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Read the following story by Arusa Pisuthipan from the Bangkok Post. Then, answer the questions that follow.
As several high profile cases show, bipolar disorder doesn’t have to stop people from having a fulfilling life.
OUT IN THE OPEN
Mariah Carey is good at keeping secrets. For almost 20 years, the American superstar tried to hide her struggle with mental illness. So when she opened up to People magazine in April this year that she was diagnosed with bipolar disorder in 2001, millions of her fans were shocked.
Carey admitted she had been getting therapy and taking medication for bipolar II, a disease which causes mood swings among other symptoms.
“I didn’t want to carry around the stigma of a lifelong disease that would define me and potentially end my career. I was terrified of losing everything,” said Carey, 48.
“I sought treatment. I put positive people around me and I got back to doing what I love - writing songs and making music. As hard as this is, I also knew it was time to finally share my story.”
UPSIDE DOWN
Carey is not alone. Many celebrities have come out and admitted their struggles with bipolar disorder. In 2011, Academy Award-winner Catherine Zeta-Jones went public with her bipolar II diagnosis. Star Wars icon the late Carrie Fisher was open about her problems with being bipolar. Oscar-winner Patty Duke, who also died in 2016, was found to be suffering from the condition in 1982.
So what is bipolar disorder? Psychiatrist Dr Piyawat Dendumrongkul said that the illness can be broadly categorised into three types, known as bipolar I, II and III. Bipolar I and II are both associated with extreme mood swings over time, with bipolar II being a milder version of bipolar I. Bipolar III, meanwhile, is an unofficial term for mood shifts resulting from medicines or other chemicals.
“Bipolar II doesn’t affect how patients function at work. Bipolar I has a significant impact on work. For example, patients might laugh all day because they feel extremely happy about something, but they can’t perform. And they might get fired because of that,” he said.
MOODY BLUES
Like bipolar I, bipolar II involves cycles of extreme ups and downs. But because the mood shifts are mild, the disease can often be misunderstood as an aspect of the person’s personality.
“Bipolar II presents itself in the form of mood instability. You’re extremely happy one moment then might be extremely sad the next. During low episodes, you feel depressed and want to be alone. During high episodes, you feel so grand that you become hard to please and subsequently feel irritable. What some people see as negative personality traits are actually symptoms of bipolar II,” Dr Piyawat said.
These misunderstandings are one of the reasons that Thailand has no statistics regarding the disorder. According to Dr Piyawat, most patients feel no need to visit a psychiatrist because their symptoms only slightly affect how they perform and function, especially at work. Even though the mood shifts can be disturbing, in most cases patients are the only one seriously affected by their behaviour.
CHECK YOUR HEAD
In the United States, the National Institute of Mental Health estimates that bipolar disorder affects around 5.7 million adult Americans, or about 2.6 percent of the population aged over 18. Figures collected in Thailand over a decade ago revealed that bipolar I affected 1 to 3 percent of the population. Unfortunately, there is no record of the number of bipolar II patients in the country.
Before getting help from a psychiatrist, it is extremely important to differentiate between bipolar and normal emotional changes. According to Dr Piyawat, stimuli are an important way of figuring out if a person is bipolar or just suffering the normal ups and downs that everybody goes through.
“Bipolar disorder is a brain disease. So the extreme highs and lows occur on their own, without patients being stimulated by something. If you feel very happy or very sad because you were complimented or criticised by your boss, then that’s a normal emotional reaction,” he said.
Bipolar disorder can run in the family. People with family members who have suffered from psychological disorders are more likely to be bipolar than those with no such family history. It’s mostly diagnosed in the teenage years. Men and women are equally likely to suffer from the disease.
Section 1
Read through the story and answer the following multiple-choice questions.
1. What is the article about?
a. Characteristics of bipolar III.
b. Bipolar disorder and how it affects daily life.
c. Depression in the USA and Thailand.
2. Which of the following best describes “bipolar disorder”?
a. A mental condition characterised by feelings of severe depression and hopelessness.
b. A condition that features extreme changes in mood and in energy and activity levels.
c. The condition of being abnormally or extremely active.
3. How has Mariah Carey tried to deal with bipolar disorder?
a. She has received treatment and works on her music.
b. She surrounds herself with optimistic people.
c. Both a and b are correct.
4. Which of the following is NOT true of bipolar disorder, according to the article?
a. It’s mostly diagnosed in teenagers.
b. Women are more likely to suffer from the disease than men.
c. Genetics is considered a risk factor for bipolar disorder.
5. When was Patty Duke diagnosed with bipolar disorder?
a. In 1982.
b. In 2011.
c. In 2016.
6. Ten years ago, how many Thai people were found to be suffering from bipolar I?
a. 1.3 percent of the population.
b. 1-3 percent of the population.
c. There is no record.
7. Which of the following statements is TRUE, according to the article?
a. The number of Thais with bipolar II is unknown.
b. Bipolar I doesn’t affect how patients perform at work.
c. Bipolar disorder affects about 2.6 million adult Americans.
Section 2
Read through the story. Then, decide whether the following statements are true or false.
8. Mariah Carey has been getting treated for bipolar disorder since 2011.
……………………
9. Mariah Carey is in her forties.
……………………
10. Patty Duke and Carrie Fisher died in the same year.
……………………
11. Bipolar disorder falls into three categories.
……………………
12. Bipolar disorder and normal emotional changes are different.
……………………
13. Carrie Fisher acted in Star Wars.
……………………
Section 3
Read the following passage. Then, fill in the blanks with the correct words from the choices given.
One piece of good news about bipolar disorder …..14….. that we haven’t seen many cases of patients committing suicide, according to Dr Piyawat. The illness is a mix of high and low …..15….., so it’s only during the lows when they feel worthless. That’s …..16….. bipolar-related suicidal rate is much lower when …..17….. to more severe mental diseases like depression or schizophrenia ¬- a mental disorder where patients may …..18….. touch with reality, hear things and develop hallucinations. More good news is that bipolar symptoms can be curbed by means of medication and …..19….. therapy.
14.
a. has
b. is
c. are
15.
a. episode
b. episodic
c. episodes
16.
a. when
b. how
c. why
17.
a. compared
b. comparable
c. comparing
18.
a. lose
b. lost
c. losing
19.
a. psychologist
b. psychological
c. psychology
Section 4
Write down the verb forms of the following words used in the story.
20. finally
…………………………
21. population
…………………………
22. irritable
…………………………
23. personality
…………………………
24. hard
…………………………
Answers
Section 1
1. b.
2. b.
3. c.
4. b.
5. a.
6. b.
7. a.
Section 2
8. False.
9. True.
10. True.
11. True.
12. True.
13. True.
Section 3
14. b.
15. c.
16. c.
17. a.
18. a.
19. b.
Section 4
20. Finalise.
21. Populate.
22. Irritate.
23. Personalise.
24. Harden.
SCORE
21-24: Excellent!
17-20: Good.
13-16: Fair.
12 or fewer: You'll do better next time!
