Bipolar Disorder in the Past

Bipolar disorder, also called manic depressive disorder, was at one time thought to be a mental disorder. It wasn't until somewhere past the 1960s that they determined that bipolar was an actual disease. Studies and research on this disease seems to point to the fact that genetics do have a specific part in this disease. It may skip a generation here and there, but if someone in the family has it, it is almost guaranteed that a child or grandchild will have it too.

After World War II, Dr. John Cade, Psychiatrist at Bundoora Repatriation Hospital in Australia, discovered that lithium carbonate was a successful form of treatment for bipolar mania. This became the standard treatment, along with counseling and psychiatric visits for many many years. In some hospitals, electric shock treatments were actually used to try and help people with this illness.

There were several famous people in the course of history that suffered from this disease. Ludwig Von Beethoven, Lord Byron, Charles Dickens, Ralph Waldo Emerson, and Alexander Hamilton all suffered from bipolar disorder and the mania associated with it.

Today, there are many different kinds of medications for this disorder. Valporic acid, lithium, Gabapentin, Wellbutrin and Zoloft have all had successful results. Some patients respond well to the addition of anti-depressants as well. Continuing education of the disease for the patient and their family along with counseling and help groups help them to understand and provide support for the person suffering with this ailment.