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i have a female friend who is bipolar. she has stuff pretty welll under control, but in the last 10 yrs has had quite a few relapses, where she gets stressed and has to go into hospital. she was a rapid cycler. She experienced sexual abuse as a child as well.
i have found out i have a thyroid problem and poor adrenal function and am treating myself for this. life is getting better. prior to this i was told i had cyclothymia. i never improved taking anti d’s and only in the last 1 1/2 years have i gotten better.
my question is: is my friends condition anything to do with thyroid function or adrenal function. i have asked her to get her blood test results to see what is happening. I dont think she wants to go down this route though, as she sort of likes being bipolar.
She is quite large nowadays and i think this is down to the lithium she takes.
@marsaday 1223 wrote:
i have a female friend who is bipolar. she has stuff pretty welll under control, but in the last 10 yrs has had quite a few relapses, where she gets stressed and has to go into hospital. she was a rapid cycler. She experienced sexual abuse as a child as well.
i have found out i have a thyroid problem and poor adrenal function and am treating myself for this. life is getting better. prior to this i was told i had cyclothymia. i never improved taking anti d’s and only in the last 1 1/2 years have i gotten better.
my question is: is my friends condition anything to do with thyroid function or adrenal function. i have asked her to get her blood test results to see what is happening. I dont think she wants to go down this route though, as she sort of likes being bipolar.
She is quite large nowadays and i think this is down to the lithium she takes.
Lithium, itself, in medicinal doses will reduce thyroid hormone signaling. This is a well known effect of Lithium. Lithium can be used for the treatment of hyperthyroidism, as a result.
Bipolar disorder is a complex mental illness with multiple simultaneous contributing causes.
Suboptimal thyroid signaling is one of the contributing factors to bipolar disorder. This is noted in numerous psychiatric textbooks as part of the pathophysiology of bipolar disorder.
In measuring thyroid function in almost all my patients, I would say nearly 100 % of people with bipolar disorder have suboptimal thyroid signaling.
Thyroid hormone, itself, can be used to help stabilize mood in bipolar disorder. That is a textbook maneuver. Levothyroxine is the preferred treatment. The dose can reach hyperthyroid levels when it comes to stabilizing mood.
Often, in treating thyroid dysfunction that is an underlying cause of a mental illness, I many need to use a higher dose than would a primary care doctor or an endocrinologist. Treating a mental illness requires much more optimal levels of thyroid hormone – i.e. at the higher end – than treating the physical aspects of hypothyroidism. I may adjust the dose until the person is free of signs of hypothyroidism, though the other physicians may stop at a lower dose.
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What will cause mood cycling, however, is not suboptimal thyroid hormone signaling. Mood cycling is caused by the development of hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis dysregulation.
When cortisol production is lost – as one sign of this – mood becomes unstable and the person either becomes manic or depressed.
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Persons that have been subject to trauma – including childhood abuse – may already have HPA Axis dysregulation with low cortisol output.
They may suffer as a result from frequent mood swings, mood cycling. Rapid cycling in mood may be seen in bipolar disorder and borderline personality disorder (a condition which has similarities to bipolar disorder).
Interestingly, in mixed bipolar states, people will often have panic attacks. A mixed bipolar state may be considered an ultra-rapid cycling state.
i have bipolar disorder and take lithium. Two months into treatment with lithium my TSH was over 8.0. Started on levothyroxine and my free T4, T3 are good. mid-upper range on T4, top of range on T3. Lithium is very effective for me.
I haven’t met another bipolar person who told me they liked having the disorder. It is not something i particularly enjoy, nor my wife or father who also have it. Because of this disease and the type of mind I have, I have learned much about myself, emotions, decided to pursue a career in psychology. Fueled a desire to learn as much as possible about the body, mind, and how they are connected. I love to try and find answers. I hope to soon visit Dr. Mariano and learn even more.
@bridger 1428 wrote:
i have bipolar disorder and take lithium. Two months into treatment with lithium my TSH was over 8.0. Started on levothyroxine and my free T4, T3 are good. mid-upper range on T4, top of range on T3. Lithium is very effective for me.
I haven’t met another bipolar person who told me they liked having the disorder. It is not something i particularly enjoy, nor my wife or father who also have it. Because of this disease and the type of mind I have, I have learned much about myself, emotions, decided to pursue a career in psychology. Fueled a desire to learn as much as possible about the body, mind, and how they are connected. I love to try and find answers. I hope to soon visit Dr. Mariano and learn even more.
Bipolar Disorder not only is a disorder with extremes in mood, it is also a disorder with extremes in life accomplishments.
At one extreme, a person with bipolar disorder can be so dysfunctional, they end up in prison.
At the other extreme, a person with bipolar disorder can be fueled by the elevated state of mood and energy during a hypomanic episode that they can be much more successful than most other people.
When one looks at the most creative inventors and artists, one often finds bipolar disorder.
When one looks at our Hollywood stars, one often finds bipolar disorder. Bipolar disorder and Borderline Personality disorder are conditions which allow an actor to have extremes of emotion such as shown on stage and on film. Who can work the long hours without sleep, the 140+ hour work weeks that are common in Hollywood, other than those with bipolar disorder?
When one looks among the ranks of successful businessmen, bipolar disorder is a common condition.
The key is in maintaining control over the manic and depressed state, allowing only the highly productive and creative hypomanic states and normal mood states to be present.
For the lucky few, they can enjoy their hypomanic or manic highs.
Unfortunately, for most people with bipolar disorder, the depressive or irritable state predominates.
The energy demands of a manic or hypomanic state are such that they are difficult to sustain.
@DrMariano 1431 wrote:
Bipolar Disorder not only is a disorder with extremes in mood, it is also a disorder with extremes in life accomplishments.
At one extreme, a person with bipolar disorder can be so dysfunctional, they end up in prison.
At the other extreme, a person with bipolar disorder can be fueled by the elevated state of mood and energy during a hypomanic episode that they can be much more successful than most other people.
When one looks at the most creative inventors and artists, one often finds bipolar disorder.
When one looks at our Hollywood stars, one often finds bipolar disorder. Bipolar disorder and Borderline Personality disorder are conditions which allow an actor to have extremes of emotion such as shown on stage and on film. Who can work the long hours without sleep, the 140+ hour work weeks that are common in Hollywood, other than those with bipolar disorder?
When one looks among the ranks of successful businessmen, bipolar disorder is a common condition.
The key is in maintaining control over the manic and depressed state, allowing only the highly productive and creative hypomanic states and normal mood states to be present.
For the lucky few, they can enjoy their hypomanic or manic highs.
Unfortunately, for most people with bipolar disorder, the depressive or irritable state predominates.
The energy demands of a manic or hypomanic state are such that they are difficult to sustain.
Very true. Who doesn’t love to feel ‘on top’?
You echoed what i’ve heard many therapists tell me. That it can fuel some people’s creative and economic pursuits. I can’t help but think at some point they will crash. And during those manic or hypomanic periods i would think poor decisions about health could be detrimental in the long run. I believe i read one of your posts stating that the mentally ill, on average, live substantially shorter lives and have more health problems.
For those who can put their moods to good use, that is very lucky. I have not personally known anyone who falls into that category. As i learn more, i learn anything is possible. I was thinking the part about this illness i don’t enjoy is the medication side effects, disruptions it causes in relationships, work, school, etc while trying to manage it and lead a productive life.
My manic episodes were remarkably similar in feeling to use of stimulats, cocaine particularly. Amazing(confidence, energy, positive outlook, etc) feelings immediately followed by some of the worst feelings(anxiety, depression, paranoia, irritability, etc) i’ve ever felt. There was no way i could put rapid cycling to good use. I used to paint but could never channel my energy into something useful. Van Gogh has always been one of my favorites incidentally.
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