Catherine Zeta-Jones treated for bipolar disorder

14th April 2011 - Catherine Zeta-Jones has been treated for bipolar disorder, her publicist has confirmed.

The Swansea-born Hollywood star, 41, was admitted to rehab after helping her husband, actor Michael Douglas, recover from throat cancer.

"After dealing with the stress of the past year, Catherine made the decision to check in to a mental health facility for a brief stay to treat her Bipolar II Disorder," publicist Cece Yorke said in a statement. The Oscar winning actress reportedly checked into a clinic in Connecticut for five days earlier this month.

Mood swings

Bipolar disorder - sometimes known as manic depression - is a severe mental health problem. It involves extreme mood swings that alternate between highs and lows. Around one person in every 100 is diagnosed with the condition.

"For some of the time people are very, very depressed - and that's not the same as just being a bit blue or having a bit of a bad day," says Jane Harris, Associate Director of the mental health charity Rethink. She tells us that a typical symptom is "a complete lack of emotion about anything" and during episodes "people are very down, they lack self-worth and they may have problems even getting out of bed, let alone out of the house".

Harris says the other side to the condition is a period when people feel "absolutely euphoric and pretty manic and really feel like they can take on the world and do anything".

Harris says stressful situations such as bereavement, divorce or money worries can trigger bipolar. "Certainly caring for a husband who is very ill will certainly be a very stressful time," she says.

Celebrities

Zeta-Jones, who won a best supporting actress Oscar for her role in Chicago, joins a list of well-known people who have had bipolar, such as Stephen Fry, Bill Oddie, Gail Porter and possibly Sir Winston Churchill.

Harris thinks publicity surrounding the actresses treatment for bipolar will be good for other people with the disorder who are prone to feeling stigmatised. "Somebody like Catherine Zeta-Jones talking so openly about it ... just shows that this can happen to anybody, and I think that is a bit of a comfort for people who are really struggling."

Some mental health professionals categorise bipolar into four main subtypes with bipolar II - which Zeta-Jones is said to have - categorised mainly by depression with episodes of hypomania.

Treatment

Harris says people with bipolar usually need a mixture of some kind of medication and talking therapy. "What's really important is that if people do go to a medical professional, be that a psychiatrist or a GP, they shouldn't just be given medication because really you need both to really maximise your chances of getting over it."

Harris adds: "As long as Catherine Zeta-Jones gets the right treatment, she should certainly be back in films in the near future."

You can read more about the symptoms of bipolar disorder here.