Bipolar and Autism Linked!

Bipolar Disorder and Autism Linked!

An Internship Honors Project by Prachi9876

What is BD?

Bipolar disorder (BD) is a common mood disorder. In BD, elevated moods followed by depressed moods. These cycles can happen over days, weeks, or even months. It is a disorder of what you might call intra-psychic mentalism: in other words, reading of your own mind. Normally, we read our own mental states by way of sensing our moods, thoughts and feelings in relation to something, and report these to others with phrases like I feel like Y; I'm in the mood for X; or, I'm happy with Z. In BD these internal mind-readings become pathologically exaggerated into crippling swings from mania to depression, often combined with delusional ideas about the self, messianically megalomanic or suicidally self-critical as the case may be: intra-psychic hyper-mentalism in fact.

What is Autism?

Autism is a range of symptoms that include difficulties with social skills, speech, behavior, and communication. These challenges fall in a wide array. Each persons signs and symptoms of autism are different. ASD involves deficits in mental modules and brain centres involved with reading other peoples minds, such as gaze monitoring, conversation and social skills, interpreting body language, and so on.

According to one study, about 27 percent of children with autism show symptoms of bipolar disorder.

Research- Analyzing data from the postmortem brain tissue of over seven hundred human brains, researchers found similar levels of certain molecules in those suffering from autism, bipolar disorder, and schizophrenia. Further analysis found links between bipolar and depression, as well as depression and autism.

In a recent study of children with autism (ages 7 to 17), it is found that nearly a third had frequent episodes of elevated mood. Just over 60 percent could be described as very irritable. Just over half talked excessively. Other common symptoms included excessive activity such as pacing (43 percent), accident proneness (44 percent), distractibility (43 percent) and a tendency to get in trouble (47 percent). Sleep disturbances were also common. The point is that all these behaviors could be considered symptoms of bipolar disorder! Yet clearly these children did not all have bipolar disorder. In many cases, their mania symptoms were, in fact, symptoms of autism. ADHD symptoms also overlap with these behaviors.

Both conditions show an activation of genes in star-shaped brain cells called astrocytes, these cells provide biochemical support to the cells that help form the blood-brain barrier, provide nutrients to nervous tissue, and play a role in the repair and scarring of the brain and spinal cord after traumatic injuries. The autism brains also show a unique increase in the expression of genes specific to immune cells called microglia.

Symptoms of bipolar disorder-They fall into two categories according to the type of mood experiencing.

Symptoms of a manic episode include:

Acting unusually happy, upbeat, and wired.

increased energy and agitation.

exaggerated sense of self and inflated self-esteem.

sleep disturbances, being easily distracted.

Symptoms of a depressive episode include:

acting or feeling down or depressed, sad, or hopeless

loss of interest in normal activities

sudden and dramatic changes in appetite

unexpected weight loss or weight gain

fatigue, loss of energy, and frequent sleeping.

Symptoms of autism include:

difficulty with social interaction and communication

practicing repetitive behaviors that are not easy to disturb

displaying very specific preferences or practices that are not easily changed

How to recognize mania in someone who has autism

Depression is often obvious and easy to identify than mania which makes it difficult to recognize mania in autism.

If you noticed a sudden shift or change in the symptoms, these behaviors may be the result of mania .Once youve identified when the symptoms appeared, look for the seven key signs of mania in people with autism.

Medical Treatment

The goal of treatment for bipolar disorder is to stabilize moods and prevent broad mood swings. This can stop problematic manic or depressive episodes. Typical treatment for bipolar disorder is either psychoactive medications like Lithium or anti-seizure mood stabilizers like Valporic acid

For children with BD and ASD, a combination of mood-stabilizing medicines and antipsychotic medicines like risperidone (Risperdal) and aripiprazole (Abilify) are used.

Some also prefer a family treatment intervention, especially with children. This combination treatment of education and therapy may help decrease severe mood swings and improve behavior.

Conclusion

The symptoms and reasons of bipolar disorder and Autism overlap with each other. But still it is possible to tease apart the symptoms of true bipolar disorder from those of autism by looking carefully at when the symptoms appeared and how long they lasted.

Bipolar Disorder is associated with a trend towards both an increased number of medication trials attempted, and slightly more medications used. A typical antipsychotics, like lithium is used most commonly Many medications were effective in this sample. It is also possible that bipolar spectrum disorders are underdiagnosed in individuals with autism spectrum disorders. Prospective treatment trials and clearer identification of diagnostic issues are necessary to provide definitive evidence to meet the clinical needs of individuals with Autism.

Helps and Resources

Autism Speaks-https://www.autismspeaks.org/

Autism Network-https://iancommunity.org/

Healthline- https://www.healthline.com/

References

https://www.7cups.com/forum/BipolarDisordersSupportCommunity_63/BipolarSupport_589/WhatisBipolar_149560/

https://www.healthline.com/health/bipolar-and-autism

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2016/05/160504174903.html

QUESTIONS

1. Do you have any experience of autism with bipolar, either from yourself or a loved one, if so, would you like to share you experience with us? But only if you are comfortable!

2. What type of support have you received or are you receiving from the people around you?

3. Since we have learned about this, how will you help yourself or someone you love if you/they are having symptoms in the future?