Episode 45: Can Adoption or Childhood Trauma Cause Bipolar Disorder? with Dr. Christina Bjorndal
- THA Operations
- 5 days ago
- 4 min read
When the Diagnosis Doesn't Tell the Whole Story
You've been diagnosed with bipolar disorder and told you'll need medication for life. The label explains your mood swings but feels incomplete somehow. You wonder if there's more to the story than brain chemistry alone.
What if early trauma is creating symptoms that look like bipolar disorder? What if addressing that trauma could change everything about your diagnosis and treatment?
Bipolar disorder might not be what you think it is. Could early trauma be behind the diagnosis? Could there be solutions beyond psychiatric medication alone?
Dr. Christina Bjorndal joins me for a deep conversation exploring mental wellness diagnoses and their connection to traumatic experiences. We challenge what bipolar actually means and whether the label fits what's really happening.
The Questions That Challenge Everything
Is a bipolar label related to early childhood trauma in ways psychiatry doesn't acknowledge? If so, are there different solutions beyond psychiatric medication that address root causes? These questions matter for millions of people living with this diagnosis.
Diagnoses can help or harm depending on how they're used. They provide understanding and validation for suffering that feels inexplicable. But they also create boxes that trap people in limited identities. The label becomes who you are rather than describing what you're experiencing.
Childhood trauma and adoption create specific nervous system patterns that affect development profoundly. Your developing nervous system adapts to what it experiences in those early years. Those adaptations can look like bipolar disorder when viewed through the psychiatric lens but might be trauma responses when understood through the Biology of Trauma®.
What you learned to believe about yourself in childhood shapes your biology in measurable ways. Shadow beliefs about being unwanted, unlovable, or wrong create patterns in your nervous system. These patterns get labeled as pathology when they're actually protective responses to overwhelming early experiences.
Understanding Bipolar Through a Trauma Lens
Bipolar symptoms often reflect stored trauma expressing itself through mood extremes. Mood swings mirror nervous system dysregulation between hyperactivation and shutdown. The extremes show a system overwhelmed and attempting to regulate itself through the only mechanisms available.
Mania might represent your nervous system in extreme sympathetic activation trying to escape or fight what it perceives as threat. Depression might reflect dorsal vagal shutdown after your system exhausts itself through manic activation. The cycling between states shows a nervous system unable to find middle ground or safety.
Understanding the Biology of Trauma® reveals why adoption and early separation create vulnerability to mood dysregulation. When attachment is disrupted in the first months of life, your nervous system never learns proper co-regulation. Without that foundation, your system struggles to regulate itself throughout life and creates extreme states attempting to manage activation.
Medication has its place in managing acute symptoms and preventing dangerous episodes. But it's not the only solution or always the complete solution. Addressing the trauma underneath the symptoms can change the entire picture of what's happening in your system.
The Holistic Approach to Bipolar Healing
You can't separate mind from body from spirit when healing complex mental health conditions. Bipolar healing requires addressing all layers simultaneously including biology, psychology, stored trauma, nutritional biochemistry, and energetic patterns.
Dr. Bjorndal challenges the diagnosis itself by asking what happens when you address early trauma and nervous system dysregulation comprehensively. Do the bipolar symptoms persist or do they resolve as the underlying dysregulation heals? Is the label still accurate or was it describing trauma responses all along?
The holistic approach includes stabilizing nervous system function through regulation practices, addressing nutritional deficiencies affecting brain chemistry, processing stored trauma that's creating dysregulation, healing attachment wounds from early separation or disruption, and supporting all aspects of the person rather than just managing symptoms.
This doesn't mean everyone should stop medication or that bipolar is "just trauma." Some people need ongoing medication support. But many people might benefit from addressing trauma alongside or potentially instead of lifelong medication when the root cause is dysregulation from early experiences rather than primary brain chemistry disorder.
Dr. Bjorndal's work demonstrates that questioning diagnoses can open pathways to healing that accepting them as permanent conditions closes off. When you ask whether bipolar is really the right framework for understanding extreme mood states rooted in trauma, you create space for different interventions that might address causes rather than just managing symptoms.
This Episode Is For:
✓ People with bipolar diagnosis wondering about root causes
✓ Anyone with early trauma or adoption history and mood instability
✓ Practitioners questioning whether bipolar is always what it seems
✓ Those wanting to explore beyond medication-only treatment
✓ Anyone feeling like their diagnosis doesn't capture the whole picture
✓ People ready to understand mood extremes through a trauma lens
What You'll Learn
Listen to explore whether bipolar disorder connects to early childhood trauma in ways psychiatry overlooks. Discover what holistic solutions exist beyond psychiatric medication alone. Understand how adoption and early separation create nervous system patterns that look like bipolar but might be trauma responses.
Your diagnosis might be describing trauma symptoms rather than a permanent brain disorder.
Disclaimer
This podcast is for educational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional medical or mental health advice, diagnosis, or treatment. The information shared reflects my clinical expertise and research, but every person's biology and healing journey is unique. Always consult with qualified healthcare providers before making changes to your treatment plan or starting new interventions. If you're experiencing a mental health crisis, please contact emergency services or a crisis helpline immediately.
Join the Conversation
I'd love to hear your thoughts on this episode. What resonated with you? What questions came up?
Please keep comments respectful and supportive. This is a community of people committed to healing. We welcome diverse perspectives and honest questions, but we don't tolerate personal attacks, spam, or content that could harm others on their healing journey.
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