This question is for the mental health pros out there. Why is it that a large percentage of young people who ask for mental health help here, are diagnosed with Bi-polar Disorder? I work as a substance abuse counsellor for dually diagnosed clients at a private facility and I'm trained to efficiently use the DSM-IV. I know that meeting the criteria for bi-polar is not a slam-dunk for adults, so why are so many adols. being diagnosed with it. Has it become some kind of catch-all for lazy workers who don't wish to spend the time required to make a proper diagnosis? I have a little experience with adols. and realize they can be difficult to work with. If all these diagnosis are legit, then bi-polar in children is reaching epidemic proportions and we should find out why. Labeling a child bi-polar can have devistating results later in life. It's as hard to shake as schizophrenia. Honest, civil replies only, please.
2007-01-25 22:07:18 · 8 answers · asked by rick m 3 in Health ➔ Mental Health
DSM-IV is the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual 4th Edition of the American Psychiatric Association. It's full of criteria used to properly diagnose patients with mental disorders.
2007-01-25 22:23:43 · update #1
adols.= adolesents
2007-01-26 02:01:58 · update #2
what teenager is not bi-polar. its a cop-out.honest to god. theres too many kids on mood stabiblizing drugs now a days. dang all kids act up at timesand shelter themselves it others. its part of growing up. the parents inability to cope with mood swings of the kids is the problem.
i'd say 10% is lack of family support, 5% mental illness, 85% mis-diagnosis.
2007-01-25 22:16:46 · answer #1 · answered by SARcasm,RN 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Hard to say. I'm not a doctor, but I know about 5 people with low-level Bipolar illness.
What I think is going on is that a lot of people who were formerly undiagnosed, are now being diagnosed.
I mean, okay imagine, living 20 years with a family that was sort of whacked. One person gets diagnosed with it. Then, all of a sudden, the realization hits that family. Most of the people in the family have it.
Some have it, and refuse to be stigmatized, and thus do not go to any type of treatment, some are too far gone. I mean, sometimes it's generational, sometimes it's not. Sometimes, I believe it has something to do with learned patterns of behavior.
As to teenagers, I sure see a lot of younger people now that are potentially schizophrenic, and / or bipolar.
Causes? No idea, maybe there's a higher social / nurture vs. nature component in the development of these diseases.
Again I am not a health care professional, just have had some experience in family life.
But I see kids in daily life, mostly friends' kids, loose associations, and low level mood swings. Of course, it might be a case of the search by the care team to "Solve the problem" and find a solution. Then it falls back to ADD (which seems to be really prevalent these days, more than Bipolar, Schizophrenia, or Schizoaffective disorder.
Good luck in your practice. Mental Health care is a hard gig.
2007-01-25 22:42:43 · answer #2 · answered by A Military Veteran 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
perhaps the reason that young people are frequently diagnosed with bi polar disorder is because they are displaying all the symptoms of that disorder. also , it can be quite often genetic, and can often effect many family members. i know of several families with multiple siblings, and sometimes up to half of them are defiantly bi polar. the lazy workers you talk about have to be doctors, because they are the only ones that can give a diagnosis. the diagnosis is based on the symptoms that the patient displays to the doctor, and the observations of nurses, family history, and behavior. i do agree that diagnosing and treatment is not an exact science, and with younger people it is more difficult to diagnose, and sometimes more difficult due to their age, and perhaps due to the fact that some experiment with illegal drugs. since the population u work have substance abuse problems, it makes diagnosing them more difficult, and they are being diagnosed, based on the symptoms they are displaying at the time, and have to be treated for the symptoms they are showing, you say adols, which i believe u mean adults, are difficult to work with is not true. younger people are more difficult to work with, because they have not matured enough to articulate their feelings as well, and are still in the process of growing up. hope this gives u some insight. yes i agree we should find out why bi polar is epidemic, but i believe that it is handed down from one generation to another. i know, because it runs in my family.a good observation on your part
2007-01-26 00:00:04 · answer #3 · answered by zeek 5 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Interesting. My son (he's 11) was diagnosed as bi polar, and he has extreme anxiety (which is the condition we are aggressively treating). I'm not sure where the bi polar comes in. Maybe it's easier to label kids as bi polar rather than outright depression? I'll watch this answer to see what the "pros" say. What is a DSM-IV?
2007-01-25 22:13:18 · answer #4 · answered by just browsin 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋
When being admitted to mental health you take a 14 question survey on how you react to different situations and how you handle normal day activities. If you answer yes to 10 out of the 14 you are bi-polar that is how they diagnose people
2007-01-25 22:19:00 · answer #5 · answered by Amy 3 · 1⤊ 1⤋
there are some doctors in houses and some in office buildings.
you may want to go to an office building as bi polar peeps may not accept houses.
2007-01-25 22:15:01 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋
i think you should look for a better job .
2007-01-25 22:13:10 · answer #7 · answered by Donets'k 5 · 0⤊ 1⤋
The doctor is in...
2007-01-25 22:11:37 · answer #8 · answered by Zeiv 1 · 0⤊ 3⤋