medication over time through a doctors supervision.

LENS neurofeedback targets the pathological brain oscillations within the neural networks that are responsible for the unstable mood behaviors. The maladaptive, frozen brainwaves within these brain regions become more flexible and reconditioned to a more appropriate state of frequency. More sessions can lead to greater capabilities and a reduction of symptoms.

Neurofeedback can be an effective and powerful support therapy for addressing symptoms associated with bipolar disorder.

*Disclaimer: NeuroBalance specializes exclusively in the use of LENS technology. LENS neurofeedback is a therapeutic modality only. It is NOT intended to be used to diagnose, treat or cure any specific disease or condition. LENS offers a safe, non-medicinal alternative approach for healing to occur. NeuroBalance assists the body to naturally manage the symptoms associated with many chronic conditions.