Which is worse borderline or bipolar

In between these episodes, a person with bipolar can also feel stable and productive. Bipolar I are diagnoses in which a person is on the extreme end of mania, experiencing highs that impair sleep for days on end and may lead to psychosis and hospitalization. One interesting aspect of this mental health condition is that it has been linked to people who are highly creative.

In fact, a number of celebrities with bipolar disorder have been very open about their experiences with the disorder and have discussed how treatment helped them lead healthy lives. There have also been a number of movies made about bipolar disorder. Though people with bipolar disorder can be stable in between swings in their mood, the extreme mood shifts can alternate between serious depression and intense mania. Obviously, individuals living with Bipolar Disorder I or Bipolar Disorder II will experience symptoms and episodes unique to their own circumstances.

In general however, episodes of depression can last two weeks or longer while manic episodes may last up to a week , sometimes requiring hospitalization. They will assess a patient based on recent episodes, family medical history, and a number of factors, including the presence and severity of specific symptoms. There is not a Food and Drug Administration FDA approved medication for the treatment of borderline personality disorder.

However, some medications, such as antidepressants or anti-anxiety drugs, may be prescribed to treat some of the symptoms. Antipsychotic or anticonvulsant medications might also be prescribed. Managing the symptoms of bipolar disorder is completely achievable through a mix of medication, counseling, symptom awareness, and a healthy lifestyle that includes exercise, nutrition, and avoiding alcohol or drug use.

Both bipolar disorder and borderline personality disorder are challenging mental health conditions to live with. Left untreated, both disorders will continue to worsen.

However, with treatment these conditions can improve. For those who have used alcohol or drugs to self-medicate the symptoms on their own and developed a dependence or addiction, dual diagnosis treatment may be necessary to overcome both the addiction and mental health issues together. People with bipolar disorder also often benefit from psychotherapy modalities like cognitive behavioral therapy CBT.

Consistent sleep patterns and active living habits also play a significant role in managing bipolar disorder and other mood disorders. Other therapies that focus on support systems such as social rhythm therapy and interpersonal therapy may be equally important. Borderline personality disorder, on the other hand, does not respond to medication.

People with borderline personality disorder often are prescribed medications to help manage mood and anxiety problems that result from the disorder, but medications do not affect or resolve the defining relational symptoms of the illness. Medications may also be prescribed to help decrease the likelihood that someone with borderline personality disorder will engage in self-injuring behaviors like cutting , as suicide is the major safety concern in untreated borderline personality disorder.

The treatment for borderline personality disorder is all therapy. Research indicates that psychotherapy modalities like dialectical behavior therapy DBT and acceptance and commitment therapy ACT can be effective in treating borderline personality disorder. Because the treatments for bipolar disorder and borderline personality disorder are so different, it is important to get an accurate diagnosis and select a treatment program with specialized evidence-based expertise in treating your illness.

Research indicates there is likely a genetic component to both bipolar disorder and borderline personality disorder. So in families where someone has one of these diagnoses, it is important to pay attention to children in the family to be able to identify warning signs that they may also be developing that illness.

Just like with any medical problem, the earlier that preventive measures begin, the better. For children with a genetic predisposition for bipolar illness or borderline personality disorder, families can help them adopt regimented healthy lifestyles. They need eight hours of uninterrupted sleep every night without variation, and physical exercise should be part of their daily routines. If adolescents start showing symptoms of problems with thinking or social interactions, those problems should be addressed in psychotherapy or family therapy as soon as possible.

And it is especially important to talk about the specific dangers of the use of alcohol, marijuana and other drugs for individuals with a genetic predisposition to mental illnesses. Childhood maltreatment and trauma are strongly associated with the development of both disorders.

It is therefore important for communities to develop effective policies, systems and primary prevention strategies to help protect children from maltreatment. When maltreatment does occur, communities should be prepared to provide effective early intervention to help children develop healthy coping skills and support networks as protective factors against developing disability from mental illness in the future.

By definition, you cannot be diagnosed with borderline personality disorder until you are an adult, which makes it difficult to identify the diagnostic early warning signs of the illness. When you are an adolescent, an important developmental milestone is determining what your personality will be, and you do that by experimenting with different personality traits in different situations. Individually, none of these prodrome symptoms is a sure sign of bipolar illness; each symptom could be caused by myriad factors or events of childhood or adolescence.

Looking at the entirety of behaviors and symptoms is important in determining risk for developing bipolar disorder. Both disorders are difficult illnesses to treat and manage. However, the field of psychiatry is advancing, and new treatments are being developed and studied.

Both populations are at high risk of suicide, particularly if alcohol and substance use are involved. To prevent suicide completion, individuals with either diagnosis should not have access to a firearm, and firearms should not be present in the home. People with bipolar illness are at increased risk for chronic health problems like heart disease, so healthy eating and active living should be an important part of daily routines.

Many mental health treatment programs are beginning to include a healthy living curriculum as part of an integrated approach to improving both physical and mental health outcomes.

While bipolar mania often can be treated effectively with medications, bipolar depression can be more intransigent for some individuals. Newer treatments like transcranial magnetic stimulation are being evaluated for their efficacy and safety in treating recurring or treatment-resistant bipolar depression. Similarly, for many years psychiatrists and therapists believed no effective treatment existed for borderline personality disorder. It comes from a combination of an emotionally charged temperament and the lack of a solid sense of self.

What is the cause of this disorder? There is no single cause of borderline personality disorder, though studies suggest that certain traits, especially a temperament characterized by intense emotional reactions, stem to a large degree from genetics. Developmental factors, including problems with emotional attunement between a developing child and caregivers, seem to play a role, as do physical or sexual abuse, or emotional neglect.

How is borderline personality disorder treated? There is no medication that successfully treats the condition, although they may help reduce some specific symptoms, such as intense anxiety.

Evidence-based models of psychotherapy are the treatment of choice. Dialectical behavioral therapy operates from the assumption that those with borderline personality disorder lack skills necessary to tolerate intense emotions or thoughts. Transference-focused psychotherapy emphasizes the observation and interpretation of patient behavior in the relationship with the therapist to help identify unrecognized internal states and integrate them into a more coherent sense of self.

Mentalization-based therapy similarly helps individuals recognize their mental states and be aware of them in their relations with others. Good psychiatric management is based on a case management model that combines a focus on the environment of the patient, psychoeducation, supportive therapy, and possibly family therapy.

What is bipolar disorder? Like borderline personality disorder, sufferers experience extreme shifts in mood but between depressed states and episodes of mania, the bipolar patient may experience periods of stable mood. For example, someone with bipolar disorder in a depressed state could be totally dejected, hopeless, and morbid, with no will to live.

If they are in a manic state, they might be up all night writing page after page of a novel or playing music, with a sense that they have passed into a special state of genius. A full-blown manic episode shows a period of energy that could go on for days without any relief and would exhaust anybody else.

In between the depressed and manic states, they may have periods of stable mood. Additionally, some bipolar patients experience repeated manic states without full-blown manic states; this is referred to as bipolar 2. What is the cause of bipolar disorder? Bipolar disorder is rooted in brain structure and functioning, genetics, and family history. How is bipolar disorder treated?