| It has not been until recently that the term bipolar | | | | The other scientist, Jean-Pierre Falret, referred to the |
| disorder has been used to represent what has | | | | condition as folie circulaire (circular insanity). |
| always been a misunderstood condition. The ancient | | | | After World War II, an Australian psychiatrist named |
| Greeks were aware of it, and the ancient Chinese | | | | John Cade was the first to discover that lithium |
| had written about it in an encyclopedia. Yet, it was | | | | carbonate could be used to treat manic depressive |
| not until 1957 that the terms bipolar and unipolar | | | | psychosis. At this time during the history of bipolar |
| were first used. | | | | disorder, many experts feared that table salt |
| Learning the history of bipolar disorder helps us to | | | | substitutes could be toxic or fatal. So, it wasnt until |
| both understand and appreciate the many | | | | the 1950s that American hospitals experimented with |
| advancements that have been made in the field | | | | this knowledge. Lithium was eventually approved for |
| today. Knowing about the history of the disorder will | | | | treatment by the Food and Drug Administration in |
| also provide us with hope for further advancements | | | | 1970. |
| that are certain to come in the future. | | | | In 1968, the condition was reclassified as an illness |
| From Ancient Descriptions to the Modern Day | | | | (manic depressive illness). Recently, the term bipolar |
| Disease | | | | disorder has become more common. Many prefer the |
| Excluding the ancient Greeks and Chinese, not much | | | | older term because it more accurately describes the |
| research was done in the history of bipolar disorder | | | | condition as an illness rather than a disorder. |
| until the 1900s. In 1902, Emil Kraepelin, a German | | | | Famous Sufferers of Bipolar Disorder In History |
| psychiatrist who lived from 1856-1926, began to | | | | There were many famous people that displayed the |
| study the disorder in more depth. Kraepelin monitored | | | | classic symptoms of bipolar disorder, even though |
| the natural progression of untreated bipolar patients. | | | | they were never diagnosed or treated. These |
| In his notes, he described his patients by using the | | | | historical sufferers of bipolar disorder include Virginia |
| term "manic depressive psychosis." This was the first | | | | Woolf, Theodore Roosevelt, Winston Churchill, Leo |
| time in the history of bipolar disorder that such a | | | | Tolstoy, Ernest Hemmingway, and Abraham Lincoln. |
| precise term had ever been used. | | | | A Promising Future |
| In 1954, two French scientists individually presented | | | | Though it took hundreds of years to research, |
| their theories regarding a biphasic mental illness that | | | | classify, and treat bipolar disorder, we still have a long |
| consisted of reoccurring cycles of depression and | | | | way to go before a cure can be found. Yet, the |
| mania. One of these scientists, Jules Baillarger, called | | | | history of bipolar disorder provides the hope that long |
| the illness folie a double forme (dual-form insanity). | | | | strides can be made in just a short period of time. |