Treating a psychiatric or personality disorder can be isolating and frustrating. The commonly prescribed medications on the market claim to level mood and help with impulse control. In the case of bipolar disorder, these mood-stabilizing medications aim to target the extreme highs of mania or the severe lows of depressions. Without medication, managing bipolar disorder can seem impossible— like navigating a storm in a dense fog. But research on cannabis might offer brighter news for those dealing with it. Since medical weed has gained acceptance, it has played a critical role in managing other disorders, like borderline personality disorder. But what about when dealing with the teeter-totter of mania and depression seen in bipolar disorder? It’s an important question for both doctors and bipolar patients when they decide on treatment. Can you treat bipolar disorder with medical marijuana?
What Is Bipolar Disorder?
Bipolar Disorder is a mental health condition that affects many. In fact, almost 2.6% of all Americans have bipolar disorder. And according to the National Institute of Health, that number keeps on getting higher.
To put it simply, bipolar disorder is a mental health condition characterized by intense depressive lows and manic highs. These mood changes can be disabling, often manifesting at unpredictable times. Not only that, but patients with this disorder can suffer from forms of psychosis, like hallucinations or delusions.
The options to treat this disorder continue to expand for those riding these emotional waves. Alongside talk therapy, doctors prescribe antidepressants, mood stabilizers and anti-anxiety drugs as treatment.
But these drugs can cause an array of bummer side effects that would change anyone’s mood, whether they have bipolar or not. Few people want to deal with weight gain from lithium or reduced