When a person is diagnosed with a bipolar disorder, he or she has a disorder of the brain that causes extreme mood swings. These can range from an extreme high such as happiness, elation and cheerfulness to an extreme low such as depression, sadness, anger. Having the disease is most definitely hard, living with someone who has it can be even harder, especially when the bipolar nightmare is multiplied by drug or alcohol use.
People who are diagnosed as bipolar do tend to use drugs and alcohol more than other people do. This increases the bipolar problem and can wreak havoc in the lives of everyone around the person who has the bipolar disease.
Let’s start with alcohol and bipolar disease. Alcohol is the number one substance that leads to depressing behavior. Couple that with bipolar disease and you are in for a major drama scene with the person who has a bipolar disorder. Consider this: if a person has bipolar disease and is feeling depressed, then drinks alcohol excessively becoming even more depressed, see where it’s going? Downhill.
As for other drugs, such as cocaine, amphetamines, hallucinogens and marijuana, again, these can lead to manic episodes which are even more aggravated in people who suffer from a bipolar disorder. Sometimes people think they are being smart and responsible because they stop taking their bipolar medication when they use drugs. Now, yes, this is more responsible but stopping one’s prescription medication causes the manic episodes of bipolar disorder to increase.
People who are diagnosed with bipolar disorder and abuse drugs or alcohol often have a dual diagnosis when they undergo treatment. It is important that they be under a medical professional’s care while detoxing off of the drugs they have become addicted to.
There is great sympathy and understanding for someone who has been diagnosed with bipolar disorder, especially as more and more about the disease becomes known every year. However, it is important to understand that those around a person with bipolar disorder are affected also, and because of this, there are support groups available for family members. Just as no one but someone going through it knows how the loved one of an alcoholic or drug addict feels, or someone with a family member suffering from terminal cancer, so too, are there only certain people who know what the loved ones of a person with a bipolar disorder go through on a daily basis.
Bipolar disorder is a serious mental disease. Bipolar disorder mixed with drug or alcohol addiction is a nightmare times two.