Emotional instability: what it is, its causes and how to deal with it

How does the disease manifest itself?

In ICD 10, emotionally unstable personality disorder is characterized as instability, inability to self-control and increased impulsivity.

The disease is observed in people of both young and older ages. A person’s self-esteem is impaired, he cannot form relationships with other people and very often is in a state of non-existence, or, in other words, affect.

With this disease, patients:

They feel constant loneliness and make frantic attempts to avoid it.
They are characterized by sudden changes in mood.
They experience a feeling of separation, loss, as a result of which their behavior, emotions, thinking and sensations inevitably change.
They experience great fear of changes in plans.
They become angry and unbalanced even after short periods of separation.
They believe that if they are left alone, it will cause them great harm. These feelings cause impulsive behavior, which can lead to self-harm by the patient.

A person can so fiercely perceive both effective reality and invent his own vision of our world.

Emotional instability: reasons for its occurrence

There are people who are always in an emotionally unstable state. At times, everything seems to be going well. And sometimes a job already half done turns out to be a failure because they suddenly changed their minds and tactics.

This type of personality is usually very contradictory and conflicting. It is difficult to trust such people and generally deal with them. In addition, coexistence with them is like a roller coaster. Continuous ups and downs.

Now let's put personality types and clinical issues aside and look at why we can be emotionally unstable at certain times in our lives.

Low self-esteem

We all go through difficult periods in life. Sometimes frantic attempts to maintain relationships lead to emotional dependence.

But you should know that a person who clings to his partner because he feels victimized has self-esteem problems. Hence the emotional instability.

Today we tell ourselves that we adore our partner, and tomorrow we feel angry and disappointed because, in fact, we are unhappy with him.

Hidden depression

According to experts, in modern society many people suffer from depression without realizing it. Not to mention the official diagnosis.

It is very difficult for them to open up and ask for help, so they suffer in silence, alone with their demons.

Hidden depression manifests itself in the following symptoms:

emotional instability
whims
apathy
fatigue
negative and fatalistic thoughts

Daily stress

This is undoubtedly the most common cause of emotional instability. External pressures and how we deal with these stressful situations have an impact on our mood.

Hormonal changes

Premenstrual syndrome (PMS) often leads to unexpected emotional changes. However, studies have shown that such mood swings are intense in only 10% of women.

Heredity

Thanks to numerous scientific studies, today we already have some data about the chemical processes occurring in our brain. And we know that genetics plays a major role in causing this problem.

Changes have been found in the levels of certain neurotransmitters, such as serotonin, which are involved in regulating our mood and emotions.
In these cases, and whenever our emotional instability is severe and affects our quality of life, we must receive proper treatment.

How are interpersonal relationships developed?

Relationships with other people are unstable. They are accompanied by conflict situations.

Patients idealize their guardians or lovers from the first days of their acquaintance. They want to constantly be with the object of desire and from the first days they demand entry into intimate aspects.

At the same time, the ideal also quickly depreciates in their eyes. They easily begin to think that the person who was so close to them has grown cold and is not paying enough attention.

Their empathy is based only on the expectation that other people will begin to sympathize and satisfy all the desires and needs of the patient. If their opinions differ, then emotionally unstable individuals dramatically change their views on others.

Average income? Divorced? Children? 40 years this year? All! Sit quietly. How do you like this situation, men?

At the New Year's table I had the opportunity to listen to one charming conversation, which was imprinted in my memory in a special way.

Until the nth toast, everything went on as usual this time: the usual New Year’s chatter with a slight touch of posturing about who spent the past year, with whom, and in what position.

We must admit that old friends, by definition, can no longer surprise. All positions, techniques and material potentials of each have long been known.

And in the midst of this relaxed New Year's routine, I suddenly heard something interesting.

But first, a little about the participants in this conversation.

N. is an extremely active 38-year-old woman. A distinct vamp. Moreover, she is a hot brunette. Permanently divorced, of average income, actively searching, with a huge sense of self-esteem and no less social circle, and for now one more child, 10 years old. When the occasion is right, the ex-husband is mentioned as an example of a consummate weakling who was unable to provide for his family. Typically, N. lives in her ex-husband’s apartment. A very assertive person.

What is identification expressed in?

It is expressed in the instability of the representation of one’s personality. Variable assessment of one’s “I” is expressed in a constant change in life goals and professional skills. For example, a good-natured person asking for help for himself suddenly becomes angry and vindictive. At the same time, he always fights for the truth.

Although in most cases these individuals consider themselves evil and aggressive, and sometimes even think that they do not exist on this planet. This mainly manifests itself when a person does not feel his importance and support from the people around him.

Individuals susceptible to this disease are impulsive in circumstances involving risk. They can:

get involved in gambling;
not knowing how to account for money and spending it irresponsibly;
eat a lot of food and not feel full;
use psychotropic substances;
change many sexual partners;
take risks while driving a car.

Definition of the emotional-volitional sphere

For appropriate development in society, as well as normal life activity, the emotional-volitional sphere is important.
A lot depends on her. And this applies not only to family relationships, but also to professional activities. The process itself is very complex. Its origin is influenced by various factors. This can be either a person’s social conditions or his heredity. This area begins to develop at an early age and continues to develop until adolescence.

From birth, a person overcomes the following types of development:

somato-vegetative;
psychomotor;
affective;
dominance;
stabilization.

Emotions are different...

As well as their manifestations in life

Suicidal tendencies

People with emotionally unstable personality disorder are predisposed to behavior that could take their life. At the same time, suicide attempts are constantly repeated.

Despite the fact that patients like to demonstratively attempt suicide, only eight percent achieve complete death. The actions of the others are aimed at getting people around them to pay attention to them. They may cut themselves or deliberately create burns on their bodies. If attention is not paid and help is not provided, attempts to take one's own life continue.

They may be caused by impending separation from the object of love. At the same time, suicide attempts provide relief for a while, especially if the patient is heard and understood, and these actions also made the other person understand that he acted wrongly towards the patient.

Possible reasons

Frequent stress can lead to the development of emotional instability
Today, it is extremely difficult to identify the true cause that leads to the development of emotional instability. At the same time, there are certain factors that provoke the development of this deviation. Among them are:

prolonged emotional and mental stress;
increased nervous excitability;
exposure to stress factors;
improper upbringing, characterized by hypo- or hyper-custody of parents;
the presence of psychological trauma, including violence of a psychological or physical nature, especially in childhood;
consequences of malnutrition or lack of sleep;
lack of a proper daily routine can lead to the development of instability of emotions;
presence of psychasthenia;
lack of vitamins or microelements necessary for the body, anemia;
the presence of hormonal changes or pathological disruptions in the level of hormones in the body;
various mental disorders, in particular bipolar disorders, depression, manic disorder, neurosis;
a side effect of taking certain medications (in this case, the onset of emotional instability will coincide with the start of taking these medications);
the presence of congenital defects of the nervous system;
organic brain damage.

Symptoms of emotionally unstable personality disorder

People belonging to this type are characterized as follows:

They are constantly under tension.
Their health is fluctuating.
A person may look depressed and depressed for several days.
Irritation and anxiety can last from several hours to several days.
Patients feel empty and therefore constantly try to do something.
Sometimes, in very ordinary situations, they violently express anger, sarcasm and verbal outbursts. At the same time, they immediately feel an acute sense of guilt for their actions and thereby seem even more vicious to themselves.
Patients are carefree, cheeky and at the same time secretive.

These people are capable of destroying everything when the goal is almost achieved. For example, quitting school before receiving a diploma or breaking off a relationship at a time when everything is well established.

Attacks of the condition, in which a person feels as if outside of reality, in a strangely changed world, or feels that his mind has been separated from his body, arise precisely during periods of abandonment and loneliness. But as soon as care is resumed, these symptoms disappear.

How to deal with emotional instability?

First of all, it is important to accept the fact that we all have good days and bad days. Plus, it's normal for our moods to change throughout the day.

We are real people, not robots. We are emotional. And we react differently to the same stimuli depending on the time of day.

Some days we worry more. Once more receptive. And sometimes we get unexpected motivation and are ready to overcome literally all the obstacles in our path.

Our brain always tries to protect us in such moments. So we just have to follow these strategies:

First, cool down, shut out the negativity, and engage your body. Jogging, cycling, drawing mandalas, walking along the seashore or in the forest will help you.
Have an internal dialogue with yourself. Become aware of your needs, understand what is taking over your mind.
Open up your feelings to someone who can listen and understand. Explain how you feel and try to relax. This is the best way to overcome emotional instability.

Most common personality disorders

The most common and widespread emotionally unstable personality disorders include:

Manifestation of bulimia (after eating a person gets rid of it by artificially inducing vomiting).
Stress disorders after injury.
Sudden change of mood.
At a young age there is a lack of impulse control.
Suicidal attacks. Most often appear at a young age. The older a person gets, the less he is haunted by attempts to take his own life.
Tense relationships with people and impulsive disorders haunt a person throughout his life.

These manifestations are especially pronounced in individuals who abuse psychotropic active substances.

Those who seek help from specialized medical institutions are susceptible to recovery. Improvements occur already in the first year of therapy.

Precautionary measures

Sports activities have a beneficial effect on the normalization of emotional background

There are a number of recommendations that can be followed to prevent the occurrence of emotional instability.

Plan your daily routine and follow it strictly. Distinguish between time for rest and active activities. Don't overwork yourself at work.
Try to protect yourself from the effects of stress factors, do not enter into conflicts.
Pay great attention to proper nutrition, make sure that your diet contains biologically active substances, vitamins and minerals.
Having healthy, full sleep is important.
Avoid communicating with unpleasant people who make you feel uncomfortable.
Take care of your health, undergo regular preventive examinations in order to be able to promptly detect the development of any disease.
Find a hobby that brings you pleasure. Try to have more actions and events in your life that bring positive emotions.
Provide yourself with at least minimal physical activity every day.
Try to be outdoors as often as possible. Go for walks in the park, in nature.
If dubious symptoms appear that indicate problems with psychological health, promptly contact a psychologist or psychotherapist.

Now you know what emotional instability syndrome is. It is important to understand that the presence of such a disorder can lead to a deterioration in the life of both the individual and his environment. Therefore, if you encounter manifestations of this condition, seek help from a specialist.

What types of personality disorder are there?

There are two types of this disease:

borderline type;
impulsive type.

In a borderline state, in addition to emotional instability, difficulties arise with awareness of one’s own image. A person does not feel his intentions and preferences, thereby seeking to harm himself.

The self-esteem of the individual is very high, which is not properly perceived by others. The patient is too arrogant and impatient.

In the second type, the personality is prone to impulsive manifestations and acts hastily in any situation, without thinking about the consequences. In response to condemnation from surrounding people, the patient shows rigidity and aggression.

Types of disorder

Organic mental disorders are divided into the following types and forms:

Organic emotionally labile asthenic disorder - in this case, the pathology manifests itself with weakness and excessive manifestations of tearfulness, a decrease in the level of motor skills and attacks of loss of consciousness, there is dizziness and rapid fatigue (asthenia).
Asthenic organic disorder is a persistent change in the psychological state of the patient, combining both symptoms inherent in neuroses and cerebrasthenic pathologies, which are inherent in any lesions of the cerebral vessels. This form of disorder manifests itself at all stages of the disease, up to the final stage - vascular dementia.
Symptomatic mental disorders are a typical phenomenon for the somatic nature of pathologies, manifesting themselves in the inability to concentrate attention for a long time and in rapid fatigue; the patient’s memory is weakened and the psyche is excessively vulnerable. Along with this, the patient may suffer from disturbances in sleep patterns and hypertension.
Anxiety disorder - this form of pathology manifests itself with tremors and a feeling of trembling, rapid contraction of the heart muscle and pallor of the skin, dry mouth and attacks of anxiety and unreasonable fear.
Schizophrenia- like organic disorder of personality and behavior - in this case, the patient is diagnosed with attacks of delirium, constant or periodic, negative in nature changes in the structure of the personality, the development of delusional thoughts and flashing pictures, most often on religious themes. Alternatively, the patient may develop disturbances of consciousness and paranoia, accompanied by attacks of ecstasy and excessive excitement.
Exogenous-organic type of disorder - this form of pathology is characterized by manifestations of excessive suspiciousness and intellectual disorders, increased uncontrollability and aggressiveness, and a certain anger.
Depressive personality disorder of organic etiology - this pathology is found in the practice of both general practitioners and neurologists. It is characterized by somatoneurological symptoms, which will prevail over the mental manifestations of the disorder. In this case, doctors diagnose the patient with excessive and rapid fatigue, memory and appetite disorders, a feeling of dryness in the mouth and an increased urge to urinate.
Affective type of disorder - most often occurs against the background of a malfunction of the endocrine system, when the patient stops taking hormonal drugs, or as a result of the development of tumors in the brain, head injuries.
speech disorder – this type of pathology can occur in both adults and children. The root cause of the development of this form of the disease is atherosclerosis, which affects the blood vessels of the brain, diabetes mellitus or hypertension.
Residual organic disorder - most often this pathology manifests itself in childhood or adolescence and is a consequence of the organic nature of damage to the central nervous system. The presented form of disorder manifests itself in the idea of mental retardation and inadequate reactions of psychological theology.
A disorder caused by a vascular nature , developing as a result of various vascular pathologies affecting the brain - hypertension, previous heart attack, stroke, etc. This disease differs from other similar diseases in the absence of psychopathological signs of a neurological disorder.
Disorder of complex genesis - the diagnosis is made by doctors when there is more than one reason for the development of a personality disorder of organic etiology.

Diagnosis of impulsive type

This type is characterized by the following manifestations:

Tendency to act suddenly. Don't consider the consequences of your actions.
Relationships with people around you are built on constant conflict.
Anger and violence appear.
Patients require immediate reward for their actions, otherwise they do not complete the task.
Unstable mood, accompanied by constant whims.

Being surrounded by this type is difficult and unpleasant.

Asthenic disorder of organic nature

Organic asthenic personality disorder is a psychological condition of a persistent nature with cerebrasthenic and neurosis-like symptoms. Develops against the background of brain diseases of vascular etiology.

At the initial stages of the disease, the disease manifests itself in the form of a cerebral form of asthenia, but in the absence of treatment, it passes to the stage of vascular dementia.

The reasons for the development of this pathology may be a hereditary predisposition and a severe emotional experience suffered by the patient, as well as the lack of adequate opportunity to relax, an unfavorable climate in the family and at work, and large volumes of work.

Organic asthenic personality disorder manifests itself with the following symptoms:

the manifestation of a pronounced asthenic disorder is also a clear manifestation of nervousness and discomfort at the physical level, attacks of pain of different nature and localization;
loss of strength and fatigue, attacks of tearfulness;
heightened perception of external stimuli and headache attacks;
sleep disturbance and other symptoms.

Doctors make the diagnosis of organic asthenic disorder in cases where the patient does not reveal deep pathological disorders of consciousness.

Treatment of organic personality disorder begins with primary diagnosis - this is a competent and correct interpretation of the information received from the patient and evaluation of test results. The main diagnostic methods are determining the psychological portrait of the patient, collecting an anamnesis of the course of the disease, laboratory tests and analysis of all subjective complaints, measuring blood pressure and pulse rate. Additional research methods are ECHO-cardiogram and ultrasound.

The treatment process is a rather long and labor-intensive process aimed at eliminating negative manifestations and eliminating all the root causes that provoked the disease.

In order to increase working capacity and when diagnosing chronic fatigue, adaptogens, tonic drugs that increase the body's resistance to negative external and internal factors are prescribed. In addition, nootropics and antidepressants of the inhibitory group can be prescribed.

The forecasts of modern doctors are positive, but only with timely diagnosis and treatment of the pathology. In the absence of timely treatment, the disease progresses to the stage of vascular dementia, in which the prognosis for the patient is very negative.

Diagnosis of borderline type

For a borderline state, the following characteristics are distinguished:

The person does not understand himself. He does not feel his own “I” and therefore cannot decide what he really wants.
The patient enters into promiscuous relationships and constantly changes partners.
Directs all his energy to avoid loneliness.
The patient is prone to suicidal behavior.
He constantly feels a feeling of uselessness and emptiness.

If you seek treatment at a psychiatric clinic at a young age, then by the age of 40, both relationships with other people and professional relationships will improve.

Unstable psycho-emotional state

If a person experiences stress, many muscle groups contract, following the ancient laws of saving one’s life, our body prepares for defense or attack. After the stress factor ceases its effect, full awareness of this at the level of the central nervous system may not occur. As a result, muscle spasm will persist, but in a weaker, subthreshold quality. And any spasm is a circulatory disorder; it is a factor that pulls on the surrounding fascia, promoting the displacement of organs and vertebral bones.

Consequences

An unstable psycho-emotional state can cause disturbances in the functioning of any organs. The following are several examples of such violations:

Gastrointestinal system: stress often leads to chronic indigestion, “nervous” abdominal pain, and ulcers of the digestive tract.
Cardiovascular system: The main manifestations of stress in this system are usually frequent pain in the chest area.
Skin: Stress can cause redness of the skin, acne, and in acute form it can lead to eczema or other skin diseases.

The listed negative consequences of stress can alternately replace each other. In addition, stress causes intense aging, as it leaves irreversible changes in biochemical processes and causes tissue aging.

Osteopathy and unstable psycho-emotional state

In modern osteopathy, great importance is attached to the psycho-emotional aspects that affect the functioning of the body. The old saying that “all diseases are from nerves” has not lost its relevance today, moreover, it has been confirmed by many clinical trials in osteopathy, the clinic of nervous diseases and borderline psychiatry. This is why many osteopaths are increasingly turning their attention to the problem of the “emotional” component of bodily dysfunction.

The human body is sensitive to emotions.

If at the time of injury a person experienced strong destructive (destructive) emotions, then in addition to damage at the level of body tissues, a focus of pathological stress impulses is formed at the level of the brain-psyche. Osteopaths call this condition an unreacted (suppressed or not released for some reason), unrealized emotion. An example would be a car accident with sudden braking and whiplash injury to the cervical spine and skull. A patient who turns to an osteopath for help no longer remembers the fear, stress, and anger that he experienced at the time of the road accident, but his body remembers this. In such a case, if you go only from the standpoint of physical treatment, you can adjust the displaced vertebrae for a long time and wonder why they again take the wrong position. The reason is that the person has not yet come out of the state of psycho-physical trauma during the accident. He unconsciously returns there all the time, he continues to experience stress and fear, he remembers his pain and, as a result, the muscles and ligaments in the body become tense again, the mechanism of traumatization is repeated again. The task of the osteopath is to help the patient re-realize the traumatic incident, to allow the psyche and body to understand that “everything is already over,” the experience has been gained and there is no need to return to it. There is no need to think, rejoice, doubt or worry, just allow consciousness (as will be discussed later) to release unnecessary (they were relevant only at the time of injury), pathological emotions. In osteopathy, a similar process is launched through the body, through a feedback somatic-psychic connection. The osteopath does not engage in psychological research, he does not question the patient, he simply helps with special bodily techniques and verbal accentuation to launch an independent process of bodily-emotional release and re-awareness. In fact, the patient may not even tell his osteopathic doctor anything; his task is to allow the consciousness to recognize the emotional trauma, to release it from subliminal impulses, subconscious-bodily fixation, into the active layers of consciousness. At this moment, special mechanisms for changing the functioning of nerve cells are activated in the central nervous system, the relevance of pathological emotions is inhibited, peace sets in the mind, and muscle-tendon-organ spasms and fixations relax in the body.

A similar approach in osteopathy can be used for other unfavorable mental fixations.

It often happens that the disease worsens or manifests (begins) after some severe negative experiences. There may be: unhappy love, resentment towards parents, quarrel with loved ones, disappointment in something important, in one’s past choice, anger at employees, difficulties in working with a strong involvement of an internal “sense of duty” and many other conditions. As a rule, after such experiences, something in the body “breaks”, pain in the back or neck, liver or kidney disorders, intercostal neuralgia, attacks of arterial hypertension and many other troubles begin. If we approach such a disease formally, assessing only the physical factors of displacements, muscle spasms or disturbances in the biochemical balance of the body, it will take a lot of time to treat and the effect often remains unstable, since the cause of the disease has not been eliminated. Psycho-emotional reason that destroyed the harmony of the body. The task of an osteopath is to help his patient, and therefore to promote awareness and subsequent liberation from negative experiences.

In cases where a person tried to “try on” the problems and emotional experiences of his loved ones, re-awareness is also necessary. In the process of osteopathic body-psychic dialogue between the patient’s consciousness and his “inner self,” there is an awareness of the foreignness of these introduced emotions and their irrelevance. At the same time, the person understands what led to the pathological resonance and in the future can change his reactions in similar psychotraumatic situations.

No less important in osteopathy is the patient’s re-awareness of bodily fears coming from the past. Very often, fear is the leading factor in many physical diseases. It was not for nothing that Chinese healers considered the energy of cold-fear to be the main cause not only of pain in the spine, but also of stone formation, organ destruction, and many other pathological conditions. Unconscious fear of the past may prevent you from living in the present and moving into the future. Eliminating the relevance of such fear during osteopathic sessions will allow patients to literally start a “new life” and opens up many amazing opportunities for them.

Currently, in osteopathy and biodynamics, there are many different methods of osteopath-patient interaction to achieve the effect of emotional release (relaxation).

Borderline treatment

It can be very difficult to determine a borderline state, sometimes even over several years. The doctor conducts a large number of studies and prescribes therapeutic treatment only after the clinical picture becomes clear.

The treatment process necessarily includes psychotherapy procedures.

Doctors' actions are aimed at:

Returning a person to the real environment.
The patient's ability to withstand stressful situations.
Improving the patient's relationships with other people.
Fighting emotional imbalance.

During the entire treatment, the patient should be surrounded by the care and love of people close to him.

Treatment of emotional lability

When the diagnosis is completed and the causes of emotional instability are identified, they begin to eliminate them. The necessary treatment should be carried out by the doctor whose competence is the cause. This could be not only a psychiatrist, but also a neurologist, endocrinologist, cardiologist, therapist or other specialist. In most cases, therapeutic treatment is required, but sometimes surgery is also resorted to.

Specific treatment may include the following:

Individual psychotherapy. During sessions, the psychotherapist helps the patient cope with internal conflicts and fears. In each case, an individual approach is used using cognitive behavioral therapy, auto-training and other methods.
Group psychotherapy. This approach helps solve patients’ social problems: increase self-confidence, develop communication skills, learn to avoid conflicts and better feel the emotions of others.
Consulting. The psychotherapist communicates with the patient’s family members, explains to them in detail what emotional lability is, and gives recommendations on how to communicate and how to help the person suffering from it.
Drug therapy. Drugs that reduce anxiety and tension are usually prescribed: tranquilizers, antidepressants and sedatives.