By Agathe Charpentier and Lise Mahaud
The purpose of this blog article is to present you a brochure on bipolar disorders. This brochure is addressed to people suffering from this disease but above all to their relatives. The announcement of a mental disorder can be shocking and destabilizing for the patient but also for those around him. It is therefore important and essential to help these people when the disease is announced.
First of all, the brochure explains what bipolar disorder is. They are mood disorders and more precisely oscillations between depressive episodes and manic or hypomanic episodes . There are different types of bipolar disorders: bipolar I disorder, bipolar II disorder and cyclothymia (American Psychiatric Association, 2013). Bipolar I disorder corresponds to an alternation between severe depression episodes and manic episodes. Bipolar II disorder wavers between depressive and hypomanic episodes. Between each episode, the person returns to a stable mood, we will talk about euthymia. Finally, cyclothymia corresponds to hypomanic episodes alternating with depressive symptoms (not strong enough or lasting enough to be called depression).
The brochure also explains the different symptoms that can be found in depressive and manic episodes (American Psychiatric Association, 2013).
The symptoms of a depressive episode are: sadness, loss of interest, guilt and emptiness, low self-esteem, psychomotor retardation, sleeping and eating disorders, suicidal thoughts….Manic episodes are characterized by euphoria, irritability, physical and psychological agitation, increased self-esteem, sleep disorders, involvement in risky behaviours… Hypomanic episodes present the same symptoms as manic episodes but their intensity is lower (Bourgeois, Gay, Henry & Masson, 2014).
It is important to note that the symptomatology of depressive and manic episodes may be different for each person.
This part of the brochure is very important because it allows family members to understand how the disease is expressed and to detect behaviours that are related to the disorder.
The second part of the brochure provides keys for relatives to help the person with bipolar disorder (Mirabel-Sarron, Provencher, Beaulieu, Aubry, Leygnac-Solignac, 2016). Several tips are offered such as learning about bipolar disorder to better understand it and how to react.
Family members are also advised to encourage the subject to take his or her medication, as compliance with treatment is often complicated in this type of disorder (Gay & Colombani, 2013).
It is also suggested that family members try to detect elements that may increase the risk of manic or depressive episodes. This allows you to discuss it with the person in pain so that you are ready to help him or her. The important thing is to communicate, even during depressive or manic episodes.
The brochure does remind us that help is not the same as exhaustion. It is essential to be able to help the subject while preserving oneself. Psychological support can sometimes help to express difficulties and emotions, and increase well-being.
The document insists on the fact that bipolar disorders affect many people and that we should not hesitate to join associations in order to discuss, share experiences, questions, etc. Several French associations exist such as Argos 2001, Bipol Entreprises, Bicycle…
The purpose of this brochure is therefore to provide essential information about bipolar disorder. It could be given to the family and/or friends by the psychiatrist or even by the patient himself/herself. Sometimes the person does not feel able to explain what is happening to him or her. The patient is staggered. Therefore, this brochure may be a first way to communicate about this mental disorder. This would help to familiarize relatives with it, which can only be beneficial to the person suffering from it.
Words we have learned :
- To familiarize someone with something : familiariser quelqu’un à quelque chose
- Psychomotor retardation : ralentissement psychomoteur
- Staggered : sidéré
- To waver between : osciller entre
- Euthymia : euthymie, humeur « normale », sans euphorie ou dysphorie
Bibliography :
American Psychiatric Association. (2013). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (5th ed.). Arlington, VA: American Psychiatric Publishing
Bourgeois, M-L., Gay, C., Henry, C., Masson, M., (2014). Les troubles bipolaires. Paris : Lavoisier.
Gay, C., Colombani, M., (2013). Troubles bipolaires : Manuel de psychoéducation. Paris : Dunod.
Mirabel-Sarron, C., Provencher, M. D., Beaulieu, S., Aubry, J. M., Leygnac-Solignac, I. (2016). Mieux vivre avec un trouble bipolaire: Comment le reconnaître et le traiter. Paris : Dunod