7 Effects of Bipolar Disorder on Everyday Life

Bipolar Disorder is a complex mental illness. The exact cause or reason for triggering bipolar behavior is not entirely ascertained. But studies indicate that this Bipolar disorder affects almost 4% of the entire US population.

What is Bipolar Disorder?

It is a mental disorder associated with frequent episodes of extreme mood swings that range from abrupt manic highs to depressive lows.

Bipolar disorder is characterized by irregular fluctuation in emotions, causing mania or hypomania (a less severe version of mania). These phases are generally too euphoric, wherein the affected person demonstrates total energy, or the patient could also be unusually irritable.

This, in turn, results in changes in sleeping patterns, changes in the ability to judge or decide, reckless or impulsive behavior, and compromised thinking capabilities. If left untreated, Bipolar Disorder can lead to a grave situation, disrupting an individual’s everyday routine and normal cognitive functioning.

Causes and Effects of Bipolar Disorder on Everyday Life

An increased likelihood of developing bipolar disorder is fairly associated with multiple causes. Therefore, it is hard to put a finger on a specific set of causality. Potential causes and effects of this phenomenon include:

• Variations in brain anatomy
• Genetic predisposition (80% of the bipolar cases have been reported to have genetic origins)
• Substance abuse
• Consumption of certain medications
• Exposure to extreme stress or intense past trauma

Considering bipolar disorder is a mental condition with no concrete and medically viable treatment, people diagnosed with it are forced to live with it for the rest of their lives. And living with such a severe disorder for a lifetime is not easy!

7 Effects of Bipolar Disorder on Daily Life

Since bipolar disorder dramatically impacts your ability to think and function normally, it also takes a heavy toll on multiple aspects of your everyday life.

How? Let’s take a look at them in this section of the article.

1. Mood

Bipolar disorder is primarily a mood disorder and is defined by constant mood swings. During the manic episodes, the patients might feel highly energized, joyous, and sometimes even too talkative. In most cases, they exhibit poor decision-making abilities.

During the depressive phase, patients tend to experience feelings of intense melancholy and hopelessness. They might feel drained of energy at all times and lose concentration and interest in their day-to-day activities.

These phases do not follow a fixed pattern or timelines, which makes bipolar disorder even more concerning. There is no way to determine when these phases might happen. So, a person who is bipolar may go to bed in a manic state and wake up in a mood of pessimism and utter despair.

2. Work

Individuals living with bipolar disorder might find themselves very productive at work at certain times, whereas completely inept at other times.

Depending on the state of their minds, these patients can be either seen working enthusiastically to achieve ambitious targets or glued to their beds, unable to even get to work when the depression phase takes over.

Workplace ethics generally demand discipline and consistency to maximize output. But bipolar behavior can be a massive obstacle in completing crucial tasks at work. Significantly it also affects the patient’s overall performance and behavioral conduct at the workplace.

They are prone to having a breakdown following a sudden dip in their productivity which may even cause a major dent in some critical or professional relationships.

3. Sleep

Sleep is one of the most essential noticeable manifestations of bipolar disorder. Bipolar individuals can ditch long hours of sleep during their manic phase. Due to very high productivity levels, a patient experiencing manic episodes can manage superbly with very few hours of sleep.

During depressive phases, they might end up struggling with insomnia or hypersomnia. There is a tendency for patients to appear dazed and exhausted due to a lack of enough sleep.

The most common side effect of this is the development of chronic sleeping disorders. Excessive or inadequate sleep has negative consequences and can cause a significant drop in their overall health report.

4. Diet

People with bipolar disorder may also experience severe fluctuations in their eating habits and diet routine. When affected by chronic depression, the person might feel that they can get by with a minimalistic diet. So, they tend to skip meals, not have them on time, and go hungry for hours or days without hampering their work.

During the phase of depression, there is a high possibility that the patient might indulge in binge eating and overeating. This may have an adverse impact on their health, given that most of these foods are unhealthy, which triggers the release of dopamine for short-lived energy.

Therefore, bipolar disorder patients are more susceptible to falling for the junk food trap when depressed and generally have disorders such as stress eating, Bulimia Nervosa, and more.

5. Drugs and Alcohol

Drugs and alcohol are temporary yet significant mood and behavior modifiers. When a bipolar individual consumes such mood-altering substances, there is a greater chance that they will be more likely to experience the severity of a mental disorder. Basically, it just worsens your condition.

Drugs and alcohol may trigger depressive, manic episodes in bipolar patients, which may also result in unfavorable scenarios, probably even violence.

So, patients with this condition and under medical treatment must strictly avoid alcohol and drugs. These substances can erratically affect their moods that cannot be ascertained and can have detrimental effects in general.

Unfortunately, due to the nature of bipolar disorder, many patients tend to easily veer towards abusing these substances for short-term relief to cope with their changing mood patterns.

6. Physical Activity

This is similar to the diet aspect of bipolar patients. Manic phases encourage people with bipolar disorder to aggressively chase their fitness goals due to all the extra energy and an intense feeling of euphoria.

However, binge drinking and over-eating disorders during the depressive period can make patients gain significant weight and result in very disorderly health. The drop in physical activity, the increase in body weight, and deteriorating health may cumulatively contribute to even more depression disrupting daily life.

7. Relationships

A bipolar patient can switch from being super happy to being lifeless and disinterested in everything around them in just a matter of minutes. This behavior, although not in complete control of the patient, can take a toll on their relationships on both personal and professional fronts.

The intense impulsivity that kicks in majorly due to bipolar disorder can lead to patients engaging in unsafe sexual behaviors, extra-marital affairs, multiple physical relationships, and similar reckless actions putting their lives at risk and their relationships in full jeopardy.

Conclusion

The above effects of bipolar disorder may continue in everyday life if the condition is not well-treated. Proper communication, appropriate diagnosis, and the right treatment approach can help effectively control these adverse effects so patients can live a fulfilling life forever.

People suffering from bipolar disorder need not be disheartened as they can live perfectly normal and super productive lives with the proper support. The road to recovery may initially seem daunting, but it is worth it.