"A Song of Ice and Fire": The two-level world of genius patients

Recently, the final chapter of the "Guardians of the Galaxy" series was released, and Marvel's classic characters, such as Iron Man, have once again sparked a wave of heated discussions.

A fan said: "Seeing Iron Man, played by Robert Downey Jr. , put on his iron suit and soar into the universe, and then fight back after being forced into a desperate situation and soar into the sky, is a stunning sight that Marvel can never replicate."

Robert Downey Jr. and his Iron Man

What many people don’t know is that Robert Downey Jr., who has created a classic heroic image in the hearts of countless people, suffers from bipolar disorder .

Bipolar disorder is a serious mental illness characterized by alternating episodes of mania and depression . Simply put, patients are singing "A Song of Ice and Fire". They may suddenly become extremely excited, and then immediately fall into depression after the excitement.

Post-Impressionist painter Vincent van Gogh shot himself in 1890 at the age of 37 in a state of mental disorder. He suffered from bipolar disorder during his lifetime.

Hemingway, Beethoven, Woolf... are all patients with bipolar disorder, which also gives this disease a coat of clothing called " genius disease ."

In recent years, the number of patients with bipolar disorder seems to be increasing. Fierce competition and pressure from work and life make people work hard with anxiety, while ignoring their physical and mental health. Many people are in a "hypomanic state" . If you are under too much pressure for a long time or cannot adjust your emotions well, you may fall into the quagmire of bipolar disorder.

According to statistics, there are currently at least 7 million people with bipolar disorder in China. Among these patients, those with bipolar disorder type II are particularly prone to misdiagnosis, which makes the situation of patients who are already suffering from emotional distress even worse.

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Bipolar II disorder: a wolf in sheep's clothing

There are three main types of bipolar disorder: bipolar I, bipolar II, and cyclothymic disorder .

Bipolar I disorder is diagnosed when an individual experiences a manic episode and severe depressive symptoms, while bipolar II disorder is milder and cyclothymia is a chronic mood disorder.

In clinical practice, although patients with bipolar II disorder may experience some contrasting emotions such as excessive excitement or depression, the symptoms are not so obvious, resulting in only a 20% to 30% diagnosis rate . It took the author of this book 40 years to diagnose the disease. Failure to diagnose or misdiagnosis can lead to incorrect medication or worsening of symptoms .

The biggest reason why it is difficult to diagnose is that the symptoms of mania are mild and can be easily ignored and misinterpreted, such as thinking that one is "socially phobic" or has obsessive-compulsive disorder.

"Whereas someone with bipolar I disorder might want to shop out an entire department store during an episode, someone with bipolar II disorder might spend hours thinking about what to wear. A person with bipolar II disorder is less likely to be the center of attention at a party and might be too nervous to even go."

In addition, because the symptoms are very similar to depression, anxiety, and obsessive-compulsive disorder, it is particularly easy to be misdiagnosed as depression . Bipolar disorder usually begins with an episode of depression. Studies have found that almost 40% of bipolar patients are initially diagnosed with unipolar depressive disorder, but antidepressants or anti-anxiety drugs alone are unlikely to be effective, and may even make the condition worse.

Typical symptoms of bipolar II disorder include:

Extremely sensitive

Difficulty concentrating

Always worried

Want to prove that you are as good as others

Sometimes I feel excited, but the excitement doesn't last long

Having trouble getting up in the morning and having trouble falling asleep at night

Never express your own opinions, never make decisions on your own

Emotions jump back and forth between excitement and depression, with no middle ground

If more than half of the above conditions apply to you, your health is in danger. It is best to communicate with a professional and take intervention measures as early as possible so as not to let this wolf in sheep's clothing act recklessly.

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Disease Exploration

What is happening in the patient's brain?

The occurrence of mental illness is closely related to the substance and operating mechanism of the brain. The disease is often triggered at any time, and the trigger point is the brain's response to a certain situation.

What is going on in the brain of someone with bipolar disorder? During the swings between depression and mania, at least three changes occur in the brain:

1. Imbalance of brain chemicals affects amygdala function

Impaired amygdala function, which facilitates memory processing and emotional function, can cause people with bipolar II disorder to be unable to accurately read others. For example, they may interpret someone's expressionless face as negative.

2. The hippocampus is deviated

The subhippocampal subiculum can help people identify dangerous situations, but if it goes astray, it will cause the patient to be unable to accurately judge whether a situation is safe.

3. Problems with brain communication and abnormal neurotransmitters

Communication in the brain is the process of transmitting and interpreting information. Neurotransmitters are important communication media. Some patients have overreacting neurotransmitters, while others have underreacting neurotransmitters. The three monoamine neurotransmitters that are closely related to bipolar disorder are serotonin, norepinephrine, and dopamine.

In recent years, research on bipolar disorder has increasingly focused on changes in the brain, such as thinning of gray matter. Images of the brain provide experts with a roadmap for finding treatment effects, new power to help them prevent the disease and discover therapies that improve patients' lives.

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How to live happily in the deep quagmire?

"They all say this is a genius disease, but I can't even eat or sleep. Sometimes I feel confident enough to make history, and sometimes I want to destroy the world. Maintaining a normal life has exhausted all my strength."

Some patients describe their lives like this: “I have never felt real happiness.” You can imagine their inner struggles.

If you or someone you know is already in this quagmire and want to regain a true sense of happiness, or if you want to take some health precautions, the author offers the following suggestions:

1. Treat sleep well

Don’t sleep too little or too much, maintain 7-8 hours of sleep every night.

2. Your daily routine needs to be as regular as possible

A regular routine can help relieve anxiety and make you feel stronger and calmer.

3. Eat healthy and exercise moderately

Eat more vegetables, fruits and whole grains; choose the sport you like and exercise 5 times a week, 30 minutes each time.

4. Avoid excessive stress and stay relaxed

Stress can bring risks and make people feel bad and depressed, so you should find your own way to relieve stress, such as meditation and chatting.

5. Take medicine seriously

6. Do the job you want

7. Stay close to your family and friends

However, there are also studies that show that this disease is closely related to creativity. To fully tap into your creativity, it is most important to nourish yourself, maintain a balanced physical state, and improve the quality of life so that flowers can grow on the branches of the tree of life.

The best way to keep weeds off a piece of land is not to pull them out, but to plant flowers on it.

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Everyone can have a peaceful inner world

"We talked, the breeze blew through the trees, the sun shone brightly on us. We laughed and suddenly realized: I'm not worried anymore, I'm not hypervigilant anymore. At that moment, I was just having fun."

I wish that every one of you who reads this, even if you have been torn between ice and fire, can finally have such happiness that comes from the heart.

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