Article by Chani Prem T

Lamictal is a prescription medication that is sold in Canada Pharmacies and is used to treat two extremely serious diseases. These are epilepsy and bipolar disorder. The Centre for Disease Control- USA estimates that more than 2 million Americans are affected with epilepsy. Approximately 140,000 new cases of epilepsy were diagnosed in 2010. Epilepsy costs the US government .5 billion in medical costs and lost earnings and production. Bipolar disorder is another mental disorder that affected more than 5.7million adults in 2006. According to the WHO suicide related with bipolar disorder is the 6th cause of death in the world.

Epilepsy and its Causes and SymptomsEpilepsy is a neurological condition. There is no significant cause of epilepsy. However, it is noted that various abnormal conditions affect the neurons in the brain which leads to seizure which marks the main characteristic of epilepsy. Genetics, other mental disorders and head injuries are among the other causes that may cause epilepsy. Epilepsy can be categorized into two groups, based on the seizure type. These are focal seizures and generalized seizures. Individuals with focal seizures will display strange and repetitive behaviour and experience auras. Those with generalized seizures will experience loss of consciousness and muscle spasms. Epilepsy can be diagnosed through EEG records, brain scans, blood tests and detailed medical history.

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Article by Alex Warren

What is Bipolar Disorder? Every one of us can experience the ‘ups and downs’ of everyday life, but for people suffering with bipolar affective disorder these ups and downs are more extreme and prolonged, affecting not only their mood, but their thoughts, behavior and ability to function in life. Thus making them different from others. For us it is just a bad day or experience but for the sufferer it could be a lesion or incident to be remembered. It is a neurological disorder characterized by extreme mood swings. After a brief research it has been concluded that there is no such factor that causes this disorder. Genetic factors, brain chemistry and life incidents contribute in the onset of this disorder. There are almost one in hundred people get affected by this disorder. It mainly starts as a depression in adolescent but it can appear at any age group regardless of gender. It is important to treat this disorder as early as possible to avoid further complications.

Causes of Bipolar Disorder

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Article by David Knowles

There are two distinctive types of severe depression Bipolar Disorder and Manic Depression Disorder. Both these disorders need different treatments. The symptoms of both disorders involves sorrow, exaggerated weeping, loss of delight, sleeping too much or too little, low energy, impatience, difficulty in concentrating, fretfulness, loss of appetite or overeating, feelings of ineptitude and hopelessness, feelings of physiological troubles that are not caused by physical sickness or injury like headaches, digestive troubles, pain and thoughts of destruction or self-destruction.

Manic Depression or Bipolar Disorder both involve states of depresssion and highs and exhilaration, foolhardy behaviour, low rest needed, exaggerated energy, racing thought processes; speaking too much, out of control spending, trouble focusing, irritability, abnormally raised activity including sexual activity, poor judgement, competitive behavior, overwhelming temper or out of control behavior.These episodes can last a long very long time, some for a amount of weeks, months. Both disorders vary quite a bit when it comes to the treatments.Both biologic factors like genetics and psychological elements like stress play a major role in causing depression.For the sufferers that are diagnosed with manic depression or bipolar disorder, antidepressant drugs are a very good manic depression treatment, but they have to be taken for around 3 to 4 weeks or longer before the affects are working.

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Article by Alicia McWilliams

There is no cure for those suffering from bipolar disorder. To make things worse, there is no “one sure” treatment or therapy that could stabilize your condition. It is a trial and error process that may take months or even years.

The two episodes of bipolar disorder will make the person either feel “high” or “low.” Treatment for bipolar disorder can only be administered once the doctor identifies what may have triggered the attack. This means observing the patient for some time and in his or her absence, the person will have to write this down in a journal so this can be reviewed for analysis later on. There’s that journal again. Think it’s important?

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While dealing with a bipolar disorder can be very tiring and difficult to deal with, many new procedures and medications are constantly being developed. People who have to deal with bipolar symptoms often find it difficult to hold a normal job or to live normal lives. However, researchers in Australia are developing new treatments that involve adding therapy to the existing medications that a bipolar individual has to take.

Although therapy may not seem like a new procedure, researchers believe that the combination of a special therapy created for bipolar depression used in conjunction with bipolar medications. The combination appears to be very successful and allows the individual to take less medication, which is a common factor that most bipolar people attempt to do. The basic idea behind the new procedure is that most people who suffer from bipolar symptoms know when an episode is about to happen. The research revealed that people who were able to predict the episode and could implement therapy were able to avoid the episode in its entirety.

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I need a model for a depression project inside of science. My project is on dysthymic, bipolar, chronic, and long term depression. Can you help?

I’d like treatments of it, sources, and a picture of the brain’s area that is affected. Do you know where I can find it, or have answers?
Can anyone show me a picture of the hippocampus, a part of the brain that controls memory and emotions, before and after depression strikes?

I have chronic mixed moods – I have maybe 5 days a month where it isn’t so bad. Otherwise, there are many days where it hurts so much, I am suicidal. I have run out of treatment options, but maybe my psychiatrist (& 3 more at the local hospital) hasn’t tried everything . I don’t think I can get into the university hospital for help, because they are full & I have no way to get there (they are 150 miles away & I can’t drive in the city when I am crying, my husband is legally blind). My psychiatrist says to go there, but I have to try and get in by myself. Or go to NIMH (national institute of mental health, in washington DC), and she would try & get me into a program there. I dunno how to get there tho. I still gotta drive 150 miles to the airport on freeways I’m not familiar with, then get to NIMH somehow. So these options seem impossible for me. I get upset driving & haven’t flown since 9/11.

So anyway, I’m looking for other things to try. So what has worked for you?
I’ll add, I am already on lamictal and lithium, and they are doing no good (lithium has been a good antimanic agent in the past, but doesn’t help me with the mania associated with mixed moods). I have tried abilify, depakote, risperdal, tegretol, seroquel, and oh so many others. But I am hoping maybe someone has had a novel treatment or combo that has worked. I am allergic to tegretol and abilify. I have been trying very hard for 13 years since I was diagnosed.

accupuncture/pressure, magnets, etc.
Clarification: I am NOT going off my current meds; I have been medicated for years and just want to believe there is something out there that works better–as I can tell you first hand, my illness has been largely treatment-resistant. And while they’re generally thought to be safe, I do have to have my liver checked with my current bipolar med.

Issue:
Anti depressants have not been effective even with augmentation or additional drug therapies.
Thanks for the answers thus far.
I rarely ever have long or problems due to manic behavior.
I do have however struggle with my moods and depression.I have been very well and successful up until I was injured at work and needed spinal surgery. I have another surgery to hopefully allieviate the great pain I am in.This ordeal has now been going on over a year and I have been inable to work at a job I love as Im incapacitated.No surprise that depression is raging its ugly head
I just wonder if anyone else is using an antidepressant that does cause bad side effects and is responding well to it.
I take 120mg of Cymbalta.I stopped taking Abilify as I was noticing repetitive/uncontrollable mouth movements.Plus I was still depressed.All mood stabilizers can do this and that is why I am so leery of them now,
I also see a therapist.
Just need to get out of circling the bowl as I will need motivation and drive to recoup from my next surgery. I need to be able to return to my job as a CVT!