Bipolar Disorder - Prevention
Bipolar disorder cannot be prevented. But often the mood swings can be controlled with medicines.
About 1 out of 3 people will be completely free of symptoms of bipolar disorder by taking mood stabilizer medicine, such as carbamazepine or lithium, for life.5
Karen Renken was just 14, but she knew something was terribly wrong. "I was a straight-A student, and suddenly I started failing in school," says Renken, now 45, of Long Island, N.Y. At high school, she would go from enjoying a seemingly normal mood to throwing a tantrum in the hallway. Her teenage response to normal requests, such as her mother's plea to pick up after herself, was dramatic. She would, she says, "shriek like a maniac." Renken was sent to a psychiatrist, who prescribed an antidepressant,...
Read the Balancing Bipolar Disorder article > >
To help prevent a depressive or manic mood episode, you can:
- Eat a balanced diet.
- Exercise daily.
- Avoid extensive travel into other time zones.
- Get approximately the same number of hours of sleep every night.
- Avoid alcohol and illegal drugs.
- Reduce stress at work and at home.
- Limit caffeine and nicotine during manic episodes.
- Seek treatment as soon as you notice symptoms of a depressive or manic episode coming on.
Changes in your sleep patterns can sometimes trigger a manic or depressive episode. If you plan extensive travel into other time zones, you may want to call your doctor before you leave. Find out from your doctor if you should make any changes in your medicines and what to do if you have a manic or depressive episode while you are away.
WebMD Medical Reference from Healthwise
Bipolar Disorder Topics
Today on WebMD
Health Solutions From Our Sponsors
©2005-2013 WebMD, LLC. All rights reserved.
WebMD does not provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. See additional information.