By
Alexis Maislen
When
Seinfeld character George Costanza decided to change his thought patterns and do the
opposite of every one of his natural inclinations, his life improved–proving
the old adage positive thoughts bring positive results. A summer 2002 study
suggested this approach is also helpful with people with depression and bipolar
disorder.
Dr. Richard C. Ney, a professor in the Department of Behavioral Medicine at Midwestern University in Downers Grove, stressed the importance of psychotherapy used in conjunction with medication in people with mood disorders at the June 9 education meeting at Devon Bank.
A summer 2002 study conducted with the help of Ney’s medical students on people with mood disorders suggested that bipolar disorder has long-term effects far more profound than mood instability. The study focused on the effect of bipolar disorder on both self-concept and how individuals view their parenting and their children.
“My
self-concept is different from the way people see me. It might be distorted
or it might be consistent with how others see me. Everything about me emanates
from my self-concept,” said Ney. “People who have good self-concept tend to
be successful, stable, and symptom free.”
On
the other hand, people with a negative perception see themselves in the worst
possible light regardless of how others see them. They often act out inappropriately
to prove to the world that their own perception of themselves is correct.
“The development of a positive self-concept is
critical from the earliest time in childhood until adulthood. Children who
make the same mistakes over and over again into adulthood find themselves
unhappy and depressed. They tell themselves ‘I knew it would happen this way.’
The study of cognitive behavioral theory has been a major revolution for us,”
said Ney.
“Thirty
years ago, a person would have been in therapy for ten years while the analyst
tried to find something from their childhood to explain their present day
behavior. Then managed care said, prove to us that what you are doing makes
a difference. Is it true that for patients it has to get worse before it gets
better or is it possible we were using old-fashioned techniques?”
Twenty
years ago, Dr. Aaron T. Beck made a discovery. He told psychologists to listen
to what their patients were telling them carefully. Does what they are saying
reflect how they believe in themselves?
“What
he was saying is that the behavior I engage in is consistent with my beliefs,”
said Ney. “If I am a good person and feel confident,
then I act in ways to ensure that I am successful. Beliefs/feelings/behavior
organize a person psychologically. Using this cognitive behavioral setup along
with medication can make a treatment plan pretty powerful. Depressed people
have depressive thoughts. What if we can work with them to get them to make
positive statements.” Ney said that there have been studies that changing
negative thoughts to positive ones helps to change brain chemistry.
After
both the bipolar group and control group rated themselves using the Tennessee
Self-Concept Scale (TSCS), which measures total self-concept—physical, moral/ethical,
personal, family, social, academic/work, the summer 2002 study suggested that—positive
self-concept does correlate to level of self-esteem. And the most remarkable
finding was that--the bipolar group had a lower self-concept than 84 percent
of the people out there. It also showed that individuals with bipolar disorder
perceive themselves more critically as parents and worry more about their
children.
“The
important thing about this study is it gives people hope that they can change
their thought patterns,” said Ney.