Human psychology deals with the nature and behavior of human beings. There are many disorders that human beings face and affect even their mental nature. One of the most common psychological disorders is the bipolar disorder; it is mostly experienced in the teenage years which were the case with Pollock. Most of the cases of this disorder begins before the age of 25 but might start and a young age or later in life. When one suffers from bipolar disorder, he/she experiences a shift in mood. The behavior is also influenced, and the mood shifts from low to high and even to extent of an individual suffering from depression. It is a different kind of disorder since the mood change can last even for months, unlike the ordinary mood swings. The disorder has the maniac and depressive stages. There are different behaviors exhibited at each stage. The energy level of an individual suffering from the disorder also fluctuates with time. Unless one understands the people who suffer from the disorder, it is sometimes difficult to cope with them when the disorder is in control. Medical experts have given various causes of the disorder which include hormonal problems, traits that are biological chemical imbalance in the brain and genetics. They classify the disorder into two, the maniac and depressive stage; the symptoms of the maniac stage include rapid and uncontrolled talking, over confidence, impaired judgment and even delusions. The depression stage is characterized by guilt, insomnia, anxiety and weight loss. These factors in the different stages affect an individual’s ability the disorder is classified in three stages with the first being the stage one known as Bipolar 1, in this stage an individual goes through atlas one depression stage and few hyper maniac occurrences. The second stage known as Bipolar 2 has increased number of maniacs and depression occurrences, in the third stage, there are high maniac and depression cases. The disorder can be through different forms of therapy depending on the disorder stage. The changes in the brought about by the disorder helps in identifying whether one is suffering from it. In the maniac stage the change in behavior is influenced by the mood. One starts to talk very fast with many ideas in mind. The activities that one engages in are goal oriented and one can even take new projects that are related to his/her field of expertise. One engages in behaviors that can be risky such as uncontrolled alcohol drinking and engaging in sexual acts with different people. Other features that can be observed in the depression stage include the lack of concentration and poor decision making ability. There is also another stage referred to as the mixed stage where the effects of the maniac and depression stage are felt. One can feel energetic, but at the same time there is lack of confidence and poor decision making (Leahy, 2010).
The movie Pollock is based on the life of Jackson Pollock who was a modern artist and was involved in paintings. Ed Harris is acting the role of Pollock with Marcia Gay Harden taking the role of the wife. In the movie Pollock is an addict to alcohol and has his life revolves around art, addiction and affairs with women. Marcia acts as Lee Krasner a lady that met Pollock in a joint as how gallery shows. Lee becomes interested in the art talent that Pollock has. They get married and Lee plays a key role in promoting Pollock’s artistic work. Even after marriage, Pollock continues with his drinking habits and infidelity which causes him to break up with Lee. He is presented as a character that is extremely moody which is a character in people suffering from bipolar disorder. His battle with alcoholism starts after alcoholism. The effects of the disorder affect his work and he once meets Amy Madigan when he is drunk. Pollock is given a job to paint a mural for Amy who he does after a few weeks of staring at the skin in which he is supposed to draw the painting; he works on it with vigor. This can be defined as the mood swings that occur in bipolar disorder. When he was spending time staring at the canvas skin, he was going through depression. The next stage was the maniac stage when he felt that he had the energy to work on the mural. Amy was pleased with his work and but the emotional control of the disorder took control of Pollock during the party. He urinates on Amy’s fireplace which is an emotional surge due to the disorder.
Bipolar disorder is mostly characterized by sudden chance in mood which was one of the key traits in Pallock. When he was in school he had problems expressing him and had a short temper. These are some of the identifying features of the disorder. One faces challenges relating with other people just like it was happening to Pollock. He was always undergoing depression and anxiety which affected his performance.Art was the only way that he found comfort and channeled his energy, this is also found in other bipolar patients. They seem to channel their energy towards an activity that they feel comfortable with. As much as Pollack was poor in academics, his work of art impressed many people. Those who were close to him viewed this as a way in which he expressed himself. During the depression stages in bipolar disorder, one gets quiet and antisocial. This was what was happening to Pollock after he moved out with his wife and brother. He was always silent and look depressed which are the characters of a bipolar patient in the depression stage. After undergoing depression, he would engage in drinking sprees. When he was left by his brother and wife, he engage in continuous drinking, this shows how the social lifestyle affects a bipolar patient, he could not handle separation, and this triggered the disorder. After undergoing the depression and continuous drinking, the trend would change. There were times when he would even work for 24 hours, he felt that he had the energy to work and had confidence In himself, such behaviors occur in the manic stage of bipolar disorder. His creativity could have been influenced by what he was going through, people who suffer from the disorder look for alternatives to channel their energy and for Pollock, art was the remedy. When he was asked by Amy to paint the mural, he was anxious to do it, and he feared, the anxiety is what was hindering him from painting. When he abstained from having sex with his wife, he was undergoing depression, at this stage one does not have the urge for engage romantically. Engaging in infidelity was an indicator that the disorder was in the maniac stage where one engages in different pleasures(Bellmarker,2009).
There are different kind of treatment that can be given to a person suffering from the disorder. This treatment can be either pharmacological or non-pharmacological. When giving treatment, the stage at which the disorder is in has to be considered, treatment differs in the manic and depression stage. During the maniac stage, the treatment includes valproate, carabamezine and electroconvulsive therapy. In the depressive stage, the most common treatment is psychotherapy. Pharmacological treatment includes bupropion, venlafaxine, paroxetine and other antidepressants. Treatment has to be monitored to ensure that there is response to the drugs given. Monitoring of patients ensures that the right medication is given depending on the level of the disorder (Sharma & Mazmanian, 2009).
Bipolar disorder does not affect people of a given culture or race; it can affect anybody regardless of ethnic background. The disorder occurs earlier in men than women. Depressive episodes and the maniacs are more rapid in women than in men. Diagnosis and treatment of the disease is more delayed in women than men. There is however no gender that cannot suffer from the disorder. The reason for the delayed treatment in women is due to the incorrect diagnosis. Response to drugs however differs in the two genders especially when given during pregnancy.
Work Cited
Belmaker, R. (2009). Bipolar Disorder. New England Journal of Medicine, 351(5), 476-486.
(2008). Corrigendum. Bipolar Disorders, 10(3), 451-451.
Leahy, R. L. (2010). Bipolar Disorder: Causes, Contexts, And Treatments. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 63(5), 417-424.
Sharma, V., & Mazmanian, D. (2008). Sleep Loss And Postpartum Psychosis. Bipolar Disorders, 5(2), 98-105.
Halsall. (2008). Chaos, Fractals, And The Pedagogical Challenge Of Jackson Pollock's "All-Over" Paintings. The Journal Of Aesthetic Education, 42(4), 1-16.
