What is a mood disorder?
A mood disorder is a mental health condition that severely impacts a person's emotions and feelings. Mood disorders can range from mild to severe, with the most common being major depressive disorder and bipolar disorder.
Some key things to know about mood disorders:
- They affect how you feel emotionally rather than just affecting your thoughts and behaviors. Common feelings include prolonged sadness, irritability, anxiety, emptiness, hopelessness.
- They can interfere hugely with daily life - including work, relationships, sleep, appetite.
- Biological factors like brain chemistry and hormones play a big role. Imbalances in chemicals like serotonin, norepinephrine and dopamine are often involved. This is why medication and holistic options like hormone therapy can be effective.
- External factors like stress, grief, medical illness can trigger episodes or make existing mood disorders worse.
The two most prevalent mood disorders are:
- Major depressive disorder - characterized by depressed mood, lack of interest in activities, changes in sleep/appetite/energy levels lasting most days for over 2 weeks. Can be mild, moderate or severe.
- Bipolar disorder - characterized by extreme mood swings between highs (mania) and lows (depression) with periods of normal moods between episodes.
Other disorders like persistent depressive disorder, seasonal affective disorder, premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD) and disruptive mood dysregulation disorder (DMDD) exhibit depressive symptoms.
If you think you may be struggling with a mood disorder, reach out to a mental health professional right away. With the right mix of talk therapy, medication if needed, and holistic approaches like balancing hormones through Vitality Hormone Center(/mood-disorders), many people find great relief from mood disorder symptoms and regain enjoyment in life.