Manic

A good friend of mind had brain surgery to remove a mass a month ago.  His surgery went fine, he went home and the doctor put him on steroids and after a week of being on the steroids he became manic, spending money very quickly, getting very angry at his girlfriend and broke up with her, has no patience for anyone and can't understand why everyone is arguing with him. He sees no problem (he doesn't make tons of money) with buying furniture for his entire condo in one day and spending a lot of money on a picture that he normally would not have liked (before the surgery).  I am just trying to find some answers for his girlfriend and family as to his acting this way and they have since removed him from the steroids and he is not changed at all.  Will his actions correct themselves and what can be done to help him?  He sleeps 45 minutes a night, a few times a night but not anywhere a full night's sleep since the operation.  What can they expect from here?


This discussion is related to Adverse systemic effects of steroids.

[shortcircuited]

He needs to see a psychiatrist.  If he didn't have bipolar disorder before, he may be stuck with it now.  He needs to come down off the mania and get some sleep, and psychiatric medication can help do that.

He may also need a therapist to deal with the problems this manic episode is causing and to deal with the future.