Bipolar Causes

Bipolar disorder is a debilitating condition in which patients suffer from cycling moods, ranging from deep depression to mania. Some know this condition as manic-depressive disorder or manic depression.

    Bipolar causes are not well defined and there are no causes that are seen as the main reason people develop the disorder. There can be many bipolar causes present in the same patient.

Bipolar causes are split into biological and environmental components. Bipolar causes that affect one’s physiology are biological. These bipolar causes are often inherited with a basis in neurotransmitter problems. Psychological bipolar causes come about because of the patient’s environment and are therefore called environmental.

Bipolar Causes from Heredity

Heredity is one of the major bipolar causes. Researchers have found many connections between bipolar disorder and families making biological bipolar causes one of the first things doctors look at in diagnosing the disease. Bipolar causes in families are found when there is a first-degree relationship with another bipolar family member.

Evidence of the connection between bipolar disorder and families can be seen in studies of bipolar causes in twins. It has been found that when one identical twin has the disorder, the other twin is 80% more likely to also suffer from the disease. In fraternal twins, where the pair do not share the same DNA, the likelihood of the other twin also having bipolar disorder is only 16%. These studies make inherited bipolar causes clear.

Bipolar Causes from Neurotransmitters

Bipolar causes can also be found in studying neurotransmitters. These chemicals are vital signal transmitters within the brain. Bipolar disorders come about when the balance of these chemicals is upset. When bipolar causes stem from chemical imbalances, medications can be very effective in treating the disorder. Bipolar causes have been most closely linked to the brain chemicals serotonin, norepinephrine and dopamine.

Bipolar causes stemming from neurotransmitters can also be found in the nerve cell receptors. The brain chemicals may be in balance, but if the nerve cells cannot accept the signals because of problems with receptors, the bipolar causes become physical rather than chemical.

Bipolar Causes from Stress Triggers

Stress is one of the environmental bipolar causes. However, this is seen more as a trigger, different from the biological bipolar causes that allow the disorder to appear in the first place. Bipolar causes like job loss, an injury or the death of a loved one can trigger symptoms. Bipolar causes from life events trigger a lifetime problem. This disorder begins its cycle and from that point it can be treated but not cured.

Theories about bipolar causes often state that those with the disease were born with a tendency for it. The bipolar causes were in the genetic makeup of the individual. It is not clear why bipolar causes of the disease do not show up earlier in life, especially in those with bipolar parents. It would seem that simply being raised by a bipolar parent would create enough stress in most people to trigger the disease in a bipolar child.  To read about more complex forms of the disease, read our pages on Bipolar 1 disorder, Bipolar 2 and Bipolar Schizophrenia.