- Have you ever felt cheerful and optimistic but one day your mood drops significantly?
- What is an emotional imbalance?
- How to recognize if I am suffering from emotional ups and downs?
- Ways in which these sudden changes affect us
- Keys to handle them
Have you ever felt cheerful and optimistic but one day your mood drops significantly?
Or you can't control your emotional reactions at certain times? Almost as if you have two personalities, each with feelings and reactions that clash with each other. This can bring problems and misunderstandings in your interpersonal, work and even family relationships.
We must remember that emotions help us generate interactions with people, communicate and express ourselves as the situation warrants.Therefore, if we find ourselves in a situation that we enjoy, it fills us with joy. While if something seems wrong to us we can show anger or disagreement. But, can you imagine that you cannot express the right emotions for each moment or the change between one and the other?
This is known in psychology as emotional imbalance and it can happen to anyone. Therefore, in this article we will tell you everything about what this imbalance is about, how to recognize it and what you can do to control it effectively.
What is an emotional imbalance?
Also known as instability or emotional ups and downs, it is an alteration in the change of the affective state of people or an emotional variation, showing itself especially on humor, which can go from one state to its pole opposite immediately. That is, being happy and in a short time, feeling extreme melancholy, for no apparent reason that triggers it
Why is this happening? Because the dynamism of emotions becomes too intense for the organism itself and it can no longer keep it in balance or manage it functionally. Producing emotional discomfort in the face of any minimal change, leading to an alteration in the quality of relationships in the different spheres of the person's lives and even triggering future serious psychological problems such as depression or anxiety.
How to recognize if I am suffering from emotional ups and downs?
People who suffer from emotional disturbances can be clearly observed in their abrupt and sudden mood swings, but also by other characteristics that we will tell you below.
one. Tendency to idealization
This is a characteristic that is shown in people with certain degrees of emotional dependence towards others, that is to say, that should always be with a partner because they do not tolerate loneliness because they feel emptyWhich leads to an idealization of both the other person who is by his side, as well as his own life that he will have with him or life together.
The problem is that these idealizations are extremely romantic and perfect, so when something happens that does not match your imagination, it is the cause of conflicts and disappointments.
2. Dichotomous extremists
It is yes or no, white or black, there are no intermediate points between these people, which leads them to have serious communication problems. communication and relationship with others, have a low tolerance for frustration, do not know how to resolve conflicts and do not tend to think about the consequences that their actions may bring. They show extremely intense behaviors and attitudes between mania, aggressiveness and sadness.
3. Affective lability
This is in essence, the drastic change from one state of mind to another suddenlyWhich can be produced by a psychological alteration of the state of mind or in the production of hormones and neurotransmitters in charge of emotional balance. In more serious cases, this may be a symptom of some type of psychiatric disorder or a psychotic episode.
4. Other personality disorders
In some cases, emotional imbalance is part of the symptomatology of one of the personality disorders, such as the disorder borderline or borderline personality, bipolar disorder, impulse control, depression or anxiety disorders.
Ways in which these sudden changes affect us
Many tend to normalize these serious mood swings, claiming they are 'part of human nature'. However, the maladjustment and the possibility of triggering other disorders make it a warning call to attend to before it is too late.
one. Self-esteem and independence
As people with affective disorders have tendencies towards emotional dependence, they have problems living with themselves Which causes them not to develop independence to face the world on their own, cling to things that are safe or known, and manage through manipulation.
But they also tend to have very low self-esteem, for the same reason of the emotional emptiness they feel internally. Which leads them to experience risky behaviors or have repetitive attitudes that make them feel better.
2. Personal growth problems
Due to the previous point, people do not trust their own abilities and skills or the possibility of developing them to use them in their favor to grow in areas of their lives, such as professional or work.They may also be due to fear of change and their communication problems and inability to solve problems.
The same thing happens when you have the desire to undertake new things, in states of emotion and joy, motivation flows and everything can prosper. But as soon as we fall into the emotions of sadness and insecurity, ideas are discarded or the fear of failure is generated. Only unfinished projects remain unfinished.
3. Impossibility of enjoyment
During states of euphoria, those who present emotional instability are in a state of contagious optimism and celebration While in the states melancholic people can isolate themselves completely from the world, they present an apathy and irritability that prevents them from enjoying absolutely nothing. Which affects not only them, but the people around them, since they may also be involved.
4. Global Interactions
It is both in your personal sphere, and in courtesy mandatory work, academic and social communications. People with emotional instability can meddle in conflicts between peers or people in authority, costing them their future in these areas. Well, they can lead to dismissals, expulsions or family estrangement.
5. Inability to separate areas of development
By this we refer to the fact that if the person has a personal problem that causes them emotional distress, it can cause their work motivation or academic performance to decline, and the same thing can happen in reverse. This is due to the fact that people cannot separate the problems they have in one sphere from another in which they do not, but they mix all of them as one.
Keys to handle them
It is important to know how to read the signs, since this does not happen from one moment to the next and there are circumstances that trigger these discomforts with greater intensity. Once done, it's time to act.
one. Acknowledging that you have a problem
The first step you must take is to recognize that you have a problem that is affecting your life and that if you do not do something about it to remedy it, it can seriously complicate and without effective return. Both on the part of your affective and mental he alth, as well as on the quality of interpersonal relationships in your daily routine.
2. Attend psychotherapy
The most effective treatment to control emotional instability is to attend psychological therapy where you can discover the origin of these changes and if there are situations that cause it. So that you can have tools and techniques to avoid them, solve conflicts, increase your self-esteem and achieve a balance in your emotional reactions.
You can also try group therapy, where you share your emotions and situation with other people who are going through the same thing and practice with them to improve your channels of communication and social interaction.
3. Find moments to relax
Many emotional disturbances arise from the pressure and stress of not being able to face or resolve something, which causes anxiety and self-doubt. Therefore, it is ideal to look for relaxing activities that help reduce mental and physical tension.
Such as reading practices, yoga, meditation, short walks, dynamic sports or leisure activities. Their purpose is to help clear your mind and reduce negative emotions.
4. Learn new things
Learning a new skill through extracurricular activities or courses can help you gain self-confidence. Discovering that one is capable of acquiring new abilities expands creativity, observation, mental agility and self-esteem, which is beneficial for mood regulation.
5. Do not isolate yourself
In the most negative and melancholic episodes it is normal to want to be alone, but this can be counterproductive because it is precisely in solitude where negative and self-destructive thoughts appear most uncontrollably, as well as feelings of hopelessness. Instead, find a friend or family member, ask them out to distract you, and vent to them about what's bothering you.
6. Identify situations
As you could read previously, these emotional changes do not occur suddenly or surprisingly, but rather they show up little by little until you unconsciously transform it into part of you. Once you go to therapy and are taught how to identify triggers, take a moment to analyze it and either walk away or figure out the best way to respond when faced with it in the future.
The important thing is that you have the ability to predict, act on, and resolve your moments of predisposition without negative consequences occurring.
7. Have a he althy lifestyle
The way we eat and the rhythm of daily life directly affects our state of mind. For example, if we eat fatty foods that are heavy for the body, we tend to feel more tired, have a low mood and are more sensitive to stress, since there are no he althy nutrients that can be transformed into energy.
Whereas, if we opt for a sedentary lifestyle, the body feels more stiff, painful and tense in the face of daily activities. For this reason it is important to make an evaluation of food and physical activity, to change it for one that helps our body.
8. Do not force other emotions
The idea is not to change one emotion for another so that it is completely eliminated and you will never feel it again. But express it adequately, at the right times, but above all not to be controlled by them.So, if you feel sadness you can feel it, if you're happy show it, if you're angry find a way to release it that doesn't affect others or you.
9. Train your assertiveness
You can search for courses that teach you to communicate assertively and thus improve your channels of expression with people. Which will benefit you in any area of your life, it will prevent conflicts or misunderstandings from being generated, you will be able to solve problems in a respectful way and offer your opinion without getting out of control.
10. Find out about their cause
It is possible that this emotional lack of control is the product of a more alarming psychological illness, so it is necessary that you attend a psychological consultation and ask them to evaluate this possibility. Especially if the symptoms presented are too extreme or have serious consequences for your life. If it is detected in time, you will be able to enjoy your life without major complications.
Taking care of one's state of mind is an important step for one's overall he alth and our quality of life.