Like many people with bipolar disorder, Laurel Lemke, 54, of Lakewood, Wash., cycled in and out of hospitals and tried various treatments before being diagnosed and treated with her disorder. Though she will likely never be “cured,” her mental illness no longer is central to her life. Here is how she copes today Read the rest of this entry »

Bipolar disorder, sometimes called manic depression, affects nearly six million American adults, or about 2.5% of the adult population, according to the National Institute of Mental Health. Some patients who eventually get diagnosed spend years, even decades, cycling through institutions and switching therapists before they get the correct treatment. Read the rest of this entry »

Drugs for bipolar disorder don’t cure the condition, psychiatrists say. “They only suppress the symptoms,” says Michael Thase, MD, professor of psychiatry at the University of Pennsylvania. “Because of this, people who take them are temporarily at increased risk for relapse when they stop the medications, particularly if they stop them abruptly.” Read the rest of this entry »