Life with Manic Depression
Word Count: 1934
Life with Manic Depression
Imagine what it would be like if you struggled with your emotions everyday, not being able to control how you think, judge, or even how you act in social situations. People with the disorder manic depression deal with symptoms such as the ones above and many more. Manic depression is also known as bipolar disorder, and by definition is a mental disorder characterized by episodes of mania and depression; in layman 's terms it’s a disorder that affects a persons emotions, which leads to extreme mood swings. Most researchers agree that manic depression is a genetic disorder, which means if one of your parents has it there is a possibility you would inherently have the disorder too. Manic depression usually begins between the ages of 15-25, also it affects men and women equally (Board 1). Researchers also found that people with manic depression are generally more quiet about their disorder than people who have normal depression, and and this makes them twice as likely to commit suicide. The reason I choose this topic is a personal one, I grew up in a home with a person who suffers from manic depression, the person I love most in my life. My mother has had to deal with it for most of her life, and for all of my life I’ve had to sit on the sidelines and watch her suffer. Her dad, my grandfather also had the disorder and actually took his own life after the Vietnam war because he never sought help for it. My mother, my aunt, and my uncle all suffer from manic depression, the disease is genetic and no research has found a direct link to the cause of the disorder, I am worried that I too may have it and just don’t know it yet.
The history of bipolar disorder/ manic depression has many gaps in it and it wasn’t till recently in the 20th century that it was more regularly studied and much more was learned. The first person to document a case of manic depression was in 400 B.C., it was discovered by Hippocrates and named
Life with Manic Depression
Imagine what it would be like if you struggled with your emotions everyday, not being able to control how you think, judge, or even how you act in social situations. People with the disorder manic depression deal with symptoms such as the ones above and many more. Manic depression is also known as bipolar disorder, and by definition is a mental disorder characterized by episodes of mania and depression; in layman 's terms it’s a disorder that affects a persons emotions, which leads to extreme mood swings. Most researchers agree that manic depression is a genetic disorder, which means if one of your parents has it there is a possibility you would inherently have the disorder too. Manic depression usually begins between the ages of 15-25, also it affects men and women equally (Board 1). Researchers also found that people with manic depression are generally more quiet about their disorder than people who have normal depression, and and this makes them twice as likely to commit suicide. The reason I choose this topic is a personal one, I grew up in a home with a person who suffers from manic depression, the person I love most in my life. My mother has had to deal with it for most of her life, and for all of my life I’ve had to sit on the sidelines and watch her suffer. Her dad, my grandfather also had the disorder and actually took his own life after the Vietnam war because he never sought help for it. My mother, my aunt, and my uncle all suffer from manic depression, the disease is genetic and no research has found a direct link to the cause of the disorder, I am worried that I too may have it and just don’t know it yet.
The history of bipolar disorder/ manic depression has many gaps in it and it wasn’t till recently in the 20th century that it was more regularly studied and much more was learned. The first person to document a case of manic depression was in 400 B.C., it was discovered by Hippocrates and named
Cited: Board, A.D.A.M. Editorial. "Bipolar Disorder." Bipolar Disorder. U.S. National Library of Medicine, 18 Nov. 2011. Web. 09 Dec. 2012. Smith, Abigail. "Chemical Signature of Manic Depression Discovered by Scientists."Chemical Signature of Manic Depression Discovered by Scientists. Imperial College London Press,5 Feb. 2008. Web. 09 Dec. 2012. Wexner. "Manic Depression / Bipolar Disorder." Manic Depression / Bipolar Disorder. N.p., n.d. Web. 08 Dec. 2012. WebMD. "Manic Depression (Manic Depressive Disorder): Symptoms, Treatments, Causes, and More." WebMD. WebMD, n.d. Web. 09 Dec. 2012.