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What Medications Are Used to Treat Bipolar Disorder? - Verywell Mind
What is the most important information I should know about bipolar medications? Treatment for bipolar disorder typically involves medications to help stabilize mood, such as anticonvulsants, antipsychotics, antidepressants, and benzodiazepines. Each medication comes with its own side effects, interactions, and warnings. Talk to your doctor about what is right for you, and always inform them of any medications you are currently taking. In most cases of bipolar disorder, medication is used to help keep someone stable. Medications that are prescribed may be used to treat psychosis, depression, hypomania, or mania present in someone who has bipolar disorder. While lithium was once the only medication used for bipolar disorder, many medications are now used to manage the illness. These medications fall under the following categories: anticonvulsants, antidepressants, antipsychotics, and benzodiazepines. Keep reading to learn more about some of the mos...
That Lingering ‘Meh’ Feeling Has a Name - The New York Times
By the time Amanda Stern was in her mid-40s, she no longer suffered from clinical depression. And her panic attacks, which had started in childhood, were mostly gone. But instead of feeling happier, she said, "I felt wallpapered in an endless, flat sadness." Confused, she turned to her therapist, who suggested that she had dysthymia, a mild version of persistent depressive disorder, or P.D.D. Ms. Stern, an author based in New York City, often writes about mental health, but she had never heard the term. She soon realized that she had experienced dysthymia on and off for decades. "I am not suffering from it right now," she added, "but I imagine I'll live with it again." She decided to write about it in her newsletter, How to Live, describing what it felt like to exist in a "constant state of 'emptiness'" and sharing the tools that eventually helped her feel better. It is not well understood why some cases of depression persist, but The...
IU researchers develop a breakthrough new blood test for schizophrenia - News-Medical.Net
A team of researchers led by Indiana University School of Medicine faculty have developed a breakthrough new blood test for schizophrenia, a psychiatric disorder that includes hallucinations and delusions. Schizophrenia and related psychotic disorders affect over 3 million people in the United States. The new test identifies biomarkers in a person's blood that can objectively measure their current severity and future risk for schizophrenia and match them to treatments that will be most effective for their individual biology. "Schizophrenia is hard to diagnose, especially early on, and matching people to the right treatment from the beginning is very important," said Alexander Niculescu, MD, PhD, Professor of Psychiatry and Medical Neuroscience at the IU School of Medicine, staff psychiatrist and investigator at the Richard L. Roudebush Veterans Administration Medical Center in Indianapolis and senior author on the study. "Psychosis usually manifests in youn...
4 common bipolar disorder misdiagnoses - Medical News Today
The symptoms of bipolar disorder may resemble those of another condition. Because of this, people with bipolar disorder may receive a misdiagnosis. Bipolar disorder is a mental health condition that involves extreme mood changes. Shifting between high and low moods is a hallmark of this condition. These episodes of mania and depression can vary in severity and length, lasting anywhere from hours to weeks . Diagnosing bipolar disorder can be challenging. Its symptoms can mimic those of other mental health conditions, such as depression, anxiety, and schizophrenia. Some researchers estimate that up to 40% of people with bipolar disorder receive a misdiagnosis. This article explores four common bipolar disorder misdiagnoses. It also explains why misdiagnosis happens, the potential consequences of misdiagnosis, and more. A common misdiagnosis for bipolar disorder is major depressive disorder (MDD). This is likely because the symptoms of bipolar disorder are similar to those of MDD. At lea...
The metabolic overdrive hypothesis: hyperglycolysis and glutaminolysis in bipolar mania | Molecular Psychiatry - Nature.com
Abstract Evidence from diverse areas of research including chronobiology, metabolomics and magnetic resonance spectroscopy indicate that energy dysregulation is a central feature of bipolar disorder pathophysiology. In this paper, we propose that mania represents a condition of heightened cerebral energy metabolism facilitated by hyperglycolysis and glutaminolysis. When oxidative glucose metabolism becomes impaired in the brain, neurons can utilize glutamate as an alternative substrate to generate energy through oxidative phosphorylation. Glycolysis in astrocytes fuels the formation of denovo glutamate, which can be used as a mitochondrial fuel source in neurons via transamination to alpha-ketoglutarate and subsequent reductive carboxylation to replenish tricarboxylic acid cycle intermediates. Upregulation of glycolysis and glutaminolysis in this manner causes the brain to enter a state of heightened metabolism and excitatory activity which we propose to underlie the subjective experie...