CALLED MANIC DEPRESSION OR BIPOLAR DISORDER ST IGMA PERSISTS
Manic depression is another term for bipolar disorder. Manic depression, a phrase that describes the extremes of mood associated with bipolar disorder. A phrase with origins rooted in Ancient Greek where the coupling of the words was used as early as the first century to describe symptoms of mental illness and an official title of the disorder coined by Emil Kraepelin in 1902.
Over the last few days, I've been researching the syymology—the development and use of a word or phrase through history and across languages—of the axiom manic depression. (Yes, I know I'm a complete word nerd).
What is particularly interesting about the term manic depression is that in the last decade the medical profession, psychiatry specifically, has made a concerted effort to shift the vernacular to the now official DSM diagnostic term of bipolar disorder. There are a number of reasons cited for this shift:
Bipolar disorder is more of a clinical term,; less emotionally loaded.
Manic depression gives emphasis to the predominant emotional symtoms, but implies exclusion of the physical or cognitive symptoms. The term also excludes the cyclothymic or hypomanic bipolar II disorder versions of the disorder.
Manic depression has been greatly stimatized. Consider popular phrases as manic Monday, Animanics, homicidal maniac, etc. And depression is now generally used as an everyday replacement for the word sad or tired.
And siagnostic and clinical applications are most often referenced by medical professionals. But those with the disorder talk more about how manic depression is bandied about as if it is more serious than the common cold.
What is wonderfully ironic is that it took centuries for the expression manic depression to become politically incorrect. It's taken less than a decade for the replacement title bipolar disorder to reach the same status. I did a search on Twitter looking for other members of the online bipolar disorder communities. Tweet after tweet came up with the phrase “bipolar weather” referencing a sudden change in the temperature or precipitation.
Raisinear posted in our Forums about this very thing venting about how a person referenced their bipolar landlord because he is unbalanced and unpredictable. Raisinear pointed out that bipolar disorder can also be used interchangeably with brilliant, creative, energetic or artist.
She asks, “Should I just walk away from this, knowing that nothing I say will get through to them or should I try to educate them about why equating “unpredictable and unbalanced” with bipolar is hurtful, and, for lack of a better word, just plain wrong?”
Comments
(1)
Martin says:
Hello, I can only agree with you on this, and in a way, I get daily proof. I use Google's email “alert” service to send me new articles based on the word, “bipolar”. I get maybe a dozen links each day.
The breakdown if these links is always much the same—usually a couple of news stories involving violence where someone's bipolar disorder is quoted, a couple of articles (often about celebrities) who have used the word bipolar non-medically, then the rest would be actual articles and blogs about bipolar.
I don't know what it means, but I've definitely noticed a rapid increase in the use of the word bipolar, and perhaps also in the awareness of the condition, but how accurately I don't know.
(2)Sarah says:
Martin is 100% right-on! I also see these alerts every day and have been struck by how they are dominated by dubious claims of “bipolar” from people looking to construct a criminal defense (on my Bipolar Lives website I explain the research that shows how a person with manic depression illness is far more likely to be a victim of a crime than to commit one), or celebrity rants where the word is used as a prejorative intended to be synomous with anything they don't like. I think the reality is that in popular culture “bipolar” is a slang term that is bandied around very freely—BUT that is why I have my website, and I do try to educate people in personal conversation. It is like anything though—you have to pick your battles and some folks just don't want to have less than one word in their vocabulary of abuse.
(3)John Thompson says:
It's important to keep it in perspective. By calling someone out on their usage of the word, you are setting up yourself for your own definition. You mentally confirm your condition as distinct from their misuse. It also offers them the opportunity to define the correct use as what they see in you, as if your symptomatic behavior defines the condition universally.
It all adds up to defining yourself as “bipolar”. I'd let it lay.
(4)cribwinner27says:
Hi Raisenear,
I try to follow the advice someone gave me some time ago. She said if you want to get closer to a person (have further interaction), maybe you should say something. If not walk away, I can't
always do this but I try. Sometimes I just feel compelled to say something, especially if they are making a joke about it. At these times I don't identify myself as bipolar because it could bring
me more ridicule which I don't need.
(5)Ben says:
My wife has bipolar II with rapid cycling. She is unpredictable and unbalanced much of the
time. What's wrong with the truth?
(6)Traci says:
Unfortunately, where I live, manic depression and bipolar disorder are all the same to people.
They think it is just a big problem that cannot be controlled. I have to keep it a secret because if
I say it, I might as well say I am practicing voodoo and slaughtering animals and bathing in the
blood. I agree with Ben. We ARE unpredictable. We ARE unbalanced. The heartache is that o
our symptoms 1) sometimes come and go as they please (making us appear capricious) and 2) c
can be undistinguishable from deadly sins (hupomania looks like Promiscuity, depression like s
sloth). Educate, educate, educate. That's all we can do.
(8)George says:
The stigma of mental illness still exists and can be very damaging.
However, I feel strongly that the huge numbers of us who are more or less successfully treated for bipolar and more or less as “normal” or “stable” as the next guy/gal should speak out when we feel it relatively safe and appropriate to do so.
Reputable and outstanding people coming out of the closet, as it were, is the most powerful way to attack a stigma. Just ask the gays and lesbians.
(9)Ken says:
Stigma interests me a great deal, as I'm also living with HIV.
I almost feel defensive in talking about my bipolar II condition, particular around other recovering alcoholics who look skeptical when I tell them I was diagnosed before I stopped drinking. The implication is that now that I'm stopped, the bipolar should be less of a problem. Indeed it has been but I've been taking medications of one kind or another for it all along!
Someone else has had terrible experiences with psychiatrists and meds so she's very worried about me and seems to be re-living her experience through me.
I gues I just have to pick and choose who I confide in. After giving up Seroquel because of elevated blood sugars old-fashioned lithium has kept me stabile—and I don't want to fight that!
Http://bipolar.about.com/b/2009/06/16/called-manic-depression-or-bipolar-disorder-stigma...
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