Analysis Of Silver Linings Playbook

Silver Linings Playbook tells the story of Pat, a former substitute history teacher with bipolar disorder who returns to his parents’ home after eight months in a mental hospital for beating up his wife 's lover, following a meltdown after his marriage broke up, and is determined to reconcile with his wife. Pat 's bipolar disorder manifests in ways that are realistically, even heartbreakingly ordinary; Pat attempts to control his mania with long jogs and rants about Hemingway. Yet the film has produced an argument among some reviewers about its portrayal of mental illness. Do the characters get off too easily, their symptoms getting better and almost nonexistent as soon as they find one another? Does the film imply that Pat 's medication was …show more content…
During severe episodes of mania or depression people with bipolar disorder may have psychotic symptoms; hallucinations or delusions. When experiencing hallucinations or delusions, people with schizophrenia often seem to "lose touch" with reality. The most common type of hallucination in schizophrenia are voices. In bipolar disorder, the psychotic symptoms tend to reflect the person 's extreme depressed or elated mood. People with either disorder may have delusions that they believe they are a famous person or historical figure. When psychotic symptoms are present, bipolar disorder is sometimes misdiagnosed as schizophrenia. Borderline Personality Disorder involves an unescapable pattern of poor impulse control and instability in mood, interpersonal relationships, and self-image. Throughout this movies, Pat mentions how his wife Nikki wanted him to change himself, lose weight, and be more loving towards her. It is clear that he is instable when it comes to emotions, since a song can set him off without a thought and he has shaky and unpredictable relationships with his parents, brother, and Tiffany. However, bipolar disorder is the one that fits best …show more content…
Bipolar symptoms seem to be associated with an excess of norepinephrine and low levels of serotonin, as well as damage to the prefrontal cortex in the brain. Stressful events seem to increase levels of mania; however, stress seems not to trigger manic episodes except in people who have a genetic predisposition to mania. In the movie, his father shows symptoms of obsessive compulsive disorder; he labels his envelopes and notices when one is missing, he has rituals for football games and believes if he doesn’t do these rituals for the game then some cosmic force will prevent his team from