Question

A nurse manager is assessing a client who has bipolar disorder. Which of the following alterations in speech is the client using?

a) Pressured speech
b) Slow and monotone speech
c) Stuttering and hesitations
d) Mumbling and incoherent speech

Answer 1

In assessing a client with bipolar disorder, the nurse manager would likely observe pressured speech, which is rapid and excessive, and characteristic of a manic episode. Slow, monotone, stuttering, or mumbling speech patterns are not typical of manic phases of bipolar disorder.

Step-by-step explanation:

The question involves identifying a type of speech alteration that a client with bipolar disorder might exhibit. Among the options provided, pressured speech is often associated with bipolar disorder, especially during manic episodes. Pressured speech is characterized by rapid, frenzied, or excessively talkative speech that seems driven by an urgent need to speak. This is frequently observed in the manic phase of bipolar disorder where the individual may have a flight of ideas, making speech difficult to interrupt.

Other speech alterations like slow and monotone speech, stuttering and hesitations, and mumbling and incoherent speech are not typically characteristic of bipolar disorder manic episodes, but they can appear in other medical conditions or psychological disorders. It is crucial for nurses to recognize these speech patterns to aid in the assessment and provide appropriate care management for those with bipolar disorder.