- Mihir Bhushan Bhole
- Aug 9, 2020
- 6 min read
Updated: Aug 30, 2020
- Wednesday 15/07/2020, Mihir Bhushan Bhole.
Namaste to all! This is my first write-up on Bipolar Disorder, based on what I’ve collected from data provided, courtesy of Sandip Dust, my interviewee in the Bipolar Disorder interview.
Interview links:
Part 2: Journey of Bipolar Disorder.
Part 3: The World of Mental Illness.
Simplified Summary: You are Here.
This first post will be mostly oriented towards what Sandip and I have gathered about Bipolar Disorder or Bipolar Mood Disorder. Future updates based on more info/research will come in the future. If you aren’t keen on getting into the nitty-gritty of the data collection, look for the ending sections of each Part below.
Bipolar Disorder, or Bipolar Mood Disorder, is a Mental Illness where a person experiences alternating states of behaviour, called the Depressive Phase , or Bipolar Depression(more on that later), and the Manic Phase, or Bipolar Mania(more on that later).
Brain Mapping of Bipolar Disorder patients (as published by ENIGMA Consortium)
The study involved numerous steps:
1) Collection and Tabulation of Medical data on all Bipolar individuals involved: This data includes prescription medicine used, the onset of illness, history of psychosis (a mental condition where the patients are not aware of their own actions, abnormal thinking and perceptions), mood states, age and sex differences in cortical regions.
2) MRI Scans of all 6,503 involved individuals: The MRI Scans provided images of the Cerebral Cortex, which were compared with each other to find patterns, similarities/dissimilarities,
3) Observations: Thinning of Grey matter in the brains of Bipolar patients, as compared to the controls, with the greatest deficit in parts that control inhibition and motivation (frontal and temporal regions). Patients with a history of psychosis showed greater deficits in the brain’s Grey matter. Anti-psychotic, anti-epileptic treatments, as well as lithium treatment, suggested protective effects on the Cortex.
4) Conclusion. This research was instrumental in creating newer avenues for research of the Bipolar Brain.
“This new map gives us a roadmap of where to look for treatment effects. By bringing together psychiatrists worldwide, we now have a new source of power to discover treatments that improve patients’ lives.” - Dr Paul Thompson, Director of the ENIGMA Consortium, Co-author of this research study, and associate director at USC Stevens Neuroimaging and Informatics Institute at the Keck School.
5) What we can get from this: This MRI Study was ground-breaking for its time, as 6,503 individuals were arguably the largest sample size of such research, possible mostly due to the massive worldwide reach of the ENIGMA Consortium.
Bipolar Patients’ Brains are seen to be abnormal, i:e they have considerable deficits in grey matter. These deficits were larger in magnitude for increased psychosis and were lesser in patients taking regular medication.
The Manic and Depressive stages of Bipolar Mood Disorder are not fully controllable by the patient, and they directly lead to abnormalities in the Brain. These issues are NOT fully controllable by the patients, especially not when the patient is oblivious to his/her bipolar condition.
Link to Summary, written by HSC News, USC: Researchers create a roadmap of bipolar disorder and its effects on the brain | HSC News
Full Open-access Research Article (Not recommended for out-of-field readers): Cortical abnormalities in bipolar disorder: an MRI analysis of 6503 individuals from the ENIGMA Bipolar Disorder Working Group | Molecular Psychiatry (Published on 2nd May 2017).
Summary of Sandip Dust’s Interview Piece: (Including direct quotes from the interview piece.)
[Disclaimer: The interviewee (Sandip Dust) has agreed to allow publication of their name and details to S&S, and has allowed for a complete analysis of their words. This interview conducted for S&S and has been written from an Audio recording, available in full, to both the interviewee and S&S. Any opinions stated by both parties are fully independent of the opinions of each other and should be treated as such. Any reference to Study Material, or External Media, shall be linked to inside this article. This interview was not a medical counsel. S&S does not have the authority to publish or conduct medical counselling, and hence, should not be contacted for it. The Primary intention of the interview and this Summary Piece is to breakdown the complex nature of this topic, to generate curiosity among out-of-field readers. Any material or quote of this write-up, if found offensive, can be reported to S&S by the Contact Mail, and the writer will respond to you by the next 24 Hours. The interviewee has provided info on his medical treatments. Do not take these medical treatments without the approval of medical experts. These are deemed “experimental” by Sandip, and as such, does not recommend unsupervised use. S&S will not, and should not be held responsible for such ignorance.]
Sandip Dust (26YO) is currently studying Computer Science Engineering (First Year), is already a Full-Stack Web Developer, i:e he can develop web applications for both front-end use, as well as back-end use. He has struggled from Bipolar Disorder for the past 3-4 Years. [Initially misdiagnosed as a Patient of Depression.]
1) The Two sides of Bipolar Disorder: Mania, and Depression. Two Extremes of Mental states, both seen by a Bipolar Patient.
“In the Past, I was very impulsive. Whatever my brain used to say, I’d do it. I’d Blow all of my money on food, engage in high-risk activities, whatever my brain would tell me, I’d act upon it. With proper training and self-control, I’ve learned to deal with it. In a way, my current relationship with my brain is better than before; even if I’d get an urge of suicide, or I feel down, I have learned to ignore it.” - Sandip Dust, Part 1 of Interview.
Decision-making, urges, ideas and notions, all are shaped by the impulsive hormonal soup inside our brain, while logic and memory are dictated by the massive network of signal transmission between neurons in the brain. Instances of Depression and Mania cause an override of emotion over logic and memory, especially when the patient may not be aware of his/her own condition, as evident by the quote above.
2) Effect of Genetics on Mental Health: Although a direct Correlation or Causation could not be found from our interview, Sandip did provide info that points to the family history of mental health issues, both in his maternal line, and paternal line, as evident in Part 1 of the interview.
Since he claims that his younger brother (21YO), is devoid of any such issues, a primary hypothesis of Vertical Transmission of Mental Health Issues can be drawn. Further research by S&S will be done in this regard and will be shared with its readers soon.
3) Symptoms, as Observed by Sandip:
“This is what happens; you get these grandiose beliefs about your own self, and you’d engage in impulsive activities, especially spending money. I’d buy things in the heat of the moment, that I would not need at all. I’d burn money equivalent to an entry-level Software Engineer’s month-pay, within 15 days. It is reckless, yes. I got addicted to Smoking, and a lotta other addictions. Also, in the Manic Phase, Insomnia is a very common symptom. I’d be playing games, watching movies, anything other than sleeping. In the Depressive phase, however, I’d be sleeping for 16-18 hours a day. I’d forget to take a shower, brushing my teeth, my basic hygiene, for days. I’d keep having suicidal thoughts, thought of my life being worthless.”
- Sandip Dust, Part 2 of the Interview.
>>> Mania Phase:
a) Insomnia, i:e Lack of Sleep during normal sleep hours.
b) Uncontrollable impulses of Encouragement.
c) Recklessness, the danger of exposure to addictive behaviour.
>>> Depressive Phase:
a) Hypersomnia, i:e Excessive Sleeping during the entire day.
b) Uncontrollable impulses of Discouragement.
c) Lack of Basic Hygiene Habits; increased Isolation.
4) Sandip’s Views on his Medical Treatment: Lithium is still under heavy research, and as such, is too strong a medicine, according to Sandip. Harsh side effects, like inducing sleep, hamper productivity. A “choose-your-poison” situation, as quoted by Sandip.
Although Lithium-based meds and other anti-psychotic meds have shown promising positive effects (read the previous part about Brain Mapping), they come at a terrible cost of side-effects, which can only be reduced, not removed, at least until more effective solutions are found.
5) Message from Sandip to all readers: (Read Full in Part 3 of Interview)
a) “Depressed”, and the state of Depression, are not always the same. These are totally independent events.
b) Participate extensively in social media campaigns to spread awareness about Mental Health Issues. Only that way, can these become important to the mainstream.
c) “If you’re in the same situation as me, first-off, you should seek medical help, which is a very important thing.”
You can find Sandip Dust at
Instagram: instagram.com/lordsandipdust7
Facebook: facebook.com/Sandip.dust.7
Twitter: twitter.com/SandipDust
Contact me at
Twitter: twitter.com/contact_snsgg
Instagram: instagram.com/blog_snsgg/
Reddit: reddit.com/r/snsgg
Discord: discord.gg/watkA7b
