BY SENAIT G/HIWOT
Picasso was a great artist
Lincoln a great president
Mozart a great pianist
Vangoh a great artist
All of them share in common
What is commonly known
As bipolar or mental illness
But it was a mental stillness
A dedication to their craft
A beauty of their art
They have passed down history
That left a lot of mystery
Linking them to creativity
Because that is the reality
They are truly inspirations
Of similar situations
So People with mental illness
Have a huge mental stillness
What is Bipolar Disorder?
Bipolar Disorder is a mental illness in which a person’s mood alternates between extreme mania and depression. It is caused by chemical imbalances in the brain like Dopamine. It is also called manic-depressive illness. When manic, people with Bipolar Disorder feel intensely elated, self-important, energetic, and irritable. When depressed, they experience painful sadness, negative thinking, and indifference to things that used to bring them happiness.
What should be done to improve the illness?
To improve the illness one should take his/her medications regularly, avoid caffeinated foods and drinks, avoid alcohol, stay away from drugs, and avoid stress.
How should people with Bipolar see themselves?
They should be able to think they can do what they put their minds to. Even if the illness makes it hard often creating highs and lows in the mood, they shouldn’t feel debilitated because the illness doesn’t bring permanent damage to the brain; they should be able to use their full potential.
Bipolar and spirituality/religion
Bipolar Disorder is often understood as a problem of spirituality especially in developing countries. When the patient is depressed we take him/her to holy waters, when the patient is manic, again we take him to holy waters or we involve him in to other spiritual practices and force him/her to stop his medication. Yes, these methods can help but it is automatically wrong to stop his/her medication. It would definitely make his/her condition worse.
How should people understand Bipolar?
Usually in kids early ages people don’t understand the slightly different behaviors of Bipolar people like passive aggressiveness. Bullying or other bad treatment usually results for these kids to feel alienated and leads to the risk of suicide. They should have a good social support system or their family and friends must understand their situation.
THE ETHIOPIAN HERALD WEDNESDAY 8 FEBRUARY 2023
