Why Mood Disorders Benefit from Special Treatment

A mood disorder, such as bipolar disorder, can have a profound effect on your emotional well-being. It can create a sense of distortion and misalignment between your emotional state and your life’s circumstances. As it interferes with your ability to function, it may coincide with substance use as an attempt to manage emotional upheaval. Today, let’s talk about why mood disorders benefit from special treatment.

Undiagnosed mood disorders, including major depressive disorder and bipolar disorder, can disrupt one’s ability to function at work and in their personal life. As the symptoms intensify, some people attempt to cope by self-medicating with alcohol or drugs, potentially leading to a substance use disorder. Mood disorders benefit from special treatment to provide an individual with both medication, when necessary, and strategies to manage the symptoms of the mood disorder rather than relying on substances. Treatment for a mood disorder can be integrated with treatment for a substance use disorder at a reputable, confidential facility offering care for co-occurring disorders (also known as dual diagnosis disorders).  

Most people have heard of at least a few specific mood disorders by name.

You may be more familiar with mood disorders than you think. While major depressive and bipolar disorders appear to get more attention, they are among a longer list of mood disorders affecting people like you. Let’s focus on a handful for today’s purposes.

• Major depressive disorder: This mood disorder causes a persistent feeling of sadness and loss of interest.
• Bipolar disorder: This disorder is known by its extreme mood swings, including emotional highs (mania or hypomania) and lows (depression).
• Cyclothymic disorder: This mood disorder is marked by emotional ups and downs, although they are less extreme than bipolar disorder.
• Depression related to medical illness: This mood disorder, related to the physical effects of a medical condition, appears as persistent depression and loss of interest in activities you once enjoyed.
• Depression induced by substance use or medication: This disorder shows symptoms of depression directly related to use of a medication as well as during or after substance use.

Symptoms of mood disorders can disrupt your workday and your personal life.

Symptoms for depression can disrupt your ability to function at work and at home. You may feel a loss of interest in activities, insomnia, changes in appetite, fatigue, feelings of hopelessness or worthlessness, and more. Symptoms for mania, on the other hand, may include a feeling of euphoria, increased physical activity, decreased need for sleep, rapid speech, racing thoughts, agitation, impulsivity, and more. At their worst, these symptoms can make focusing on what’s most important seem unmanageable. As they begin to appear more frequently, they can affect your reliability and your relationships.

How you manage the symptoms of a mood disorder is critical.

Managing an undiagnosed mood disorder alone is never recommended. Mood disorders require professional support, and leaving them unchecked can lead to other disorders, most significantly a substance use disorder. If you recognize the symptoms have already begun to have a negative impact on your work and relationships, getting a confidential diagnosis is imperative.

Special treatment for a mood disorder can also integrate substance use recovery.

When a mood disorder left unaddressed for years leads to frequent substance use, evidence-based therapies for both disorders can be integrated into the same program. A skilled multidisciplinary team, including psychiatrists, master’s level clinicians, licensed therapists, and even trauma specialists can help the mood disorder sufferer find lasting relief for the intensity of symptoms and replace the behavior of turning to substance use to self-medicate routinely.

Confidential treatment for a mood disorder and substance disorder protects careers and families. 

It cannot be overemphasized that a substance use disorder and co-occurring mental health disorder can have a devastating effect on the career of a high-profile individual or the family ties of a once responsible parent or spouse. Confidential treatment can allow you to begin the recovery needed in a reflective, intimate atmosphere and ensure the accomplishments most important to you do not get harmed.

Hanley Foundation’s Headwaters is a non-profit addiction treatment program for executives, public figures, other affluent individuals, and their loved ones. Headwaters offers leading-edge, personalized clinical care for mental health and substance use disorders, and our professional and compassionate staff can help you achieve holistic wellness. To start your healing journey, call 561-270-1753 today.