Bipolar disorders social work intervention

Reiger, Rae, 1990). Social work practitioners are cautioned when applying the diagnosis of bipolar disorder to children or adolescents, because other more common disorders of childhood such as attention deficit disorder or conduct disorder present similar symptoms (Carlson, 1998 Netherton et al., 1999 Weller, 1995). Social workers should ensure that a diagnosis is not reached too quickly or that it is based solely on behaviors exhibited in isolation. 

Bipolar disorder is a challenging condition for clients and difficult to assess and treat. The bipolar disorders present with a variety of symptoms that often cause major functioning problems in clients and that lead to frustration for their family and support systems. Clients with this disorder are often overwhelmed by the symptoms and by despair over the fluctuating moods, which are difficult to monitor. The client who suffers from bipolar disorder is faced with the challenge of understanding and tracking two separate sets of symptoms within one illness— those that arise during a manic state and those reflected in the depressive phase. 

Mood swings can lead to serious problems such as suicide attempts and suicide. Symptoms that often plague clients with bipolar disorders include suicidal ideation, violent behaviors leading to child abuse and domestic violence, major difficulties in functioning on the job, erratic behaviors, severe fluctuations in mood, psychomotor agitation, increased 

In clinical situations, clients will often describe the course of these symptoms and their severity as a roller-coaster ride not knowing when to expect the next drop (Hilty, Brady, Hales, 1999). Unlike earlier perceptions, bipolar disorder is now understood as an illness with overlapping states of mood and accompanying symptoms. Mental health professionals also recognize that clients with bipolar disorders can suffer concurrently from other forms of mental illness such as alcoholism, drug use, and anxiety disorders (Cassano, Pini, Saettoni, Dell Osso, 1999). Regardless of how clients experience this disorder, it is important for social work practitioners to become knowledgeable about the types of medications successfully used in its treatment and the psychosocial treatments that can help. 

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Treatment interventions for bipolar clients should be structured clearly and mapped out in a plan that delineates strategies for handling the problems associated with bipolar symptoms. Social work practitioners will often encounter resistance from clients with bipolar disorders, especially those experiencing a manic episode where energy, creativity, and feelings are at an all-time high. Regardless of the resistance, it is the practitioner s responsibility to help the client and family members formulate, implement, and monitor the interventions necessary to eliminate the bipolar symptoms. 

Social work practitioners must understand the intricate nature of bipolar disorders as they teach clients and their families about the disorder and help the client accept intervention efforts. It is beneficial to assist the client in understanding that bipolar disorder is not an all-or-nothing mental health condition, that is, that they are either depressed or not. In fact, clients need to be helped in gaining greater understanding of the overlapping and cyclical nature of the mood states that will be experienced as well as the subsequent course of the illness. 

In addition to medication, social work practitioners use various psychosocial interventions such as individual and group therapy in the treatment of the bipolar disorders. Of equal importance as treatment modalities are specialized addiction groups designed to also treat coexisting disorders such as substance abuse that clients with bipolar disorders experience (Weiss, Griffin, Greenfield, Najavits, Wyner, Soto, Hennen, 2000). 

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