Spoil the mood. What to do if you are in a bad mood? Why is he always in a bad mood? Depression and Bipolar Disorder

And a slice of chocolate can turn our mood upside down. This does not mean that a bad mood needs to be "jammed". But to please yourself with the food that you want now is not a crime. And extra calories can be burned by sports exercises. They will not only help you to be more fit, but also contribute to the release of endorphins - the so-called "hormones of joy." Both will improve your mood. Even a simple walk can change a lot. Don't be lazy to get outside, especially on a sunny day.

Get creative

Research carried out real British scientists have shown that creative activities improve mood. Drawing, music, writing - everything can help. And it does not matter at what level you have mastered each of the cases. Even if you don't know how, try to learn. Your efforts will not be in vain!

smile

Right now. Even if you feel bad, squeeze a smile out of yourself. And here we turn to a study that proved the theory of a mutual relationship between a good mood and a smile. The hypothesis was that facial expressions can change mood. Therefore, at the moment when you feel bad, remember to smile.

Do a good deed

Doing something nice for someone else will make you feel much better. Therefore, if you still can’t make yourself happy, try to make someone else happy. Whether the deed is great or small is not so important. Even a small step can bring pleasure.

listen to music

As I write this article, Pink Floyd is playing in the background - one of my favorite bands. I listen to them not only during work, but also when I want to get a little pleasure. No one is obliged to listen to this particular group, everyone has their own preferences. But music is magical.

I will not undertake to argue what exactly happens to the brain at the moment, the sounds that are pleasant to us. But I can say that it really helps. So if you want to relax and forget about your problems for a while, turn on your favorite music and enjoy.

Don't take it out on others

We are all selfish and think of ourselves first. This is fine. But the next time you feel bad, try not to spoil the mood of others. If you feel that you are about to insult or offend another person because of your mood, it is better to leave and be alone. Later you can thank yourself for such an act.

seize the moment

Close your eyes and think of anything but a green zebra. Now tell me what are you thinking?

Our brain is so arranged that if we get hung up on something, we will continue to think about it more and more. In a situation with a bad mood, this is unacceptable. Do you feel like you only think about your sorrows? Switch to other thoughts immediately. Stop feeling sorry for yourself. Better yet, do something that can really distract you.

Breathe and clear your mind

Yes, yes, the advice is like I'm a master of oriental martial arts. But a few deep breaths really help to calm down. Consider this the simplest form. And she, as many know, is able to work miracles. Sit comfortably in a quiet and pleasant place and try not to think about anything for a few minutes. This can be a little difficult at first. :-)

Find reasons

If a bad mood rarely happens to you, there is nothing to worry about. But if this happens more often than you would like, pay attention to possible reasons. You can start a diary to write down all the key events of your life. And then, analyzing the records, get to the bottom of the causes of their own frustrations.

Solve the problem

The last point is the most important. If you have found the cause of your bad mood, you need to deal with it. If it's a person, talk to him. If there is a problem, try to solve it. You do not need to spend all your thoughts and free time on this, but do not let it take root in your life.

Get creative

smile

Do a good deed

listen to music

Don't take it out on others

seize the moment

Close your eyes and think of anything but a green zebra. Now tell me what are you thinking?

Breathe and clear your mind

Find reasons

Solve the problem

In Russia, every third adult suffers from depression. Depression worsens the quality of a person's life, negatively affects relationships with loved ones, colleagues, and reduces a person's efficiency at work.
It should be noted that if earlier the intellectual and economic elite of society, who are aware of the importance of a full-fledged active life, turned to a psychotherapist for help, in recent years the number of people among all segments of the population who prefer to use professional psychotherapeutic help has increased.

How to understand that you or your loved ones are not just in a bad mood, but depression, with which you need to seek help from a psychotherapist?

Any consists of three components - mood disorders, autonomic disorders and fatigue.

The first component of depression has to do with mood changes - sad depressed mood lasts more than two weeks. With depression, a dull perception of the world around appears, everything around seems gray and uninteresting. There are mood swings during the day - in the morning the mood can be good, but worsen in the evening. Or the mood is bad in the morning, and is somewhat dispelled by the evening. Some people may not have diurnal mood swings - it is constantly sad, sad, depressed and tearful.

Depressed mood comes in different shades. Sometimes it is a depressed mood with a hint of longing, with a hint of anxiety, with a hint of despair, as well as indifference or irritability. Sometimes a person may not be aware of his sad mood, but feel the so-called bodily manifestations of depression. With depression, there may be a feeling of intense heat in the chest, "a heavy pressure stone on the heart." Less often, depression manifests itself as a chronic sensation of pain in some part of the body, while doctors of other specialties do not find organic causes for pain.

Very often, a person reacts to a situation of prolonged stress with depression with a touch of anxiety. People feel anxiety in different ways. It can also manifest itself in the fear of falling asleep, nightmares, and in the constant fear and imagination that something terrible will happen to loved ones and relatives. Sometimes a person describes anxiety as nervousness and the inability to sit in one place. A constant feeling of anxiety makes it impossible to relax, for example, a person cannot sit still on a chair for more than two or three minutes - “fidgets in a chair, then jumps up and starts walking around the room.”

Very strong anxiety (57 points on the Sheehan scale or more) occurs against the background of an extended depression, and manifests itself in the form of panic attacks (feeling short of breath, palpitations, trembling in the body, sensations of heat). If severe anxiety has arisen, this indicates that a person has formed a huge underwater part of the iceberg of depression, and anxiety disorder is the tip of this iceberg of depression.

If with anxious depression a person cannot sit still, then with other forms of depression, on the contrary, it becomes more difficult for him to move. If a person sleeps for 12-14 hours a day, he does not have a feeling of cheerfulness in the morning, and ordinary actions - cooking soup, cleaning the apartment with a vacuum cleaner - seem overwhelming or meaningless to him, this may be a manifestation of apathetic depression.

The processes of inhibition during depression cover the entire body - it becomes more difficult for a person to think, his memory and attention deteriorate significantly, which significantly affects his working capacity. Difficulties with concentration are manifested in the fact that a person gets tired of watching TV for a short time or reading a few pages of an interesting book. Or, for example, a person can sit in front of a computer for a long time, but is unable to concentrate on work.

The second component of depression includes autonomic disorders (manifestations of vegetative-vascular dystonia). If the cardiologist and the therapist have ruled out the corresponding organic diseases, then frequent urination, false urges, headaches, dizziness, fluctuations in blood pressure and temperature are interpreted as additional vegetative signs of depression.

Depression affects the gastrointestinal tract in the following way: a person loses his appetite, constipation is noted for 4-5 days. Much less often, with an atypical form of depression, a person has increased appetite, diarrhea, or false urges.

Depression does not bypass the reproductive system of the body. As a result of developing depression in men and women, sensations in the sexual sphere are dulled. Much less often, depression manifests itself in the form of compulsive masturbation, or in the form of flight into numerous promiscuous relationships. Men often have problems with potency. In women with depression, there may be a regular delay in menstruation for 10-14 days, for six months or more.

The third component of depression is asthenic, which includes fatigue, sensitivity to weather changes, and irritability. Irritation is caused by loud noises, bright lights and sudden touches by strangers (for example, when a person is accidentally pushed on the subway or on the street). Sometimes, after a flash of internal irritation, tears appear.

With depression, various sleep disorders are observed: difficulty falling asleep, superficial restless sleep with frequent awakenings, or early awakenings with a simultaneous desire and inability to fall asleep.

Depression has its own laws of development. There are signs that indicate the severity of depression. Reflections on the meaninglessness of life and even suicide are a sign of a significant increase in depression. Thus, a general feeling of unwillingness to live, thoughts about the meaninglessness or aimlessness of life, as well as more pronounced suicidal thoughts, intentions or plans appear sequentially in severe depression. The appearance of these symptoms in you or your loved ones is an indication for an urgent appeal to a psychotherapist. In this condition, it is important to start drug treatment of depression at an adequate dose as soon as possible.

Drug treatment for depression is prescribed if the level of depression on the Zung scale equals or exceeds 48 points. The effect is due to the effect of the drug on the serotonin system (the hormone of happiness and pleasure), norepinephrine, etc. Against the background of a stable mood, it is much easier to solve psychological problems and resolve conflict situations.

Many people are afraid to take antidepressants because they believe that allegedly these drugs develop addiction (dependence on the drug). But this is not at all the case; addiction to antidepressants (drug dependence) does not develop at all. Addiction is caused by strong sedatives and sleeping pills from the group of tranquilizers (benzodiazepines). Depression is treated with fundamentally different drugs - antidepressants.

Depending on the shade of depressed mood, the psychotherapist prescribes different antidepressants. There are antidepressants that treat anxiety-tinged depression. There are drugs to treat depression with a touch of apathy, indifference, and so on. With the right dosage of drugs, depression begins to reverse development after three to four weeks - suicidal thoughts and anxiety disappear, a desire to act actively appears, mood stabilizes.

Did the hairdresser ruin your haircut? Don't boil. At such moments, the most important thing is not to let the mood go downhill and not to make the circumstances even worse with your own hands.

And if the classic “calmly count to ten” doesn’t help you, then right now try one of the ways to urgently cheer up.

Give yourself a massage

According to reflexology scientists, many points located on the legs are directly related to certain areas of the brain. So the next time you feel like tearing your hair out, try kicking off your shoes and getting a little massage instead. Thoroughly rub your toes, then massage the skin between them. It will calm your frayed nerves a little. Did stress cause apathy and fatigue? Then rub the point just behind the bump on the front of the foot to stimulate the production of adrenaline in the body. This will help lift your spirits.

Eat mint candy

Few people know that the smell of mint acts on the brain as an aromatherapy antidepressant. Some smells affect the part of the brain that is responsible for emotions. The aroma of mint helps to feel refreshed, happy and full of energy.

123RF/Stepan Popov

Bring beauty around

One of the most obvious feng shui rules is: if your desktop is littered with junk, then so is your head. If every working day begins with the sight of a table littered with papers, then this will cause stress for anyone - subconsciously there is a feeling of “blockage”, panic.

By disassembling your desk and properly organizing your office space (fortunately, there are already many devices for this), you will feel how your mood improves and peace reigns in your soul.

123RF/lightfieldstudios

Turn on nice music

It's no secret that your favorite music helps to take your mind off heavy thoughts and helps to cheer you up. However, according to psychologists, not all melodies will help you escape from the unpleasant events of the day. Too lively or aggressive music can only worsen the situation, even if it is loved. So choose a tune whose mood is clearly better than yours.

123RF/Ruslan Huzau

Get distracted by something interesting

To stop a "terrible day" in the process of its formation, learn to completely distract from all the experiences and hassle associated with it. For 15 minutes, go headlong into any other activity, or at least just take a walk. Even a pleasant smell that suddenly appears can give you new sensations that will distract you from gloomy thoughts.

Turn your Lights Down Low

Bright electric lighting will not only not help you in your work, but can also cause fatigue and headaches. To get rid of tension, sometimes it is enough to turn off the overhead light and turn on a table lamp instead. And if possible, it is better to use natural sunlight.

drink some milk

Surprisingly, a glass of warm milk will really help you cheer up even on the most rainy day. According to nutritionists, if milk is heated, then the amino acids in it turn into tryptophan, a substance that increases the level of serotonin (the so-called “happy substance”) in the brain and gives a feeling of comfort and relaxation.

Spit and forget

Naturally, if you constantly remember unpleasant events, this will only aggravate the situation. Therefore, psychologists advise in some cases to set a limit on “remembering unpleasant things”. After an unpleasant event occurs, allow yourself to think about it for no more than five minutes. Then "let go". This will make your life much easier.

Admire nature

123RF/Ivan Kruk

So if your workplace does not offer a breathtaking view from the window, then it will not be superfluous to hang a poster, say, with views of the fjords of Iceland or the African savannas. Or just put on your desktop a photo from your last vacation at sea. A couple of minutes of concentration on beautiful scenery will be enough to calm your melting brains.

buy something

Of course, if every time after a bad day you go shopping, then you can go broke. But sometimes shopping therapy is the fastest and most effective way to fix a completely spoiled mood. After all, every time you buy yourself something pleasant, you provoke a small release of endorphins, and it brings you into a state of joyful intoxication.

123RF/Vladimir Shironosov

look at the red

Different colors can affect our mood in different ways. The scarlet color subconsciously sets you up for passion, enthusiasm and gives strength.

So if you need to maintain a combat state, then you can wear clothes designed in shades of red. If, on the contrary, you need to remain calm and unperturbed, then it is better to put on something blue.

play a game

Games like Tetris or Klondike Solitaire can be a straw on your computer that will keep you from drowning in the abyss of despondency. A ten-minute break for the game will distract you from heavy thoughts, give you emotional release and the opportunity to take a fresh look at a difficult situation.

Everyone is subject to mood swings. Some less often, some more often. Everyone is familiar with the situation when everything around is annoying, nothing pleases, the sun seems too bright, children are noisy, friends are intrusive, work is like hard labor. But this does not mean that the person himself is bad. It's just a bad mood.

But even if they say that someone spoiled the mood, this is far from the case. The reason lies within the person himself. He himself is responsible for what happens in his life. People are very fond of plunging into a depressing state and finding those who can sympathize, regret. Only this is not good enough. They can sympathize, regret, help with advice, but there will be no sense from this. Often a person simply justifies his laziness, inertia, lack of desire for something.

Bad mood. What to do in this case?

The very first thing to do is to identify it in its infancy. It is precisely when trouble occurs that this is the first seed that falls on the fertile soil of depression. In this case, it is very important how to look at this situation, how to evaluate it. Only the person himself can decide how to look at the problem and how to relate to it. If you throw out negativity in response to trouble, it will just fall on fertile ground, but if you try to be calm and laugh at the situation or even at your own mistake, then the grain will not germinate.

Good and bad mood. We listen to ourselves

First of all, you need to look inside yourself and understand what there can cause a threat to your mood. Listen to your feelings and sensations, to your soul. Only the person himself can understand what is wrong there, and find discomfort or doubts inside himself that can change his mood in the future. And in this case, you need to choose what you prefer - despondency or joy.

Sensitivity and observation is not an innate quality for everyone. Those who do not have them need to be developed with the help of special exercises and techniques. There are many personal trainings that specialists conduct in order to teach people to understand themselves and their feelings.

Causes

Often the human body warns in advance that not everything is in order. A person wakes up in the morning and already feels that something is wrong. Why bad mood? In this case, you need to try to remember what happened before going to bed. Psychologists and nutritionists agree that a hearty dinner before bedtime is harmful, and often after that a person wakes up irritable in the morning. In this case, food should be taken just two hours before bedtime.

The mood, oddly enough, depends on the ventilation of the room. If you sleep in a stuffy room, then the body does not have enough oxygen, and it cannot recover. Accordingly, a person does not get a good rest and wakes up again in a bad mood. It’s easy to change in the bud - open the window for the night.

Stress

Another reason why a bad mood is stress, which can be caused by many factors. For example, if you live in the same apartment with people who are unpleasant to you. Then you just need to move to another place. If stress causes fatigue from work - try to distribute work time in a different way. Perhaps it is irrationally used, and as a result - you do not have time, you worry. Or maybe you should just change your job to a more relaxed one.

Caffeine

This substance causes a stressful state of the body, and its overdose the next day can cause irritation right in the morning. The way to fight, again, is simple - limit the daily intake of caffeine. By the way, it is contained not only in coffee, but also in black tea, but in green - most of all.

Motion

If there is little movement, then you need to reconsider your day and diversify it with sports. Due to poor mobility, the cells of your body do not receive the required amount of oxygen, and a bad mood is his cry for help.

Disease

If everything that is listed is corrected, but the mood is still bad, then in this case the cause may be bile or kidneys. With poorly functioning kidneys, urine in the body stagnates, poisoning occurs. In this case, you need to take a diuretic and drink more water. If there is stagnation of bile, it is necessary to check the gallbladder and drink cholagogues.

Depression

A bad mood not only creates discomfort, it is dangerous, as it can lead to long-term depression. And it, in turn, negatively affects not only human life, but also relationships with colleagues and loved ones. In addition, the negative extends to human performance.

But depression and bad mood are different concepts. Depression has three components: fatigue, autonomic disturbances and a mood disorder, which is precisely caused by bad mood, the duration of which is over two weeks. In a depressed state, a person often cannot notice his mood, since this period is accompanied by longing, despair, anxiety, and indifference.

How to get rid

Are you in a bad mood? What to do in this case? Revisit your thoughts. You just need to follow them, analyze what is happening, whether there is a biased attitude towards the situation or the person. It is advisable to perform this procedure initially, as soon as the mood begins to deteriorate. After such an "inventory" of thoughts, many feel much better.

Action and inaction

Oddly enough, but these two things will help get rid of this condition, even if the mood is very bad. The first option is to mess around, the second is to work.

For the first category, “workaholics” are suitable, who give their all at work, take overtime and even work seven days a week. They can simply allow themselves to lie on the couch, watch a movie, get enough sleep, in general, do whatever they want, but not business and work. At the same time, you need to set a condition for yourself: there should not be any feeling of guilt! Very often, work sucks out of a person a lot of the energy he needs, so the body simply needs to recuperate. You just have to allow yourself to drop everything for a while and do only what you want directly.

The second category, on the contrary, is lazy people. The exact opposite is intended to treat their bad mood. These people just need to do something, overcoming their laziness. This does not mean that it is necessary to work hard. You can find an activity that you like. And if a favorite thing is found, then negative thoughts simply go aside, as a person is focused on the positive. After a while, the bad mood will simply disappear, evaporate.

Intellectual activity

Another effective way to cheer up even a very bad mood is intellectual activity. And besides this, it is very useful for self-development. You can solve crosswords, scanwords, play backgammon or checkers, pass a lot of psychological tests. And even better - come up with something of your own, what exactly you want to do now.

Fun

The mood can be changed almost instantly by being in a place where fun reigns. Amusements help a lot in this - practically the most effective medicine. There are always people, smiles and laughter, and even against the will of a person, the positive energy that this place is filled with is transmitted. It can be said, briefly, that desperate times require the same measures.

Music

If you are constantly in a bad mood, then you don’t want to go anywhere from home. Then the best remedy is music. It must be necessarily cheerful, rhythmic, incendiary. In this case, she herself will make you dance, and thoughts will gradually be distracted from problems, and your mood will turn into a good one. Here, at home, you can also advise comedies that are great for raising a bad mood. Not corrected after one film - you can turn on the second.

Communication and sex

Communication is also an important moment for the treatment of bad mood. Loneliness will never help get rid of it, but conversations, contacts - yes. But no communication can replace sex, which acts on a person, instantly correcting a depressed state. Above all, it is one of the most enjoyable ways to improve your mood. During sex, the body is fully activated, and you get not only pleasure, but also benefits.

Loneliness is another reason why you are always in a bad mood. In order to fix this, go to visit, or even better - to a party or club. You can arrange a holiday at home. Then you will be busy preparing and forget about your bad mood completely.

Period

When a woman expects her period soon, she is in a bad mood very often. The fair sex acutely and often painfully feels the approach of menstruation, reacting to this with bouts of irritation and some aggression.

The fact is that the hormone progesterone is to blame for this. During this period, its deficiency is observed in the female body, as a result of which the blood sugar level decreases and the production of adrenaline increases, which is released during severe fear or nervous tension.

But many experts believe that not only the hormone is to blame for the woman's bad mood during this period. The instability of the emotional state largely depends on the woman herself, her subjectivity. She may feel fine if her period started on time or if she does not take it hard. But the violation of the cycle just can cause irritation. In addition, if menstruation is difficult to bear, then the woman, feeling their approach, is already starting to get nervous, she is overwhelmed by the fear of pain, which, as she already knows, she will experience.

How to fight

First of all, you need to pay attention to nutrition and exclude from the diet at this time those foods that act excitingly. For example, caffeine, black tea, chocolate and Coca-Cola. Try to consume as little salt as possible, as it retains water in the body. Sweet will also have to be excluded - it enhances the discomfort.

Alcohol should be completely avoided. But vitamins B, on the contrary, help to alleviate the condition. They are found in fresh herbs, bananas, nuts, liver, cereals and legumes. Relieve irritability, headache and swelling. Zucchini, spinach and nuts relieve tension, and clean water prevents swelling.

And the most important thing is rest. You need to be able to relax, and in this state it is better to postpone things for other days.