Is Manic Depression Hereditary?

Video Transcript

"Hi, my name is John Bosworth. I'm a licensed mental health counselor, in St Pete, Florida. I'd like to talk to you a little bit about, is manic depression hereditary? We know that manic depression or bipolar disorder, tends to run in families, so we see a little genetic link, so it might be heritable in the fact that if a relative, mother or father, or grandmother or grandfather, or a distant relative even has had it, your chances of having it, are probably a little bit more stronger, or there's probably a little bit greater risk for you to have it, but there's also other variables that come into place. Social learning theory, how we've observed people through the past. Do people who don't have full blown manic depression or bipolar disorder, deal with things in ways that can actually increase our chances of actually acting in that way? but we know through recent research, that it seems to be more of a biological phenomenon, so the genetic link is probably there. With that said, there is many characteristics from a cognitive behavioral perspective, that can be treated, but they can be treated much more easily, if the person is on medication, due to the fact that it usually tends to be, and is more of a biological phenomenon, that does tend to run in families. My name is John Bosworth, and we're looking at, is manic depression hereditary?"