Mood Monitoring in Bipolar Disorder

For patients with bipolar disorder, mood monitoring can be effectively managed through various approaches, including smartphone apps and other methods. Dr. Danish emphasizes the importance of mood monitoring by family, friends, and other means to provide real-time insights into a patient's emotional state. This comprehensive approach allows him and his practitioners to adjust treatment promptly, ensuring better management of the disorder. Here are a few of the best mood monitoring approaches:

Smartphone Apps

eMoods Bipolar Mood Tracker

eMoods is a user-friendly app designed specifically for tracking symptoms related to bipolar disorder. It allows users to chart daily highs and lows, sleep, medications, and other symptoms. The app also enables users to generate monthly PDF reports to share with their healthcare providers, helping to identify triggers and patterns in mood changes. Privacy is a key feature, as all data is stored locally on the device.

Daylio

Daylio is another popular mood tracking app that allows users to log their moods and activities throughout the day. It provides visual graphs to help users and their therapists understand mood patterns over time. The app is highly customizable and includes notifications to remind users to check in, which is particularly useful for those who struggle with consistent journaling.

Medisafe

Medisafe is a comprehensive medication management app that helps users keep track of their medications and manage mood changes. It provides reminders for medication intake and offers detailed information about medications, including potential interactions and prescription refill reminders[1].

Other Approaches

Behavidence

Behavidence is a mental health application that utilizes digital phenotyping to assist in the diagnosis and management of mental health conditions. By analyzing patterns of cell phone usage, Behavidence provides daily mental health similarity scores, comparing users' digital behavior to those with specific mental health disorders such as ADHD, anxiety, and depression. The main goal is to offer accurate, unbiased insights into mental health through passively generated, unfiltered data from users' devices.

Paper Journals

Traditional paper journals can be a useful tool for some individuals. They allow for free-form expression and can be customized to include various metrics such as mood, sleep, and triggers. However, they may lack the automated features and reminders provided by apps.

Wearable Devices

Wearable devices like Fitbit can track physical activity, sleep patterns, and other health metrics. While not specifically designed for bipolar disorder, these devices can provide valuable data that can be correlated with mood changes. However, users should be cautious as some features, like sleep restriction, may not be suitable for individuals with bipolar disorder.

Therapy and Support Groups

Regular sessions with a therapist or participation in support groups can provide additional support and monitoring. These interactions can help individuals gain insights into their mood patterns and develop coping strategies.

Each of these approaches has its own strengths and can be chosen based on individual preferences and needs. Combining multiple methods, such as using an app along with regular therapy sessions, can provide a more comprehensive approach to mood monitoring for patients with bipolar disorder.

Related blogs by Dr. Danish:

This is an important blog on the many treatment options for bipolar mania.
This blog looks at the art of distinguishing between mood swings from true bipolar disorder.

Citations:

Mood Monitoring in Bipolar Disorder