Bipolar is a mental illness which effects the functioning of the brain. The patient generally experiences extreme moods – very over excited or extreme depression. In many cases the person may be affected so much that they experience the symptoms of psychosis (Confused thinking, delusions and hallucinations) and are unable to distinguish what is real and what is not.
What causes Bipolar Disorder?
What causes Bipolar disorder has never clearly been understood; however, similar to any illness its causes are said to be a combination of hereditary and other external causes. Yet, it has been stated that depending on the environment the patient is exposed to, can determine whether the illness is triggered. For example, it is recommended that a person with the disorder maintains a regular routine and has a normal sleeping pattern.
Is the Bipolar Disorder Nature or Nurture?
It is difficult to say whether the Bipolar disorder is either entirely nature or nurture. However, it is true that the environment one is exposed to plays a large part in the activation of the illness but then again the illness was obtain through genetics in the first place.
Let’s say that there is a middle aged man who is experiencing a large amount of stress due to a business related issue. He spends most of his time working and not much time doing relaxing activities, such as spending time with the family. This man, who for this example we will call Ted, has a family history of Bipolar Disorder however he has never been tested for the disease because he has never displayed any symptoms. But Ted has not been getting a lot of sleep because of all the stress he has been experiencing. Furthermore he seems to be experiencing extreme moods and has not been himself, but of course he does not notice the change in his behavior because he is virtually living in his own world. Luckily, his family and close friends notice the extreme changes and are able to get Ted help. Ted is prescribed medication and attends support groups for people with Bipolar Disorder. After a long struggle he is nursed back to health and can live a normal life as long as he continues to take the medication and keeps a regular routine.
Ted was lucky that he received help when he did and that was all thanks to his loving family and friends. However, there have been unfortunate cases in which people with the disorder have not received help in time and have gone to extreme lengths. This is mainly because they do not have family who are aware of the problems they are experiencing. Whereas, because Ted was surrounded by people who were aware of his problem and supported him, his recovery was very successful.
On the other hand, it is argued that it was just a coincidence that the most stressful time came at the same time Ted experienced the symptoms of the Bipolar Disorder. It can be argued that the illness was inevitably going to be triggered at that age no matter what environment Ted was exposed to at the time. After all one of the reason for having Bipolar disorder is because it is inherited in the first place.
SANE (2009) Bipolar Disorder. Australia: SANE Australia, Viewed 26th of October 2009.
Questions
Where do you think the Bipolar Disorder stands in the Nature vs. Nurture debate? Why?
Are there any situations you know of when the Bipolar Disorder has been present?
1. Where do you think the Bipolar Disorder stands in the Nature vs. Nurture debate? Why?
ReplyDeleteI think bipolar disorder stands somewhere in the middle of the nature nurture debate. No one knows exactly what causes bipolar disorder, though it can be triggered by a traumatic event in life or a stressful time. This is the nurture side of the argument because the events are part of someone’s life, not their genes. Bipolar disorder, it is argued, can have primarily biological underpinnings, which proves the nature side of the argument. Being a hereditary disease, bipolar would most likely sit more towards the nature side of the continuum. This is because there is more evidence of the disease in genes than in lifetime situations. I do not believe, however, that it would sit on the extreme nature side because there is evidence for the nature argument.
2. Are there any situations you know of when the Bipolar Disorder has been present?
I do not know of any situations personally in which bipolar has been present though I could have been in one without noticing because one in 200 people will experience bipolar disorder in any 12-month period. This means that I could have encountered many in my lifetime.
MADDY M 10N
I agree that the matter of Bipolar Disorder cannot be completely classified as a result of either nature or nurture. Different cases may affect individuals. If there has been a large and strong amount of the disease held within previous generations, the victim is more likely to get bipolar at a similar time to them if they maintain a similar lifestyle to those before them. This is a combination of both nature and nurture. However, if a person is living an unhealthy lifestyle with minimal sleep they may be able to obtain the disease at an earlier age compared to their relatives.
ReplyDeleteThere may be no way to stop the development of bipolar disorder if it is extremely common in your genetics. However, there is a possibility to try and increase the time in which you don’t have the disease. This could be done by just simply getting plenty of sleep, having a loving family and trying to limit your amount of stress. Also there must be a small amount of hereditary data in your genes to be able to obtain bipolar in the first place. Therefore it couldn’t be a complete result of just either nature or nurture. I believe a small combination of both nature and nurture could have the impact on either increasing or delaying the time in which you are diagnosed with bipolar disorder.
The severity of the disease could also be altered by your genetics or your environment. If you have been diagnosed and still continue to have late nights and eat unhealthily the extent of the disease could increase. Also if your relatives had a larger extent of bipolar you may also inherit the worst of the disorder such as hallucinations. Therefore I believe that Bipolar disorder stands in the middle of the radar of the nature and nurture debate.
Danika
Where do you think the Bipolar Disorder stands in the Nature vs. Nurture debate? Why?
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion, the bipolar disorder is cause by both biological and environmental factors although it is more weighted towards the environmental aspect. According to the example above, Ted experienced the symptoms of bipolar disorder during the stressful time of his life. During anyone’s crisis of their life, the stress can cause many other mental disorders such as depression, sleeping disorders etc. However the chances of experiencing bipolar disorder more than other mental disorders are increased by the hereditary factors. Therefore, this could have been the reason why ted experienced bipolar disorder. I think that bipolar disorder can happen to anyone but by having it encoded in the genes, the chances of experiencing this particular metal disorder increases.
Jess Lee 10B
Bipolar, like many things, probably can't be placed straight away on one side of the argument. Many cases of bipolar, like Ted's, come down to a combination of biological factors like inheritance, and lifetime experiences. With Ted, it will never be known whether or not he would have got it regardless of overwork, or if that part was critical to bipolar's development in him.
ReplyDeleteIn terms of one or the other, I'm going to agree with Maddy and put it in the middle, because the disorder probable can't be put down to one or the other. If people had never had the stressful times, would they have got it? Would they have got it with or without their genetic predisposition? It would be unfair to put it on one side, as it seems both sides of the argument are necessary.
Fraser 10N
In my opinion the bipolar disorder is not entirely nature or nurture but rather a combination of both. Bipolar cannot simply erupt due to a stressful time and therefore nature must be involved in some way. The person must have this disease in their genes in order for this to occur. However I believe that the environment that the person is in plays a huge role in deciding when this disease will come alive. In the example above it shows that Ted had a family history of this disease and when he was faced with large amounts of stress it suddenly started. This helps to prove my point that bipolar disorder is both nature and nurture.
ReplyDeleteShannon :)
Where do you think the Bipolar Disorder stands in the Nature vs. Nurture debate? Why?
ReplyDeleteBipolar disorder seems quite vague, but from the article I think it is most probable that Nature is the cause. Although Bipolar disorder can be brought out by external stimuli, there are no cases of Bipolar disorder without nature (while there seems to be some entirely without nurture). I don’t believe there is any evidence to support Bipolar disorder being introduced later in life, only activated.
Are there any situations you know of when the Bipolar Disorder has been present?
A friend of mine online has Bipolar and Schizophrenia, but because the text based medium allows him to regulate his actions, his social and professional (he works from home) life are unaffected.
I belive that this disorder is both nature and nurture, however it is more on the nature side of this debate. This is because bipolar is a genetic disorder which is passed down through a family. However, nurture also plays a big role due to our surroundings. It depends on our freinds, our family, our, where we live and im sure many other things. For example, using the case of Ted he had never thought he had gotten the disorder because he didn’t show any symptoms which is nurture because it had to be passed on. However, when things in his life got very hectic and stresfull the disorder started to show which shows the nurture side of the debate and how our surrounds and our actions cause the disorder. So basically, Ted had the gene for the disorder but never actually had it or showed any symptoms until he started to get very stressed. This then shows that Bipolar shows both sides of the debate as certain events can lead someone to get the disorder.
ReplyDeleteAmanda