Feeling a wide range of emotions is a very normal part of the human experience. There is no shame in being emotional, especially when life’s circumstances trigger the powerful emotions.

When a person’s emotions interfere with their relationships or one does feel overwhelming, they may worry that they are far too emotional. How emotional a person is does make a subjective judgment? There is no right or no wrong emotional reaction towards the emotional triggers.

That said, when emotions do feel out of control, it may signal an underlying problem.

In this article you will learn more about eight possible causes of heightened emotions, including both the psychological as well as the physical factors.

Causes of being Extra Emotional 

Numerous physical and mental health conditions can cause a person to feel extra emotional. These range from stress leading up to hormonal changes.

1. Trauma and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder

People who have a history of trauma or are currently facing trauma may have emotional reactions that seem disproportionate to the situation. For example, a rape survivor might go on to experience panic when seeing someone who looks like their rapist or intense anger in response to news stories that are discussed about rape.

In fact, it is emphasised with varying degrees of research that anger is a common effect of trauma.  It is often suggested that the trauma coming from any severely afflicting situation may lead towards excessive anger and violence.

The relationship between the childhood trauma and moodiness are often displayed in our day-to-day encounters. This extracts the development of mood disorders such as depression and trauma-related conditions such as PTSD.

1. Mental Health Issues

Please note that numerous mental health conditions can affect a person’s emotions. Depression, for instance, may make a person feel sad or even angry. The specific symptoms may vary depending on the person’s environment and more so the social circle.

Please note that men may express more anger than sadness when they are depressed.

For instance: Bipolar disorder may cause shifts between the feelings of intense depression and feelings of intense joy, while anxiety disorders may make a person more fearful or even far more reactive.

1. Hormonal Shifts (That create havoc)

Hormones are the body’s chemical messengers. As such, changes in hormones especially dramatic and sudden changes may constantly affect a person’s emotions.

When one looks at people with hypothyroidism, it is been found that about 60% have experienced some level of depression. The thyroid does release thyroid hormone, but it can also indirectly influence other hormones.

Pregnancy, menopause, puberty, low or high testosterone, the use of steroids, and other factors and conditions that do shift hormones may also affect one’s emotions.

It is often depicted that a person’s menstruation or period can be variable as a reason for their excessive emotions, which never consistently or strongly support the claim in healthy people.

The variability is when people also report period-related mood shifts, suggesting that there is no consistent correlation between a person is in their menstrual cycle and their moods.

There is common interlink that is found between the premenstrual period and the negative moods. However, all the people with the premenstrual dysphoric disorder which is a mental health condition is also linked to the menstrual cycle which may thereby be experienced with the period-related mood shifts.

1. Socialization and Cultural Norms

Cultural norms help determine what level of emotional expression can be considered ‘normal’. A person’s socialization into this norm may affect how they judge their own emotions, as well as the particular emotions of others.

It is suggested that the male and the female children have different needs for emotional socialization. It does indicate that boys are taught and allowed to express more anger, while the girls are encouraged to express more emotion. This may thereby help explain why men may be more likely to display anger and less likely to view anger as an emotion.

In fact, Gender and other social factors may also affect a person’s interpretation of emotions. Gender stereotyping begins in infancy. It is further suggested that the adult caregivers are more likely to view female infants’ cries as higher pitched, even though there is no actual difference in the cries between male and female infants.

It is important for people who are concerned about their own emotions to weigh whether they are far “too emotional,” whether it is even causing actual harm, or whether their emotional expressiveness is just a mismatch/ impediment with their culture plus environment.

1. Physical Health Issues

Do note that physical health issues can affect moods in several ways. For example, the physical health problems may make daily functioning far more difficult plus challenging, depleting a person’s energy and then leading towards the cause of the moodiness.

This is seen in those with a constant exposure towards chronic pain, that one may experience the mood shifts or an unusual variable of negative emotions.

Physical health problems may also directly affect the mood by changing how the brain processes information or thereby shifting all the hormones.

Let us go deeper: People with a type of dementia can be called towards the exposure of frontotemporal dementia, for example, may have intense mood shifts. They may also experience spells of aggression or intense emotions that do lead towards certain inappropriate behaviors.

1. Unmet Physical Needs

Please take a good note that the mind and body are not separate entities. This means that the changes in a person’s physical state may affect their emotions, especially when they have less energy to manage all the stress or have a demanding physical workload.

It is considered that changes in blood sugar can occur when someone is hungry, eats lots of sugar, or has poorly controlled diabetes that may cause mood shifts. A person might feel excessively emotional or not understand why they suddenly do have intense emotions.

Many people also do feel excessively emotional when they are quite tired. However, it is important to note that even certain medical conditions, such as depression, can also make a person feel tired and moody. In fact, people who do feel chronically tired even when they get enough sleep must contact a doctor.

1. Gaslighting

Dismissing someone as excessively emotional is one way to devalue their experience and dismiss the severity of the stress they are feeling. It is especially common for women to have their emotions dismissed as an excessive display of emotions.

It is suggested that this bias against women’s emotions do cause them to wait longer for care in the emergency room. In fact, the chronic pain also suggests that doctors may view men in pain as supposedly brave while dismissing women as being excessively emotional.

People, including an individual feeling the emotion, may also dismiss an emotion based on notions of gender stereotyping.

For example, a woman has often socialized to vocalize more feelings of sadness, while men are socialized to vocalize more of anger. Some people might not view excessive anger as excessive emotion but then they view excessive sadness as a sign of being overly emotional.

1. Stress

People experiencing stress may have more mood shifts or seem to be more emotional than usual.

There are several reasons for this:

Dealing with constant stress can weaken a person’s coping skills.

People under stress may also neglect their physical needs, causing them to feel tired or hungry.

Feeling inundated can make it far more difficult to deal with even minor stressors, such as a child interrupting a conversation or a spouse calling to talk.

It is vital to note that this is a normal and common reaction to stress, and it does not mean that something is wrong with a person.

However, this very reaction can also increase the stress by triggering conflict with loved ones and other challenges.

So, what is important is finding a way to manage the stress that may prevent it from getting worse.

It is crucial to note: The potential complications and challenges of being overly emotional

When a person feels unable to manage their emotions, they may react in inappropriate ways that affect their relationships, jobs, or education.

Additionally, feeling overly emotional can be exhausting and also unpleasant. Some people may feel out of control because of intense anger or even anxiety.

Some symptoms that a person might notice due to high emotions often include:

• Difficulty sleeping
• Conflict with loved ones
• Difficulty getting or staying motivated
• Increased aches and pains
• Difficulty practicing self-care

Remedies for managing the heightened emotions

The right remedy for handling intense emotions depends on the very emotion and its cause.

Some options do include:

• Better physical care, such as exercising, eating regular meals, and getting enough sleep
• Treatment for physical health conditions
• Treatment for mental health conditions, such as medications, support groups, or psychotherapy
• Developing a strategy for managing the source of the emotion
• Better social support, including the acknowledgment that intense emotions are a common and normal reaction to stress and trauma
• Reframing certain emotions as normal rather than abnormal
• Self-care and relaxation strategies, such as deep breathing and meditation

Bottom Line

Managing Emotions is an ongoing journey which must become a way of life. It is not always situational and certain not temporary. It needs to be a permanent journey of belonging and acceptance towards oneself. Once you make something your constant practice you commit to it. This makes you better equipped to handle your emotions instead of drowning in the whirlpool of emotions.

About the Author: Ms. Trishna Patnaik

Trishna Patnaik, a BSc (in Life Sciences) and MBA (in Marketing) by qualification but an artist by choice. A self-taught artist based in Mumbai, Trishna has been practicing art for over 14 years. After she had a professional stint in various reputed corporates, she realized that she wanted to do something more meaningful. She found her true calling in her passion that is painting. Trishna is now a full-time professional painter pursuing her passion to create and explore to the fullest. She says, “It’s a road less traveled but a journey that I look forward to every day.” Trishna also conducts painting workshops across Mumbai and other metropolitan cities of India.

 Trishna is an art therapist and healer. She works with clients on a one-on-one basis in Mumbai.

Trishna fancies the art of creative writing and is dappling her hands in that too, to soak in the experience and have an engagement with readers, wanderers, and thinkers.

  

Relationships and depression can be linked. Sometimes, the relationship itself triggers someone’s depression. However, people can also experience depression even if their relationship is a happy one.

People may use the term “relationship depression” to describe depression that develops due to relationship difficulties. However, this is not a distinct medical condition.

This article will explore in more detail at the relationship depression. It will explore how relationships can affect depression and vice versa.

What is depression?

Depression is a mental health condition that affects millions of people worldwide. It is a type of mood disorder. Although some people use the word “depression” informally to describe feeling sad, depression as a medical condition is different.

People with depression can experience a number of persistent mental and physical symptoms, including:

• Feeling sad, worthless, or guilty
• Feeling irritable or angry
• Low self-esteem
• Tiredness and fatigue
• Difficulty concentrating or making decisions
• Eating more or less than usual
• Sleeping more or less than usual
• Loss of interest in enjoyable activities, such as hobbies or socializing
• Loss of libido, or sex drive
• Suicidal thoughts

These symptoms can range from mild to debilitating. To receive a diagnosis of depression, these symptoms must occur most of the day or all day, nearly every day, for a consistent period of time.

There are several types of depression. Some are related to physical health conditions, such as endocrine disorders or premenstrual dysphoric disorder, which is related to the menstrual cycle. However, other types can be caused or exacerbated by events happening in a person’s current life or events that affected them in the past. Sometimes, relationships can be a trigger.

How can relationships affect depression?

Although relationships can be a source of contentment, they can also be a source of dissatisfaction or conflict. This can have an impact on people’s mental health.

Some examples of situations that may contribute to relationship depression include:

Infidelity

Infidelity is one potential cause of relationship-related distress. People who are in exclusive relationships can feel humiliated and betrayed if their partner is unfaithful to them. This can be emotionally traumatic.

Infidelity can also raise the risk of suicidal thoughts and symptoms that resemble those of post-traumatic stress disorder. It is seen that learning of a partner’s infidelity increases the likelihood of a depressive episode in people who were at higher risk of the condition.

Abuse

All forms of intimate partner abuse are positively correlated with new cases of depression in females. Males who experienced abuse were more likely to develop new cases of anxiety.

Although abuse can seem rare or extreme, it is actually very common. This is especially true of emotional abuse, which can include:

• Controlling, possessive, or manipulative behaviour
• Behaviour designed to subdue, punish, or break someone down
• Isolating someone from their friends and family

Long distance Relationships

Although many long-distance relationships are fulfilling, they can also be challenging. People can miss their partner during long periods apart, or they may experience anxiety about the relationship and its future.

Relationship breakdown

The breakdown of a significant relationship can cause major upheaval in a person’s life as well as difficult emotions, such as anger, loneliness, or grief. It can also mean that a person has to move out of their home, which, in some cases, means living separately from their children or pets.

Blog, Covid-19 / By Seema Jaiswal / May 21, 2021 / Leave a Comment / Apps, Blogs, COVID-19, eka meditation, Happy Chant, Mental Health, mind alcove, pandemic

The pandemic caused by Covid – 19 has been an eye-opener for many in terms of recognizing the importance of mental health. It brought many social, psychological, and mental health challenges along with physical health-related issues. From struggling with the lockdown to working from home, living in isolation, maintaining social distance, dealing with grief and loss; many changes and adjustments were faced by the human population. 

One of the highlights of this pandemic was also the importance of mental health. Managing good mental health had become a challenge amidst the chaos, especially in the second wave of COVID-19 in India. 

Accessing support for mental health has also become a challenge due to lockdown as well as the risk associated with coming in contact with COVID – 19 virus. Therefore, taking good mental health care had to be transformed as per the need of the hour.

Online resources such as mobile applications have shown tremendous support in mental health care during the COVID – 19 pandemic. Apps are universal tools and are easily accessible since most of us have a personal smartphone that we can use on a daily basis. Keeping that in mind, access freely the online resources such a digital journaling, yoga, mindfulness, chanting, and more from the featured mobile apps at MHT Store and support good mental health for yourself as well as your dear ones.

 

Find Your Focus, Find Your Focus, Neuphony, Neuphony / By Rajika Mehra / July 13, 2021 / Leave a Comment / Brain, EEG, Find Your Focus, Focus, Neuphony, neuropsychology, Understanding brain

Neuphony is a revolutionary technology packed inside a lightweight and comfortable headband with its brush-shaped soft sensors and individually adjustable hands, all while using 8 EEG sensors over the frontal, temporal and parietal regions of one’s brain. In order to make sense of these words, let go back to basics and explore if using this device can actually help.

The EEG Device

What it is.

In order to understand what this new invention is, let us first look into our brains.

The outermost layer of the nerve tissue present in a human brain is known as the cerebral cortex, and it is naturally separated into four lobes namely the frontal lobe, parietal lobe, temporal lobe, and occipital lobe (see the image below). Each of these lobes has a discrete set of functions as well as connections to the different parts of the brain.

Let us focus on each lobe now:

Frontal lobe: It is responsible for immediate and sustained attention, social skills, emotions, empathy, time management, working memory, and character. The frontal lobe is generally known as an executive planner i.e. it helps in maintaining control, plan for the future, and monitoring behavior.

Parietal lobe: This works as a navigation system for our body. It integrates all the information from different senses and generates a coherent representation of the environment. For example, assume you are reading a book and having a cup of tea. Now, you don’t have to look where exactly your cup is every time. While focusing on the book, you can pick up the cup, have your tea and then put it back. This is possible because the parietal lobe stores and retrieves the shape, size, and orientation of objects to be grasped in our minds

Temporal lobe: This houses the auditory cortex which processes the auditory signals. It also has involvement in the memory-making process, especially verbal memory. The Left temporal lobe is involved with language interpretation written and verbal whereas the right temporal lobe is more involved when listening to music, and understanding social cues.

Occipital lobe: This is where all the visual processing takes place. Anything in our visual field seen through our eyes is routed to the occipital lobe where it is processed and hence it has a strong connection to the entire brain networks be it the frontal lobes for problem definition, the parietal lobe in locating objects, or memory regions that are present under the cerebral cortex.

Neuphony device targets the Brain’s Frontal, Temporal & Parietal lobes with the help of 8 EEG sensors and in turn, map out the brain’s waves under different situations.

Neuphony; How does it measure Brain Waves?

Different regions of the brain are constantly communicating with each other. This communication is accomplished via neurons. When clusters of neurons fire in synchrony using electrical impulses, they produce an electric potential which is captured by the EEG sensors placed on the scalp.

Since these signals originate deep within the brain, voltage captured by the sensors is in μVs (1/1,000,000th of a Volt), usually between 10-50 μVs. This is extremely low and can be easily corrupted very easily with small eye movements, muscle movements, sweat, etc. This particularly makes it very difficult to process EEG data and hence the biggest limitation of EEG devices is that the user has to be sitting calm and relaxed to capture any usable information. This limitation is sometimes a huge hindrance. This limitation is exactly what the Neuphony device is designed to overcome.

If you want to know more about EEGs in depth, click here.

With the help of 8 EEG sensors placed strategically in the device, it is able to tap into the brain’s communication patterns, also known as brain waves, and hence, make an understanding of how our brain is responding to different situations and environments.

Why is it the need of the hour?

Using this device has numerous benefits in the long run. Some of them are mentioned below.

1. Improve the Sleep Quality
   Neuphony can create a brain map of the cognitive stage and help in following one’s circadian rhythm. It can help in enhancing your concentration and energy levels by detaching you from the outer world.
   Research shows that by creating a brain map of one’s cognitive state, this device helps with; detaching from the outer world, calming the omnipresent negative self-talk, following the circadian rhythm of sleep, and also enhancing the concentration levels.
2. Improve Focus or as we say, Find Your Focus
   We spend an awful lot of time daydreaming – almost 50% of the time by some measures. One bad thought and it will be quite easy for our mind to get distracted. Distractions eat up most of our time and mental wellbeing that we either feel overwhelmed or incompetent. As mentioned above, this device creates a brain map of your cognitive stage and identifies the distractions that are happening at a particular point in time.
   This device controls one’s attention rigorously using Focus exercises and provides real-time feedback to help them stay focused. This is almost similar to joining a mental gym and train one’s brain muscles to stay focused.
3. Reduce Stress & Anxiety
   Using the device for a longer period of time can help you by preparing a brain map that will help the wearer Identifies their emotional triggers, helps them in getting rid of negative thoughts and feelings disturbing their mental peace, reduce stress and anxiety, provides auditory feedback if they are struggling with a bad memory or thought and also suggests mindfulness exercises that help in focusing on all the thoughts rather than only a particular one. 
4. Develop Gratitude
   Developing Gratitude is one of the most crucial parts of Emotional Intelligence and helps in building a better community. One can not only sharpen his leadership skills by showing gratitude but also build an empathetic community. Regularly using this device creates a brain map and helps in identifying emotional networks in the brain. It also suggests loving-kindness meditation techniques for training the emotional network in the brain which, in the long run, can help the wearer develop Gratitude.
5. Attain Inner Peace
   Neuphony trains the brain to deal better with daily distractions & helps one become more efficient. Being thoughtless can be considered a gift to the mind. With the constant overflow of information, our brain is unable to consolidate and enhance our understanding. Using this device can help in creating a brain map of our cognitive state and train the brain to take a break and give rest or relax. It creates awareness about the inner working of our brains and ultimately attaining inner peace.

Intrigued?

Click here to know more about the specifications of this revolutionary device and also for exciting discounts, offered exclusively, to our MHT India readers.