Bipolar: Why not just treat the episodes as they arise?!
Question:
Bipolar: Why not just treat the episodes as they arise?
I've read a little bit about bipolar and I know that it's episodic and symptoms are not always present; people can go for weeks, months or even years between episodes. I do know that for some people episodes don't just drop on them in a flash, but build up with plenty of warning signs. I also know that most people who have this condition take medication everyday as prevention. Why? Why not start meds as soon as symptoms arise, wait it out and stop the meds months later after the episode is over and hope for a dry spell of normalacy?
Answers:
That's like asking why not just treat epileptic seizures after they start or why not just treat heart attacks after they happen.
1) For many conditions, it's a lot easier to prevent them than stop them once they've gotten going.
2) For many conditions, there is damage done very early on in an episode. For bipolars, that would be losing jobs, hurting relationships, hurting people, including the patient.
Neither lithium nor the anticonvulsants used as mood stabilizers stop a mania quickly. Antipsychotics will have some effect quickly, but maybe not enough to prevent hospitalization and a lot of social damage for the patient.
Up to 25% of bipolars commit suicide. That's how powerful the moods are. Prevention definitely works better than trying to play catch-up with that complication.