Bipolar Disorder Self Injury: Why You Must Be Concerned

In bipolar disorder, there is often concern about bipolar disorder self injury. It is usually serious, and comes in different forms.

A form of bipolar disorder self injury that’s coming most lately into the general public consciousness is self mutilation, or “cutting”. This practice is found in folk with other diagnoses, too. In reality, only a fraction of those who self injure are bipolar.

Cutting, burning or other self hurting behaviors are often seen in adolescent girls and others, even in men. A lot of this is a part of bipolar disorder self injury.

These acts aren’t suicide attempts, whether or not the people who do them are depressed or suicidal. They’re often desperate acts of anger, worthlessness, and loss of control. This is often a case of bipolar disorder self injury, and it’s not surprising when the symptoms are similar.

Suicide, naturally, is the most extreme form of bipolar disorder self injury. There will be plans and attempts before an individual commits suicide. In any case, all threats of bipolar disorder self injury should be regarded seriously.

Suicidal thoughts may cloud the thinking about a depressed person to the limit that he or she will be able to think about nothing else. It may appear the world would be better off without them, or that they can prove to others that they should have been treated better. At this time there is concern of bipolar disorder self injury, but the concepts are just at a low heat.

The danger becomes more imminent when the person starts to make plans. A person may make elaborate plans for some years. Another person may only think about a plausible way to go about it. The difficulty is that either of these folk may at any point basically commit suicide. It isn’t easy to predict the chance of bipolar disorder self injury.

Many times a person’s suicidal bents will not be spotted unless an attempt is made. A sensible person should treat all attempts seriously, though some may seem more serious than others. More significant attempts could be identified when the result was more certain compared to other attempts, or a note was found. Bipolar disorder self injury is always possible in these scenarios.

There’s always the possibility that a person is serious, in any case what type of attempt was employed. Statistics show that people who have never tried to commit suicide during the past are 40 times less sure to be successful than people who have.

Suicide may be on a person’s mind if he starts to set his affairs in order or make last agreements. It could be so simple as giving away possessions, or as complicated as making monetary arrangements. If this is suddenly seen in a bipolar individual, it should be determined whether that person is in danger of bipolar disorder self injury.

Many thoughts, plans, or attempts actually do end in suicide. 11 percent of deaths in the States are as a result of suicide. Roughly eighty percent of suicide deaths are by males, although more ladies attempt it. Every year, more and more teens are committing suicide. Bipolar disorder self injury, then, is a definite and increasing issue.

The disease’s physical, social, and affective consequences are tricky enough to handle. Self harm and suicide make attention to bipolar disorder self-mutilate most necessary.

Source: Unknown

Your Brooding Teen-Could There Be A Problem

Attentive parents are a bipolar child’s best chance at getting vital treatment. If you answer yes to the majority of the following questions, consider having your child evaluated by a child psychiatrist or clinical therapist who specializes in bipolar disorder.

Does your child have rapidly alternating moods that fluctuate numerous times a day from being elated to being extremely irritable? Is your child incredibly hard to wake up and equally hard to get to sleep? Have other parents warned you that your child tends to be aggressive with their children or does your child get into fights? Is your child explosive at times? Would you describe your child as unstoppable once he or she gets a notion to obtain something? (i.e. Have you ever gone out to pick up pizza, ice cream or a video just to stop the tension your child is causing in the home?) Does your child often describe activities that are enjoyable to most children as boring or not stimulating enough? Have others described your child as withdrawn? Is your child often sad without a reason? Does your teen drive erratically or engage in other highly risky behavior (i.e. Promiscuity or substance abuse)? Has your child been diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder or depression, but doesn’t seem to respond well to treatment? Does your child have trouble maintaining friendships? Has your child been in trouble numerous times at school? Has your child ever been in trouble with the law? Is there any family history of mood disorders and/or substance abuse?

* Remember, no one of these symptoms by itself constitutes bipolar disorder. And, most importantly, in order for any problem to reach the level of a psychiatric disorder, it needs to be interfering with the child’s life. The bottom line is that parents must ask themselves if their child’s behavior is causing him or her not to function at home, at school or with friends.

Friday Readers Story

Anonymous said...

I am 19 years old, and I've been cutting myself since I was 15. My boyfriend at the time committed suicide, which I think I read someone else on here has been through, and it is really hard. I was there, when he did it, so I never really got over it. I tried to kill myself twice before my next birthday. I have his name cut into my arm. I met and got into a relationship with another guy, that ended up being an abusive relationship.

That went on for..almost two years. I came out of that with a daughter (born at 25 wks), and several more scars.I recently attempted suicide again and was diagnosed as bipolar, as well as suffering from PTSD, which I now have medication for. I think the reason I do it, (I still do it) is because when I do it, and I bleed, it just..I don't know..gives me a physical reason for the pain, which kind of helps..

But, I am trying, /trying/ to work past it, so I can be there for my kids, and my soon to be husband.I don't know why I felt like I needed to go into that here, but I did..so..I dunno, maybe it'll help someone.
January 19, 2008

Tip #3

It's not all about me

One of the things I don't like about these illnesses is that my focus is so much on ME all the time. How am I feeling? What am I doing? Is this sadness or a depressive downturn? Am I happy or is this a manic upswing? So I try and ask my friends and co workers every day how THEY are, what is new in THEIR life. It gets me out of my own head to practice asking about other people every single day.

Image:Best Friends by ~Midnitesho
Tip: Facing Us.Org

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Kate’s Blog

on Mental Health, Parenting & Wellness Education

Kate McLaughlin speaks and writes about all things mental health.
Her personal experience and positive attitude combine with current research, facts, and proven strategies to encourage those affected by mental illness, inform the unaware, and eradicate the stigma that surrounds diseases of the brain.

Kate is a member of the Child and Adolescent Bipolar Foundation, Depression and Bipolar Support Alliance, the Juvenile Bipolar Research Foundation, the National Alliance on Mental Illness, and Mental Health America.

Kate has a good article on 10 Myths concerning teen depression that I will feature at a later date