himmelfried11

Some months ago I read in a German psychiatry textbook that rather recent science found a couple of links between bipolar disorder and the functioning of the immune system, even stating that ""it became ever more clear in recent years that the immune system plays a decisive role in the pathogenesis of psychiatric disorders, as it does with bipolar disorder". Starting from the finding that a virus infection of the mother during pregnancy quadruples the probability of BD in the baby, to the concentration of inflammation markers being significantly higher in brains of bipolar patients during mania. I made a post on r/BipolarReddit about it and linked the studies the the textbook also linked. I found it really interesting! Can anyone of you elaborate on this research? Is there something like a "immunological quality" to bipolar?
Follow-up question: When i posted it, it got a little controversial with some mods, as they interpreted the post as "medical misinformation" or even "denial of mental illness", which wasn't my intent at all. Is it possible that this kind of research is kind of controversial or not well received in the US? In the German textbook (authored by a dozen psychiatry professors) it was presented as pretty solid, albeit not yet particularly conclusive science.

Is there something like a bipolar personality?
Obviously episodes shape biographies and coping strategies might as well have a strong impact on personal development.
I would be interested if you experts think that there are some common personality traits among people with bipolar and how you would describe them. Thank you!

Dear Dr Sapolsky, I’m a long term enjoyer if your online lectures, thank you for hosting this AmA. I’d want to ask you about evolutionary psychiatry: do you think that an evolutionary approach to psychiatric conditions like bipolar and schizophrenia can contribute to a paradigm shift (in the sense of Kuhn) in the science of psychiatry? I’ve read ‚Evolutionary Psychiatry‘ by Anthony Stevens and John Price (who quote you a lot by the way), who make this claim in the foreword to the 2013 edition of the book. They think that evolutionary psychiatry could fundamentally transform how we see, understand and treat these conditions. Would be absolutely great to hear your perspective on that, i hope I’m not too late!

Hi, fellow filmmaker here! I’m thinking about attempting erotic filmmaking for a long time already, but i am super hesitant. It feels like a taboo to me even though i do watch porn. Did you have similar feelings in the beginning? How was the first time doing it? Do you get aroused during filming and if so how do you deal with it? Thx for the AmA!