Feeling moody? You’re not alone. More people than ever are falling into a vicious cycle with their emotional health. America has the highest incidence in the world of bipolar diagnoses, with 4.4% of Americans suffering from the disease.
Aside from genetic causes though, mood swings have a variety of causes, many of which can be prevented. If you feel yourself spiraling out of control all too often on the emotional rollercoaster, consult this list after consulting your doctor. It’s possible you might have the power to put a stop to it.
#1 — Psychiatric Disorders
First and foremost, psychiatric disorders are a challenging cause of mood swings that only a physician is really qualified to diagnose or treat. If your mood swings are extreme and consistent, no matter what the weather or circumstances, it’s possible you might need to talk to your doctor.
- Bipolar disorder
- ADHD
- Depression
#2 — Stress
Nothing makes a person moody like stress. Feelings of overwhelm can lead to feelings of alienation which can cause us to lash out at all of the wrong people.
If this is your reality, it’s time to dial back your burden — figure out what you need to do to lighten your mental load and give yourself a break. Massages and exercise are fantastic stress relievers, but you know what’s a really great stress reliever?
Not taking on more than is reasonable to expect of yourself.
Learn to say no, let things go, and care less — you’ll be a happier, stabler person for it.
#3 — Sugar
I’m sorry. I really, really am, because CUPCAKES, but sugar is a mega culprit when it comes to mood swings.
What goes up must come down, and the extreme spikes and crashes in your blood sugar caused by too much sugar in your diet (and then nowhere near enough) can make you a force to be reckoned with.
Everything in moderation, and unfortunately, that includes chocolate.
#4 — Hormonal Imbalances
Hormones go way beyond estrogen and testosterone. These chemicals are responsible for everything from vitamin absorption to how much you can stand the human race on any given day.
Hormonal imbalances cause a crazy variety of symptoms that can be seemingly unrelated, and mood swings are definitely one of them. If you have other symptoms, be sure to get it all on the table for your doctor and ask them to check out your hormone levels — there could be some funny business going on.
#5 — Gut Health Issues
Gut health is tied to pretty much everything. If your gut is overwhelmed with processed foods or antibiotics, it can actually keep you from making enough of your happy hormone (serotonin) and make you super cranky.
#6 — Lack of Sleep
Sleep deprivation does some crazy things to our brain. If you’re not getting enough sleep, you can literally go a little bit crazy, but even mild deprivation can cause hormonal imbalances that lead to mood swings.
Caffeine isn’t an effective long-term solution to this problem, it’s a bandaid, and one that just delays the inevitable moodiness. Get your eight hours and stop resisting already.
#7 — Substance Abuse
Alcohol can be a great social lubricant, but too much too often can do more than damage to your liver. Substance abuse wreaks havoc on your brain pathways and makes it harder for your body’s hormones to stay in balance.
In addition to the physical stress caused by substance abuse, these hormonal fluctuations can lead to some gnarly mood swings. Alcohol doesn’t just cause mood swings, it exacerbates them.
#8 — Weather
Seasonal Affective Disorder is a type of depressive mood disorder that’s caused by the weather. UV light is fantastic for keeping our hormones in order and bringing up our mood, but not enough of it during the winter months or in particularly rainy climates can cause depressions that span the seasons.
If you struggle with SAD, have your doctor check your vitamin D levels and see if you need a supplement. Sometimes even supplemental UV exposure can help — get some sun (safely) and see if it turns that frown upside down.
#9 — Screen Time
Screen time is a MEGA mood disruptor, and it’s the elephant in the room — nobody wants to talk about it because we’re all screen junkies. It’s estimated that the average American spends a whopping 10 hours per day looking at a screen.
And hey, we’re blogging about it. The irony isn’t lost on us.
The problem here is that electronic screens emit blue light which tricks your body into thinking it’s being exposed to sunlight. It can throw off your mental clock and actually inhibit the release of the sleep hormone melatonin. Even just a few minutes of staring at a screen can set your biological bedtime back by hours.
Even more disturbing, watching TV causes stimulation of your serotonin receptors. Overstimulation basically makes your body struggle to produce it on its own. The result? You’re sleep deprived AND it’s harder to make you smile.
You don’t have to give up Netflix or Pinterest to solve this problem — you just have to wear blue light blocking computer glasses.
Computer glasses block those misleading blue light rays and keep your hormones from getting out of whack, and they’re a must-have unless you plan on swearing off social media (for real this time).
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