Bipolar Disorder: Understanding Extreme Mood Swings
A comprehensive guide to bipolar disorder in South Africa—what it is, how it's treated, and how Dianetics offers a path to lasting stability.
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What Is Bipolar Disorder?
Bipolar disorder is a mental health condition where you experience extreme mood swings. According to the National Institute of Mental Health, these aren't just normal ups and downs—they're intense episodes that can last for days, weeks, or even months. Many people with bipolar disorder also experience anxiety during both manic and depressive phases.
There are two main types of episodes:
Manic Episodes
During a manic episode, you feel extremely energized, euphoric, and invincible. You might:
- • Sleep very little but not feel tired
- • Talk very fast, jumping from idea to idea
- • Take dangerous risks (spending sprees, reckless driving, risky sexual behavior)
- • Feel like you can do anything
- • Get irritable or aggressive when challenged
- • Have racing thoughts
Depressive Episodes
During a depressive episode, you experience severe depression. You might:
- • Sleep all the time or can't sleep at all
- • Have no energy or motivation
- • Feel hopeless and worthless
- • Lose interest in everything
- • Have trouble concentrating
- • Think about death or suicide
Between episodes, you might feel relatively normal. Or you might experience "mixed episodes" where you have symptoms of both mania and depression at the same time.
Bipolar Disorder in South Africa
Approximately 1-2% of South Africans have bipolar disorder. That's around 600,000 to 1.2 million people. But many cases go undiagnosed because:
- People don't recognize the symptoms as a medical condition
- During manic episodes, people feel great and don't think anything is wrong
- There's stigma around mental health, especially in traditional communities
- Access to mental health care is limited, especially in rural areas
The condition often starts in late teens or early twenties, though it can appear at any age. Without treatment, bipolar disorder can destroy relationships, careers, and lives.
The Devastating Impact
Bipolar disorder doesn't just affect your mood—it affects every aspect of your life:
Relationships
Your mood swings strain relationships with family, friends, and partners. During manic episodes, you might be irritable, make impulsive decisions, or engage in behavior that hurts others. During depressive episodes, you withdraw and push people away.
Work and Finances
Bipolar disorder makes it hard to hold down a job. During manic episodes, you might quit impulsively or get fired for erratic behavior. During depressive episodes, you can't function at work. Manic spending sprees can destroy your finances.
Physical Health
The stress of bipolar disorder takes a toll on your body. People with bipolar disorder have higher rates of heart disease, diabetes, and other health problems. Risky behavior during manic episodes can lead to injuries or worse.
Suicide Risk
Bipolar disorder has one of the highest suicide rates of any mental health condition. Up to 20% of people with untreated bipolar disorder die by suicide. This is why getting effective treatment is critical.
Traditional Treatment: Lifelong Medication
The standard psychiatric approach to bipolar disorder is lifelong medication. The most common medications include:
Mood Stabilizers (Lithium, Valproate)
These drugs are supposed to prevent manic and depressive episodes. But they come with serious side effects:
- • Weight gain (often 10-20kg or more)
- • Tremors and coordination problems
- • Kidney and thyroid damage with long-term use
- • Requires regular blood tests to monitor toxicity
- • Can be fatal in overdose
Antipsychotics (Quetiapine, Olanzapine)
Often prescribed for manic episodes or as maintenance treatment. Side effects include:
- • Severe weight gain and metabolic problems
- • Extreme sedation and fatigue
- • Movement disorders (tardive dyskinesia)
- • Increased risk of diabetes
Here's the problem: You're told you'll need to take these medications for the rest of your life. Miss a dose, and you risk a relapse. The side effects are often as debilitating as the condition itself. And the medications don't resolve the underlying cause—they just suppress symptoms. For a comprehensive comparison of medication versus alternative approaches, see our Dianetics vs. Medication guide.
Why Medication Isn't a Solution
Psychiatric medication for bipolar disorder has several major problems:
1. It's Not a Cure
Medication doesn't address why you have bipolar disorder. It just chemically suppresses your symptoms. Stop taking the drugs, and the symptoms come back. You're dependent on medication forever.
2. The Side Effects Are Severe
Many people say the side effects of bipolar medication are worse than the condition itself. Weight gain, cognitive dulling, tremors, and metabolic problems significantly reduce quality of life.
3. It's Expensive
Lifelong medication is expensive, especially in South Africa where many people don't have medical aid. The cost of drugs, doctor visits, and blood tests adds up to thousands of rands per month.
4. Compliance Is Difficult
Many people stop taking their medication because of side effects or because they feel better during manic episodes. This leads to a cycle of relapse and hospitalization.
What Causes Bipolar Disorder?
Psychiatry doesn't really know what causes bipolar disorder. They'll tell you it's a "chemical imbalance" or "genetic," but there's no test that can diagnose it. It's diagnosed based on symptoms alone.
According to "Dianetics: The Modern Science of Mental Health" by L. Ron Hubbard, bipolar disorder is caused by severe, unresolved trauma stored in the reactive mind. These traumatic memories create extreme emotional instability. When certain triggers activate these memories, you swing into mania or depression.
This explains why bipolar disorder often starts after a traumatic event (abuse, loss, violence). It also explains why medication doesn't resolve it—because it's not addressing the underlying trauma.
Dianetics: Addressing the Root Cause
Dianetics takes a fundamentally different approach. Instead of suppressing symptoms with drugs, it helps you locate and process the traumatic memories that are causing the mood instability.
Through auditing, you can examine these memories in a safe, controlled way. As you process them, their emotional charge dissipates. The extreme mood swings stabilize. You regain control over your emotions.
How Dianetics Helps with Bipolar Disorder
- • Addresses the underlying trauma instead of just suppressing symptoms
- • No medication, no side effects, no lifelong dependency
- • It's a finite process with a clear endpoint—you're not in treatment forever
- • You regain emotional stability without being chemically numbed
- • Cost-effective compared to decades of medication and doctor visits
Real Recovery Is Possible
You don't have to accept a lifetime of medication, side effects, and mood instability. Bipolar disorder is not a life sentence. With the right approach, you can address the root cause and achieve lasting stability.
Dianetics offers a path to recovery that doesn't involve lifelong medication. It puts you at cause over your own mental health, rather than making you dependent on drugs.
Frequently Asked Questions
Next Steps
If you're struggling with bipolar disorder and want to explore a different approach—one that addresses the cause, not just the symptoms—learn more about Dianetics.
Discover a medication-free path to stability. Order Dianetics: The Modern Science of Mental Health for R400 with free delivery. Learn how to address the root cause of mood instability without lifelong medication dependency.
For personalized support, professional Dianetics auditing is available throughout South Africa.
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Tony Peacock
Humanitarian & Mental Health Research Advocate
Published: 2024 • Updated: November 2025
Tony is an Australian who moved to South Africa and made it his home. At 25, he overcame drug and alcohol addiction through Dianetics after trying alternative healing approaches. He served as Church staff in Australia for 12 years before moving to SA in 2022. As a humanitarian and philanthropist, he has made significant contributions to mental health infrastructure across Southern Africa. His mission: help the able become more able using technology that makes people causative.