Bipolar and causesBipolar disorder causes appear to be mainly: 1. Genetic factors, and 2. Neurotransmitter disturbances. These two things seem to combine to create a biological vulnerability to bipolar disorder in certain individuals. However this is not the whole story. The third, and possibly most important but misunderstood component, is STRESS/TRIGGERS.
The fact is, there is no conclusive medical evidence or agreement amongst experts on exactly what causes bipolar disorder. However, one widely accepted approach is that there is no single factor that causes bipolar disorder. Instead, a variety of genetic factors and disturbances of brain chemicals (neurotransmitters) provide a biological basis for making some people vulnerable to bipolar. A bipolar episode of either mania or depression can be triggered when a biologically vulnerable person is confronted with particular stressors. This is why coping strategies such as talk therapy and keeping mood charts, and stress reducers like exercise, are proving to be as valuable as medication for bipolar people. See this FACT SHEET on What Causes Bipolar Disorder from The Black Dog Institute, a leading mood disorder research institute. Genetic bipolar disorder causes
However, this is not inevitable and not all family members will develop bipolar disorder, even in families where the overall incidence is very high. Strong evidence that genetics does not fully explain what causes bipolar comes from studies of identical twins. Remember, identical twins have the same genes. Yet in only 57% of cases of bipolar in an identical twin, does the other twin also turn out to have the disorder. If genetics were destiny, and if manic depressive illness was a purely genetic disease, then in 100% of cases, both identical twins would develop bipolar disorder. Family history is very important though, and should always be examined when trying to make a diagnosis. There is a 2% chance that an individual may have bipolar disorder - this rises to 10% with one bipolar parent, and 40% with two bipolar parents. Chemical bipolar causesNeurotransmitter disturbances definitely play a major role in causing bipolar disorder. Neurotransmitters are the chemicals that pass messages between the various areas of the brain. Research has shown that individuals with manic depressive illness have an imbalance in these chemicals. The brain is producing either too few or too many. Often there is also an overproduction of the stress hormone cortisol.Medication is effective in treating people with bipolar disorder because it can help even out the chemical imbalances, although in some cases exactly how or why the medication helps is unknown. Read more about bipolar and causes from the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH). Stress as a cause of bipolar
These stressors or triggers can be external pressures such as financial problems or difficulties at work. Frequently they are internal - stress we cause ourselves through the way we think about and interpret the events in our daily lives.
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