Bipolar Disorder
ADULT AND CHILD PSYCHIATRIC MENTAL HEALTH NURSE PRACTITIONERS IN KING OF PRUSSIA, PA
Of all adults with bipolar disorder, about 83% experience severe impairment, while 17% face moderate challenges affecting their ability to hold down a job and enjoy life with their families and friends. Nina Patel, CRNP, PMHNP-BC, and Vince Di Antonio, CRNP, PMHNP-BC, of Alpine Psychiatry, have many years of experience working with patients who have bipolar disorder and take a holistic approach, whether the individual needs medication or psychotherapy, or both. To get help with managing the mood swings associated with bipolar disorder, call or text the office in King of Prussia (KOP) or Johnstown, Pennsylvania, or request more information online today.
Bipolar disorder was once called manic-depressive disorder, which describes the two key symptoms — mania and depression — yet doesn’t begin to convey the varying degrees of signs found in patients with different types of bipolar disorder.
Alpine Psychiatry’s psychiatric nurse practitioners are experts at diagnosing and treating bipolar disorder. Like depression, those with bipolar disorder often benefit from some level of therapy to help manage the various phases and co-occurring disorders.
There are three primary types of bipolar disorder:
Bipolar I disorder is defined by having at least one major manic episode severe enough to affect your ability to work and socialize. Patients may also experience significant depression or have mixed features, which means simultaneous depression and mania.
Bipolar II disorder is defined as having at least one episode of major depression and at least one hypomanic episode. Hypomania causes the same symptoms as full-blown mania, but signs are less severe and may not interfere with daily life.
Patients with cyclothymic disorder have swings between hypomania and depression that occur frequently and constantly. Their symptoms, however, are milder than bipolar I or bipolar II — these mood swings last at least two years in adults and at least one year in adolescents.
Bipolar disorder is overdiagnosed, and treatment options are as complex as they are varied. It requires the diagnosis by a clinically trained and very experienced mental health provider and treatment with a psychiatric nurse practitioner or a psychiatric nurse practitioner.
Your treatment plan may include:
Mood stabilizers such as lithium, atypical antipsychotics, and antidepressants are the three classes of medications prescribed for bipolar disorder. Some atypical antipsychotic drugs treat bipolar depression, while others treat mania, and one treats mania and depression.
Alpine Psychiatry provides the psychotherapy bipolar patients need to manage mood, energy, and behavior challenges.
Also referred to as CBT, this therapy identifies harmful thoughts, beliefs, and behavior patterns and teaches you ways to modify them to create balance.
This form of therapy helps families learn to communicate, solve problems, and recognize mood swings unique to bipolar disorder.
This form helps patients learn to maintain daily routines such as a healthy sleep schedule, manage stress, solve interpersonal problems, and maintain stable moods.
Whether you’ve been diagnosed with bipolar disorder or have questions about your mood swings and behaviors, Alpine Psychiatry can help. Call or text the office to schedule an appointment or request more information online.