Do you sometimes feel like you have ever-changing moods or get stuck in a mood and cannot control how you feel? For many people, what they experience falls under the heading of mood disorder symptoms. Mood disorders can drastically affect a person’s life and leave them frustrated and unsure of what’s going on. Montare Outpatient created a program that treats mood disorders and helps people gain better control of their emotions. Our treatment program combines exposure to multiple types of helpful therapy and any necessary prescription medications.
What Are Mood Disorders?
Mood disorders are a type of mental health disorder. Nearly one in ten people aged 18 and older have mood disorders, making it a more common illness than many people realize. A mood disorder causes a person to have mood changes or to become stuck in a mood and not have the ability to change or moderate their emotions. Mood disorder symptoms can include going from extreme lows to soaring highs, experiencing just one type of emotion, or periods of not being able to feel anything.
There are multiple types of mood disorders, and it takes a qualified physician or mental health clinician to identify and diagnose which one a person has. The types of mood disorders are:
Major Depressive Disorder: Most people know this as depression and it impacts millions of people. The person feels a constant level of being depressed and cannot pull themselves out of it.
Dysthymia: This is also called persistent depressive disorder. The person will experience periods of time in which they are free of depressive symptoms, but the depression always returns.
Seasonal Affective Disorder: Also known as “SAD”, it most often happens to people during fall and winter when there is less sunlight. The person’s moods plummet during that season, and they find it difficult to cope.
Bipolar Disorder: A person’s moods range from extreme lows to euphoric highs, and they cannot control any of them. This dramatically impacts how they function in their lives and their relationships with others.
Substance-Induced Disorder: Someone who abuses drugs or alcohol can actually end up developing a mood disorder as a result.
Postpartum Depression: This occurs for many women after they give birth to their baby and lasts for two weeks or longer.
Mood Disorder Symptoms
Someone who has a mood disorder will experience symptoms of it. It may be difficult for them or someone around them to recognize the signs, but some common mood disorder symptoms to look out for include the following:
- Depression that occurs consistently or off and on
- Hopelessness
- Feelings of guilt even with no specific cause
- Euphoric highs during which the person often feels invincible
- Anxiety
- Panic attacks
- Trying to change how the person feels but not being able to do so
- Swinging from one mood to another rapidly or regularly
- Sometimes feeling numb and having no emotional reactions
- Moodiness
- Being quick to anger
- Difficulty thinking, concentrating, or making decisions
- Changes in appetite or weight
- Insomnia or sleeping too much
- Lethargy
- Medical symptoms like headaches or gastrointestinal distress not tied to a physical cause
- Abusing alcohol or drugs in an attempt to minimize mood disorder symptoms
Mood Disorder vs Personality Disorder
Mood disorders and personality disorders can have some symptoms in common, including experiencing difficult emotions a person has trouble regulating. However, personality disorders are more about how a person behaves. They often find it difficult to know what a proper action or reaction is in relation to a given situation. Their resulting actions can then influence experiencing distressful or painful emotions. Having a personality disorder can cause a person to have a great deal of trouble maintaining healthy relationships with romantic partners, friends, family members, co-workers, and others.
Some of the common types of personality disorders include:
- Borderline personality disorder
- Avoidant personality disorder
- Antisocial personality disorder
- Paranoid personality disorder
- Schizoid personality disorder
- Narcissistic personality disorder
Both mood disorders and personality disorders respond well when a person engages in different types of therapy. Prescription medications can also minimize their symptoms and make life more manageable. A main difference in treatment is that professional help for mood disorders centers on learning to control a person’s moods. Personality disorder treatment focuses more on learning to adopt healthier actions and reactions that result in better moods.
Contact Montare Outpatient Treatment Center in Los Angeles, CA
If you have a mood disorder, you know from experience how it can make your life difficult. It impacts your work life, relationships with family and friends, and ability to participate in day-to-day activities. Montare Outpatient provides a highly effective program that diagnoses the illness and treats your mood disorder symptoms. Our therapy modalities help you understand your condition and what you can do to help even out your emotional experiences. We also provide prescription medications that minimize your symptoms and make life become more manageable.
If you would like to know more about how we treat mood disorder symptoms, visit our admissions page now. Our staff can answer any questions you have.
