Mental Health

Michael E. Thase, MD: Let's move on to our next polling question. The patient in case 1 is currently not taking any mood stabilizing medication. Which of the following treatment options would you have most likely started with this patient? a. lithium, b. quetiapine, c. divalproex, d. lurasidone, or e. cariprazine. Why don't we go ahead and talk some about our patient. Gus, join me, if you will. Gustavo Alva, MD, DFAPA : I'd be happy to. Michael E. Thase, MD : What do you think the clinical significance is of making the diagnosis of bipolar disorder in this patient? Gustavo Alva, MD, DFAPA : It's quite significant. Obviously, this is a terrific example of the fact that sometimes people go about life without necessarily receiving an appropriate diagnosis for a while. We know that based on the literature, sometimes people go 5 to 10 years before ascertaining the appropriate diagnosis. Part of the problem with that is that oftentimes people are challenged by additional pro...

BIPOLAR UPDATE The last column discussed how to improve precision in the diagnosis of mania and hypomania and how to identify likely prebipolar depressions that may evolve into a diagnosis of bipolar disorder (BD) following the onset of a subsequent manic or hypomanic episode. It is important to identify comorbid disorders that add to the symptoms of BD, so that these symptoms can be targeted appropriately. Some prescribers tend to target symptoms (eg, anxiety, insomnia, and irritability) with medications while leaving the underlying disorder(s) unrecognized and/or untreated. 1 Taking Time for Diagnosis When there is a comorbidity, one should first delineate the various DSM-5 diagnoses that are present ( Table ). The evaluation may require several meetings to reach the initial diagnostic impression, and it can take 90 minutes to evaluate a complex new patient, including reviewing the previous record and writing the assessment. 2 Clinicians who are employed may not be allowed this much...

Schizophrenia is a mental health disorder that disturbs your thinking and perceptions of life. This affects your interactions with the world. Advertising Policy Cleveland Clinic is a non-profit academic medical center. Advertising on our site helps support our mission. We do not endorse non-Cleveland Clinic products or services. Policy "People with schizophrenia may hear voices or noises; become very paranoid; believe they have unusual powers; think others control their thoughts, or vice-versa; or believe world events are connected to them," explains psychiatrist Minnie Bowers-Smith, MD. It can be a long road to diagnosis, however. Patients — and families — are often in denial. After all, it's a tough diagnosis to accept. Psychiatrists may not see all the person's symptoms right away. And substance abuse may be a factor. "We don't label it schizophrenia right away; the diagnosis can follow a person thro...

Roughly 4.4% of American adults are diagnosed with bipolar disorder at some point in their lives, most commonly as adolescents or young adults. Bipolar disorder is a mood disorder that includes phases of both mania or hypomania (a less intense form of mania) and major depressive episodes. People with bipolar disorder may also experience stable moods called euthymic moods between episodes of mania and depression. Bipolar disorder can be misdiagnosed as other conditions, especially depression. Here's how to tell the difference. Maskot / Getty Images Types of Bipolar Disorder Bipolar disorder is categorized into subtypes. These subtypes include bipolar 1 disorder, bipolar 2 disorder, and cyclothymic disorder. "Manic-depressive illness" is an earlier term for bipolar disorder, and it is still used at times. Manic Episode vs. Hypomanic Episode A manic episode is a phase of an enhanced mood (heightened emotions) and increased ene...

'Psychosis' is a term used to describe conditions of the mind that cause the individual to lose touch with reality. There is sufficient research evidence that drug use can cause or worsen various mental health conditions, including psychosis. In addition to drug use or abuse, withdrawal from drugs can also trigger psychosis symptoms. A psychotic experience can be scary both for the individual and those around them. This post aims to help you understand important facts about psychosis, how drug use triggers the condition, and the effects of drug use on other mental conditions. What is psychosis? According to the NHS, psychosis is a symptom of a variety of mental health issues. It's marked by disturbances or disruptions of the individual's thoughts and perceptions, also called a psychotic episode. These disturbances make it difficult for them to tell what is real from what is not. Psychosis rose in the U.K. due to Covid-19, with a 29% increase in referrals between...

"Acting allowed me to channel this neurosis into a character," Harbour says. He plays the skeptical police chief of a sleepy town besieged by supernatural events in the Netflix series. TERRY GROSS, HOST: This is FRESH AIR. I'm Terry GROSS. Our guest, David Harbour, stars in the popular Netflix series "Stranger Things." And if you don't watch that, perhaps you recognize him from having hosted "Saturday Night Live" this season on an episode that was just rebroadcast on Saturday. On "Stranger Things," Harbour plays the police chief in the fictional town of Hawkins, Ind., in the 1980s, when the disappearance of a 12-year-old boy leads to the discovery of a secret government agency that kidnaps children with psychokinetic powers. Their experiments have accidentally opened a portal to an alternate dimension filled with monsters that start attacking the town. A few years earlier, Harbour's ...

Mood involves a subjective emotional state that persists for a period of time. In bipolar disorder, mood-congruence or incongruence describes symptoms of psychosis that are in alignment or in conflict with a person's mood state. When psychotic symptoms are present, it's important to determine whether they are mood-congruent or incongruent. Read more to learn about psychosis in bipolar disorder, including mood-congruent and incongruent features. PonyWang / Getty Images Psychosis in Bipolar Disorder Psychosis is defined by a loss of touch with what is real. It is a symptom of psychotic disorders and can be present in mood and other psychiatric disorders. Individuals with bipolar disorder can have psychotic symptoms such as hallucinations, delusions, or disorganized thoughts and speech during a bout of mania (a heightened, elevated mood) or depression. Symptoms associated with psychosis in bipolar disorder include: Pr...