We’re going to wrap-up our series on the mood disorders by discussing treatment. I’ve always said it’s super important to understand that from which we suffer, but the bottom-line is, what can we do to find relief. Let’s start with bipolarity.
Well, as we already know, bipolarity presents along a spectrum of severity. So we’re going to paint the subject of treatment with a very broad brush.
Now, one could certainly make the case for relying solely upon non-med alternatives for the treatment of mental and emotional disorders; however, in most presentations, such is not the case for bipolarity.
Here are the medications typically called upon for mood stabilization…
- Naturally Occurring Substances: lithium (Lithobid, Eskalith)
- Anticonvulsants: valproic acid (Depakene), valproate/divalproex sodium (Depakote), lamotrigine (Lamictal), carbamazepine (Tegretol), oxcarbazepine (Trileptal), gabapentin (Neurontin), tiagabine (Gabitril), neurontin (Gabapentin)
- Atypical Antipsychotics: aripiprazole (Abilify), risperidone (Risperdal), quetiapine, (Seroquel), olanzapine (Zyprexa)
- Calcium Channel Blockers: verapamil (Calan)
As with any mental/emotional disorder, meds therapy doesn’t offer the ultimate solution. Psychotherapy is a major factor in the management of bipolarity…
- Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT): A highly versatile therapy focusing upon the relationship between our thoughts and behavior
- Social Rhythm Therapy (SRT): An interesting therapy that emphasis our daily functioning rhythms; sleep, meals, work, school, social time
Bipolarity can be very difficult to manage; however, between meds and psychotherapy there’s plenty of hope for a moving on with life in a peaceful and productive manner.
We’ll wrap-up the series tomorrow with a discussion of treatment for depression. Will you join us?
Hi! I’m Bill White, founder and producer of chipur – and a licensed counselor. Are you looking for one? The miles are irrelevant. Visit my Distance Counseling page. Join the chipur crowd on my free biweekly newsletter emailing list.
