Bipolar Disorder information and use of natural therapy along with vitamins, reducing the need for prescription medications
Use of fish oils and herbal supplements to improve symptoms

Bipolar disorder, known also as manic depression, is a long-term illness with a variable course. Some of the symptoms may include mania, an excessively elevated, expansive, and irritable mood; high sex drive; decreased need for sleep; rapid speech; racing thoughts; increased activity and agitation; and occasional delusions. It may also include periods of depression and other symptoms such as excessive guilt; anhedonia (absence of pleasure); or thoughts of death.
   Individuals with bipolar disorder are euthymic approximately half of the time, but recurring mood episodes are common, and time spent ill is predominated by depressive symptoms. Despite the prevalence of depression in bipolar disorder, evidence suggests that antidepressants are not likely to benefit most patients. Lithium, long considered a first-line treatment for bipolar disorder, is not the most effective agent for preventing bipolar depression.

Natural Therapies and remedies
We are slowly beginning to discover that natural supplements may play a role in the therapy of bipolar disease. Much has yet to be learned, but there are at least two nutrients that offer some hope:
   It's quite possible that one of the biochemical abnormalities is a higher amount of omega-6 fatty acids and a shortage of omega-3 fatty acids. If this is the case, Fish oils may help. For children, fish oils are available as chewable DHA children.
   Choline, a nutrient that converts into phosphatidylcholine, has shown to be beneficial, particularly in those who are prescribed lithium. You can buy choline bitartrate online.

We am not aware of any other natural supplements that have been tested and found consistently effective as a natural cure or treatment of bipolar disorder, however eating cold water fish, or taking fish oil capsules are a help.

Flax seed oil
I was wondering if flax seed oil help with bipolar illness?
    We have not seen research yet.

Pregnenolone hormone
Are there any findings regarding bipolar disorder and pregnenolone? I read a testimonial which related a side effect of rapid mood swings. I do not currently take it. If one has a predilection for mood swings would it be a good idea or a bad idea to use it?
    Pregnenolone is a powerful hormone and should only be used when all other options have failed. There are other options that should be tried first.

We have not seen research that tongkat ali would be of benefit.

Diagnosis - are psychiatrists overdiagnosing at the expense of our children?
The number of American children and adolescents treated for bipolar disorder increased 40-fold from 1994 to 2003. It is likely that doctors are more aggressively applying this diagnosis to children and it is quite likely that many of these children treated with drugs may not have a correct diagnosis, or may be harmed by the medicines.

New understanding
Modern psychiatry is beginning to understand mood disorders according to a neuroplastic rather than a neurochemical model. Neuroplasticity is the brain's ongoing ability to restructure itself over a lifetime by making new neural connections. Patients with mood disorders have been found to have neuroplastic changes, including reductions in hippocampal volume, glial and neuronal cell density, and brain-derived neurotrophic factor.

Medical treatment
Due to the high risk of recurrence, maintenance therapy is a critical part of treatment. Currently no cure exists for bipolar disorder but clinical vigilance in maintaining adequate treatment can alleviate symptoms and help prevent recurrence of manic and depressive episodes. Mood stabilizers remain the cornerstone of bipolar disorder treatment, but atypical antipsychotics, antidepressants, and lamotrigine also show some efficacy in maintaining recovery. Psychotherapy also can help patients achieve and maintain remission.

Testimonials
I'm a 32 year old rapid cycling bipolar. The nutrients that have made an enormous impact in my daily life are magnesium, taurine, vitamin B6, inositol, omega-3s, and lecithin. Most have been thoroughly studied at Mclean Hospital by Dr. Andrew Stoll and his colleagues. These agents make my daily life a pleasure. But without Lamicital and my happy light I would be hospitalized or worse. The combination of these agents have made me a very productive stable individual.