Mood swings - Balance Hormone Clinic

What are mood swings?

Mood swings are sudden, unexpected shifts in emotion that can go from happy to sad or calm to angry. They differ from normal emotional changes as the shifts are more dramatic, happen more often, and often don't have an obvious external cause.

Mood swings can significantly disrupt quality of life when severe. Identifying potential causes and finding better ways to cope can help minimize their impact.

Common Causes

There are many potential factors that can contribute to mood swings:

• Hormonal changes - Fluctuations in hormones like estrogen, progesterone, and testosterone often trigger swings during puberty, menstruation, perimenopause and menopause. Hormone imbalances may require medical treatment.
• Stress - High stress often aggravates emotional volatility. Managing stress through self-care tools like exercise, meditation, and counseling can help stabilize moods.
• Medications - Various prescription drugs list mood swings as a side effect. Adjusting dosages or switching medications may lessen instability.
• Health conditions - Thyroid disorders, dementia, Parkinson's disease and autism spectrum disorder can impact regulation of emotions. Treating the underlying issue may relieve associated mood variability.
• Substance abuse - The peaks and crashes from alcohol, recreational and prescription drug misuse frequently cause rollercoaster moods. Seeking treatment for substance abuse issues aids mood stabilization long-term.

Coping Strategies

While the exact cause may be unknown or difficult to control, there are strategies to cope better when mood swings happen:

• Pay attention to early warning signs of an impending high or low. Keeping a mood journal can help track emotional patterns.
• Build a toolbox of go-to coping skills like deep breathing, taking a walk, calling a friend or using mobile apps with mood tracking functionality. Having healthy outlets when emotions spike can lessen their intensity.
• Reduce stress through healthy lifestyle choices around diet, exercise, sleep and work-life balance. Wellness helps buffer against emotional turbulence.
• Seek counseling or a support group. Having an empathetic listening ear helps process feelings and prevents bottling up emotions.
• For hormone-related swing, consider personalized bioidentical hormone therapy from clinics like Balance Hormone Clinic. Their comprehensive programs aim to restore hormonal balance gently. As hormones re-regulate, so may moods.

The key is identifying connections between life factors and emotional volatility. Awareness of personal swing triggers allows quicker response when shifts happen. Building healthy coping outlets then minimizes the disruptions of mood swings.