Depressive or bipolar disorders
Dee Lhamo
Paper 1: Abnormal Psychology in the News
3/08/2020
- The URL for an online article about depressive or bipolar disorders
https://www.foxnews.com/health/greys-anatomy-alum-chyler-leigh-bipolar-disorder
- A summary, in your own words, of what the article was about
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The article is about actress Chyler Leigh, openly talking about her diagnosis and struggles with bipolar disorder. In her paper, Madeline Frber directs more of her writing toward supporting Leigh’s decision for being open about her diagnosis due to negative stigma regarding mental illness-a positive element that we do want to encourage in people. In the article, Leigh discloses medical history about her mother and three kids being diagnosed with mental illness. In the paper, she mentioned being hospitalized due to her illness. She further reveals some of the struggles and challenges she had to face when seeking medical treatments. She has strong family support who cared for her as she was learning to cope with her diagnosis.
- A description of the central issues or concerns; that is, why was the article written, do you think? What is the message it is trying to convey?
Their article primary goal was to promote positivity and encourage people to openly talk about mental conditions without being having to be judged. As mentioned by Leigh, the reason she felt more comfortable talking about her disorder after decades of being diagnosed was because of “Be Vocal: Speak up for Mental Health Campaign.” Using media as a platform, she shared her story about her struggles with bipolar disorder because she wanted everyone to know that they are not alone, and other people might be struggling with the same thing as she did.
- A description on whether you think this article accurately described the disorder(s); be sure to base your answer on what you learned in the module. Also be sure to give specific reasons why you think the article did or did not accurately describe the disorder.
After reading the module and the article, I believe the news did a poor job of explaining about the disorder. There was no mention of symptoms to look for or treatments they can seek. How much of an impact the diagnosis has on the individual life, they may be unable to function in society and follow social norms. Also, the struggles their family members have to face in daily life. The article reveals that her mother was diagnosed with bipolar I disorder and may have been struggling with a severe type-genetic linked between the disorder. There was a only a brief mention of how she struggled to cope with her own diagnosis and the difficulty that she had overcome while trying to maintain her professional and family life.
Bipolar is a mental condition previously known as a manic-depressive disorder; an individual with this disorder typically struggles to cope with mania and depression. As stated in the module, mania is characterized as extreme excitement and elation mood. The individual may begin to like how they feel and they don’t want to go back. This may serve as a challenge when seeking a treatment. For an individual to be diagnosed with bipolar I disorder, they need to undergo mania episodes for at least a week and demonstrate three of the following symptoms most of the time:
- The individual may display inflated self-esteem and feel superior to others.
- They may engage in risky behavior by making poor financial/business decisions and use drugs.
- Lack of sleep, racing thought, slurred speech, and every talkative.
- They are very goal-directed and makes plan or events that they may not be able to perform or attend
With all of the symptoms, we can conclude that this type of maladaptive behavior may hinder when performing daily tasks or the work setting. Furthermore, it may affect individuals’ social settings and personal relationships. They may require hospitalized to stabilize their behavior and to ensure they are not at risk for suicide.
Following the manic symptoms, an individual either experience hypomania or major depressive episodes. The two poles may cycle back and forth; all of this depends on the individual itself. Hypomania is not as severe as mania, but the symptoms are very similar, and the episode may last only 4 days. Whereas in order to be diagnosed the major depressive episode needs to meet the following criteria: Depress mood most of every day, inactive, there may be weight changes, unusual sleeping pattern, no interest and feel tired more easily than usual, and may experience difficulty in concentrating when completing a task.5. An evaluation of the impact of this article; does it genuinely contribute to understanding of the topic at hand or is it misleading?
Yes, it is significant and contributes to the topic, but this article does a very poor job of providing details regarding the disorder. There was no mention of the types of support and resources that are available for the general population concerning the disorder. Although the article was not misleading, the writer primarily focuses on the actress and her personal stories because she has a strong stand in media and social networking.