Addressing Mood Disorders in the Washington Metro Area

Moods are emotions that affect us every day. Sometimes we are happy, and other times, we are sad. For some people, their moods can get stuck on sad. In other cases, moods might change frequently or become extreme. This may be caused by a group of mental illnesses called mood disorders. Functional Medicine for Families and Gynecology helps individuals address mood disorders in the Washington Metro area.

Mood disorders affect how you feel and think about yourself, other people, and life in general. Different mood disorders include depression, dysthymic disorder, and bipolar disorder.

Depression leaves you feeling sad or dejected. Some people experience it as feeling numb or even having no feeling. This mood disorder can also make you feel irritable, guilty, and hopeless. Many people living with depression lose interest in things they used to enjoy and often isolate themselves from friends and family.

Dysthymic disorder (also called dysthymia) is similar to depression. However, with dysthymic disorder, your symptoms of depression are milder but last for a longer period of time.

Bipolar disorder has three parts: depression, mania, and normal feelings. Depression, in this case, is like depression in any mood disorder. Meanwhile, mania is what differentiates it from the rest. Some people experience this as feeling very happy, while others are very irritable or angry during an episode of mania. Common symptoms of mania include feeling very powerful, not needing much sleep, and having racing thoughts.

Bipolar disorder can look different in each person depending on how long the depression and mania episodes last.