A lot of people toil with the problem of frequent mood swings. When there is a rapid as well as extreme fluctuation in emotional state of a person, it is known as mood swings. You can be really happy and excited at one point and deal with feelings of irritability, frustration or depression at the other.
Reasons behind mood swings
The prime reason of mood swing is imbalance in chemicals of brain which are linked with mood regulation. This is usually seen in bipolar disorder or during hormonal changes which happen in body during menopause or menstrual cycle. Apart from this, if you use steroids, mood swings is going to affect you too.
Mood swings are a common symptom of depression, particularly depression where treatment of no kind is provided. In this case moods vary from bad temper to intense sadness to angry flare-up.
Every person faces mood swings sometime in life, but when frequency of mood swings disrupts your regular course of life and work, you must consult a doctor. You can be suffering from mood disorder like depression or bipolar disorder.
Knowing the symptoms of depression
In case you have serious mood swings, it is possible that you are depressed. Other common symptoms of depression are:
- Feeling hopeless, sad and useless
- Having problems sleeping
- Eating very little or too much
- Always feeling tired and drained out
- Not finding fun in things which you usually enjoy
- Having problems concentrating or decision making
- Having suicidal thoughts
Symptoms of Bipolar Disorder
One of the main symptoms of bipolar disorder is mood swings. Bipolar is distinguished by bouts of mania and depression. A person may exhibit fast-talking, feeling extra energetic, indulging in dangerous behavior, irritability, sleeping less than normal, being active all the time.
Then there will be a depressive bout which will encompass feeling of sad or valueless, crying, lack of energy, feeling tired, having difficulty in concentrating, sleeping, eating too much or not enough, suicidal thoughts etc.
Also Read: How Much Relaxation Do You Get Out of Life?
Another reason of mood swing is Borderline Personality Disorder
Borderline personality disorder is a health disorder which can attribute to mood swings. Some of the symptoms are mentioned below:
- Intense mood swings which can persist for few hours to even days.
- Impulsive as well as unsafe behavior. For instance, indulging in substance abuse or unprotected sex.
- Radical reactions to abandonment, whether it is real or you feel it is real. These reactions can be rage, depression or panic.
- Feeling empty and restless.
- Threatening to commit suicide or indulging in self-harming behaviors such as cutting.
- Having extreme feelings as regards any person.
- Anger issues and inability to control anger
- Exhibiting dissociative symptoms. For instance, feeling like you have lost track of time or you are outside your body keeping a tab on how things are going.
So without any doubt, it is quite possible that the mood swings which you are dealing with are actually depression or any other mental health ailment. You must go for immediate medical treatment as situation can become worse if left untreated.