Annotated Bibliography: Bipolar Disorder

Kinghorn, W. A. (2016). American Christian Engagement With Mental Health and Mental Illness. Psychiatric Services , 67 (1), 107–110. https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.ps.201400542 

‌ Dr. Kinghorn works in the intersect of psychiatry and religion. He is a faculty member at the department of behavioral sciences and psychiatry at Duke University. He also works with Duke Divinity School, both of which are based in North Carolina. His experience and nature of work give insight into an insider’s perspective on mental health and how to engage on the same for better outcomes effectively. In his paper, he makes a case for the various approaches. Christian health institutions use to handle mental health. Several missionary based facilities handle the conditions but few clinicians are aware of how to exactly interact and integrate their knowledge and faith. He identifies and describes five Christian approaches to mental illnesses Bipolar among them. Pastoral care, biblical counseling, among others which are essential adjunctive approaches to mental health. An understanding of the same enables the clinician to leverage on the Christian religious community in the provision of care for the patient. An understanding of the culture and belief system of the Christian is a necessary consideration in designing the care plan. The paper forms a basis for evaluating best practices on religious approaches to psychology. It informs possible questions and areas of further research that will help improve the current care programs for patients. 

Ouwehand, E., Zock, T. H., Muthert, J. K. H., Boeije, H., & Braam, A. W. (2019). “The Awful Rowing toward God”: Interpretation of Religious Experiences by Individuals with Bipolar Disorder. Pastoral Psychology , 68 (4), 437–462. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11089-019-00875-4 

‌ Eva Owenhand, the lead researcher, is based in the Netherlands and works as a theologian in academia. Eva is based at the University of Groningen. Braam and Boeijje work within healthcare and offer a clinical perspective to the research question. Mother and Zock are like Eva, theologians within the same faculty.

Eva takes an attempt at the explanatory dilemma Christian patients face when understanding their illnesses. Eva raises the issue of contradictory explanations that stem from pastors when compared to what the clinicians tell the patients. Eva goes ahead to try and explain the religious experiences these patients have during their treatment journeys and how these experiences impact on their treatment and perspectives of their illnesses. A majority of the patients explained a dissatisfaction with the lack of value attachment to their spiritual experiences and their dismissal by clinicians. Clinicians on the other end, find it daunting to distinguish between pathological features and authentic spiritual experiences.

Does spirituality then complicate the clinicians' task in managing mental disorders? The paper provokes a question along the lines of how faith affects a clinicians’ intervention and understanding of the patient’s condition.

Kéri, S., & Kelemen, O. (2016). Christianity and Schizophrenia Redux: An Empirical Study. Journal of Religion and Health , 59 (1), 452–469. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10943-016-0227-6 

‌ Keri Sczabolcs is a practicing mental health specialist at Nyiro Guila Hospital in Budapest, where he works with the countries institute of Psychiatry and addictions. He is also part of the teaching team at The Budapest University of Technology and Economics, all of which are in Hungary. The co-author Ogul Keleman is a faculty member of the University of Szeged in Hungary at its Department of Behavioral Sciences. 

The paper explores the relationship between Christianity, religiosity, and schizophrenia. Schizophrenia is a positive sign of bipolar. It goes ahead to debunk a conspicuously help misnomer that hyper religiosity is common with schizophrenia. In the study, the authors carried out a comparative study where a group of 120 schizophrenic patients and 120 self-declared Christians are subjected to tests. They examine their rituals and practices as well as their interactions with the Christian community. A key finding is that schizophrenic patients are more engaged in private Christian rituals especially after diagnosis. However, there is a decreased communal interaction with other Christians as a result of the diagnosis. Patients with religious delusions did not exhibit any superior or more intense Christian practices and ritual compared to the others. The paper forms a reasonable basis for hypothesizing that religiosity has no direct correlation with mental illnesses.

Bishay, A. (2015). Psychiatry and Religion, What Psychiatrists and Religion Professionals Can Do? Journal of Psychiatry , 18 (5). https://doi.org/10.4172/2378-5756.1000302 

Amir Bishay is a medical doctor with multiple publications in the areas of mental health. Bishay in the article confronts the various issues that religion raises and most of the science runs away from. He discusses the issues of exorcism as practiced in the Abrahamic religions of Judaism, Islam and Christianity. He presents the questions patients seek answers to even as they are presented with the various pills. How do the pills cast out the ghosts or the wicked spells they received?

He elaborates on the distinction between delusions and articulation of one's beliefs. Certain elements though sober in religious contexts, appear completely delusional in a scientific quarter. He posits there is much learning and seeking to understand faith and religion to better understand the perspectives with which most religious families and patients articulate their cases. The paper helps to bring into perspective the grey areas of science and religion. It questions the ability of a purely scientific approach in managing a patient and advocates for an integrated, multifaceted approach that recognizes the culture and religion. The paper helps to strengthen the essence of a multidisciplinary approach in care.

Bayes, A., Parker, G., & McClure, G. (2016). Emotional dysregulation in those with bipolar disorder, borderline personality disorder and their comorbid expression. Journal of Affective Disorders , 204 , 103–111. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jad.2016.06.027 

Adam Bayes, Gordon Parker, and Georgia McClure are all based at the University of New South Wales in Australia at its school of Psychiatry. Parker and McClure also work for the Black Dog Institute in Australia. Bayes et al. in the article attempt to distinguish bipolar disorder and borderline personality disorder. Due to the similarity in the manifestations of both, one can easily be misdiagnosed for the other. A more complex scenario is when the two mental illness co-occurs and a dual diagnosis can easily be missed. The authors interviewed persons with a diagnosis of both conditions while examining the results against the DSM criteria for the conditions. The results showed an increased emotional dysregulation especially in the group with co-occurrence of the disorder. Drawing a distinction in a condition and its manifestation is central in guiding and obtaining an accurate diagnosis. Certain elements in mental conditions easily overlap and make diagnosis difficult. The co-occurrence of bipolar alongside other illnesses is common. The article helps highlight these issues that are pertinent to the provision of quality mental health care. 

Amann, B. L., Radua, J., Wunsch, C., König, B., & Simhandl, C. (2017). Psychiatric and physical comorbidities and their impact on the course of bipolar disorder: A prospective, naturalistic 4-year follow-up study. Bipolar Disorders , 19 (3), 225–234. https://doi.org/10.1111/bdi.12495 

The lead researcher Amann has extensive experience in psychiatry working both in academia and hospital setups. The author has extensive experience in dealing with addictions and comorbidities associated with mental illnesses. The article explores the prevalence, effect on recovery and management of bipolar disorder when it occurs alongside other illnesses. Comorbidities were highest with metabolic disorders, followed by cardiovascular and thyroid pathologies. Various disorders especially thyroid disorders, were associated with increased incidences of relapse when compared to others. The paper conclusively highlights hypothyroidism as a co-occurring disorder that skyrockets relapse. 

The occurrence of Bipolar does not rule out the possibility of comorbidities. An understanding of the implications of other illnesses on the recovery path for a person with bipolar is necessary. Clinicians should be able to have a background understanding of how other common illnesses affect the recovery path of persons with Bipolar. In a generation where non-communicable diseases are rising courtesy of lifestyle changes, this understanding is essential. It helps distinguish which of the comorbidities is primary and helps in the design of treatment plans for the affected persons. 

Maniglio, R. (2013). The impact of child sexual abuse on the course of bipolar disorder: a systematic review. Bipolar Disorders , 15 (4), 341–358. https://doi.org/10.1111/bdi.12050 

Roberto Maniglio holds a Ph.D. and works at the department of Didactic, Pedagogic, and Psychological Sciences at the University of Salento in Italy. The review by Roberto is keen on assessing how early childhood sexual abuse affects the course of Bipolar in an affected individual. The paper reviews both the features directly related to bipolar as well as other anomalies that are present though not directly correlated to the bipolar. Five databases were accessed and given search criteria administered that ensure minimum qualification standards were met. From the search post-traumatic stress disorder was directly correlated to sexual assault at a young age. Closely following was suicidal tendencies. While Bipolar disorder can be explained through multiple possible etiologies, a background search for triggers is essential. Once identified counseling or emphasis on the same during its management is important. Specific manifestations in the symptomatology of Bipolar are secondary to certain events in the patient’s history. While empirical management remains paramount, a focused therapy around known triggers can improve therapy outcomes. This paper is vital in forming a hypothesis around specific targeted therapy based on patient history. Counseling given to sexual assault victims may easily reduce specific symptoms and incidence of relapse. 

Klemm, W. R. (2017). Accommodating religion to modern neuroscience. Mental Health, Religion & Culture , 20 (1), 1–19. https://doi.org/10.1080/13674676.2017.1313826 

Klemm works in the department of veterinary integrative sciences in Texas. Through his paper, Klem examines the contradictory nature in which science and religion exist. He highlights the midwife's peace or acute contradiction that the minds of young ones as they navigate through college have to handle. The culture has a way of indoctrinating young persons along the lines of faith and scripture as they grow up. College then pushes philosophical and scientific perspectives that can become difficult to accept and understand in the background of faith. The author posits whether there exists a possibility of accommodating religion into modern neuroscience. If successful, this would form the basis for the next phase of integrated care. 

Religion and science are not meant to be against each other. This perspective is vital to the research as it examines the possibility of collaboration and not antagonistic approaches that add little or no value to the patients. Clinicians within faith institutions who hold similar beliefs are likely to struggle with the same dilemmas. These dilemmas can be solved through such dialogues as this. 

References

Amann, B. L., Radua, J., Wunsch, C., König, B., & Simhandl, C. (2017). Psychiatric and physical comorbidities and their impact on the course of bipolar disorder: A prospective, naturalistic 4-year follow-up study. Bipolar Disorders , 19 (3), 225–234. https://doi.org/10.1111/bdi.12495 

Bayes, A., Parker, G., & McClure, G. (2016). Emotional dysregulation in those with bipolar disorder, borderline personality disorder and their comorbid expression. Journal of Affective Disorders , 204 , 103–111. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jad.2016.06.027 

Bishay, A. (2015). Psychiatry and Religion, What Psychiatrists and Religion Professionals Can Do? Journal of Psychiatry , 18 (5). https://doi.org/10.4172/2378-5756.1000302 

Kéri, S., & Kelemen, O. (2016). Christianity and Schizophrenia Redux: An Empirical Study. Journal of Religion and Health , 59 (1), 452–469. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10943-016-0227-6 

Kinghorn, W. A. (2016). American Christian Engagement With Mental Health and Mental Illness. Psychiatric Services , 67 (1), 107–110. https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.ps.201400542 

Klemm, W. R. (2017). Accommodating religion to modern neuroscience. Mental Health, Religion & Culture , 20 (1), 1–19. https://doi.org/10.1080/13674676.2017.1313826 

Maniglio, R. (2013). The impact of child sexual abuse on the course of bipolar disorder: a systematic review. Bipolar Disorders , 15 (4), 341–358. https://doi.org/10.1111/bdi.12050 

Ouwehand, E., Zock, T. H., Muthert, J. K. H., Boeije, H., & Braam, A. W. (2019). “The Awful Rowing toward God”: Interpretation of Religious Experiences by Individuals with Bipolar Disorder. Pastoral Psychology , 68 (4), 437–462. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11089-019-00875-4