Over 40 million Americans have been diagnosed with bipolar disorder, and many more go undiagnosed. This episode takes a deep dive into what we know (and don’t know) about bipolar I and II, why science has lagged behind, and what a groundbreaking new initiative—BD²: Breakthrough Discoveries for Thriving with Bipolar Disorder—is doing to change that.

Host Morra Aarons-Mele speaks with Dr. Mark Frye, psychiatrist and professor of psychiatry at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, Dr. Kate Burdick, Distinguished Chair in Psychiatry and the Vice Chair for Research in Psychiatry at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston, MA, and neuroscientist and BD² initiative lead Dr. Cara Altimus about the genetics, biology, and lived experience of bipolar disorder, and what it means to truly thrive with a complex mental illness. We discuss promising research directions, including GLP-1s, cognitive trajectories, and precision psychiatry.

Key Quote: "

It’s not enough to reduce the bad. We’re aiming to increase the good—to help people with bipolar disorder live the full lives they want to live." — Dr. Cara Altimus

Breakthrough Discoveries for Thriving with Bipolar Disorder (BD²) is a collaborative initiative building the scientific foundation for better treatments and better lives for people with bipolar disorder. Learn more and get involved at https://www.bipolardiscoveries.org/.

Listeners who live with bipolar disorder can learn more about BD2' and their ongoing study described in this episode by visiting bipolardiscoveries.org or sending an email to info@bipolardiscoveries.org.

The study is taking place in partnership with 11 medical institutions across 44 locations in the U.S. and Canada. The medical institutions are:

Mass General Brigham (Massachusetts)
McLean Hospital (Massachusetts)
Johns Hopkins University (Maryland)
Mayo Clinic (Minnesota and Arizona)
University of California Los Angeles (California)
University of California San Diego (California)
University of Michigan (Michigan)
The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (Texas)
The Feinstein Institutes for Medical Research (New York)
The University of Texas at Austin (Texas)
University of Cincinnati/Lindner Center of HOPE (Ohio)
Ottawa Hospital Research Institute (Canada)

Listeners can also sign up for the BD2’ newsletter, Thrive Updates, at bipolardiscoveries.org and learn more by following on LinkedIn, BlueSky, and X at BD2Discoveries.

Timestamps:

05:31 Understanding Bipolar Disorder: Definitions and Types 14:48 The Role of Genetics in Bipolar Disorder 20:57 Research Funding and Its Impact on Bipolar Disorder 26:51 Stigma Surrounding Bipolar Disorder and Its Effects 32:07 Breaking the Stigma of Mental Illness 36:51 Thriving with Bipolar Disorder 42:12 The Integrated Network: A New Approach to Bipolar Research 47:39 Shifting Perspective From Symptom Reduction to Thriving 53:46 Understanding the Complexities of Bipolar Disorder