Mood disorders can turn your world upside down. They mess with your emotions, thoughts, and daily life. From major depression to bipolar disorder, these conditions affect millions of people, causing intense sadness or wild mood swings.

Understanding mood disorders is crucial for mental health. They're not just "feeling blue" – they're serious conditions with biological and psychological roots. Recognizing symptoms and knowing the differences between disorders can help you or loved ones get the right support.

Mood Disorders

Major Depressive Disorder and Bipolar Disorder Symptoms

• Major depressive disorder (MDD) symptoms:
  • Persistent feelings of sadness, emptiness, or hopelessness that last for at least two weeks
  • Loss of interest or pleasure in activities previously enjoyed (anhedonia)
  • Changes in appetite and weight, either significant weight loss or gain
  • Sleep disturbances, including insomnia (difficulty falling or staying asleep) or hypersomnia (excessive sleeping)
  • Psychomotor agitation (restlessness) or retardation (slowed movements and speech)
  • Fatigue or decreased energy, feeling tired most of the day
  • Feelings of worthlessness or excessive guilt, often disproportionate to the situation
  • Diminished ability to think, concentrate, or make decisions, leading to reduced productivity
  • Recurrent thoughts of death or suicidal ideation, which may include specific plans or attempts
• Bipolar disorder symptoms:
  • Manic episodes:
    • Elevated, expansive, or irritable mood that is distinctly different from usual non-depressed mood
    • Inflated self-esteem or grandiosity, believing one has special powers or abilities
    • Decreased need for sleep, feeling rested after only a few hours of sleep
    • More talkative than usual or pressure to keep talking, often with rapid speech
    • Flight of ideas or racing thoughts, quickly jumping from one idea to another
    • Distractibility, attention easily drawn to unimportant or irrelevant stimuli
    • Increase in goal-directed activity (socially, at work, or sexually) or psychomotor agitation
    • Excessive involvement in risky or pleasurable activities with high potential for negative consequences (shopping sprees, sexual indiscretions)
  • Depressive episodes:
    • Similar to MDD symptoms, including sadness, anhedonia, changes in sleep and appetite, fatigue, and suicidal thoughts

Major Depressive Disorder vs. Persistent Depressive Disorder

• Major depressive disorder (MDD):
  • Characterized by one or more discrete major depressive episodes that last at least two weeks
  • Episodes cause significant distress or impairment in social, occupational, or other important areas of functioning
  • Symptoms are severe and represent a clear change from previous functioning
• Persistent depressive disorder (PDD), also known as dysthymia:
  • Chronic, low-grade depression lasting at least two years, with symptoms present more days than not
  • Symptoms are less severe than MDD but more persistent, creating a constant feeling of being "down" or "blue"
  • May have brief periods of normal mood, but these last less than two months at a time
  • Symptoms cause significant distress or impairment in functioning, although the impact may be less pronounced than in MDD

Biological and Psychological Factors in Mood Disorders

• Biological factors:
  • Genetic predisposition
    • Increased risk in first-degree relatives of individuals with mood disorders, suggesting a genetic component
    • Twin studies suggest heritability, with higher concordance rates in monozygotic twins compared to dizygotic twins
  • Neurotransmitter imbalances
    • Serotonin, norepinephrine, and dopamine are implicated in mood regulation
    • Abnormalities in neurotransmitter levels or receptor sensitivity may contribute to mood disorders
  • Neuroendocrine abnormalities
    • Hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis dysregulation, which plays a role in stress response
    • Abnormal cortisol levels and circadian rhythms, leading to disrupted sleep and mood patterns
  • Brain structure and function
    • Abnormalities in prefrontal cortex, hippocampus, and amygdala, which are involved in emotion regulation and cognition
    • Reduced volume and activity in these regions, as observed in neuroimaging studies
• Psychological factors:
  • Cognitive distortions and negative thinking patterns
    • Negative view of self, world, and future (Beck's cognitive triad), leading to pessimistic outlooks
    • Attributional style, with a tendency to make internal (self-blame), stable (persistent), and global (generalizing) attributions for negative events
  • Early life experiences and trauma
    • Adverse childhood experiences, such as abuse, neglect, or loss of a parent, can increase vulnerability to mood disorders
    • Insecure attachment styles, developed in early childhood, may contribute to emotional instability and difficulty in relationships
  • Personality traits
    • Neuroticism (tendency to experience negative emotions) and introversion (low sociability and stimulation-seeking) are associated with increased risk
  • Stress and life events
    • Stressful life events, such as loss of a loved one, job loss, or relationship problems, can trigger or exacerbate mood disorders
    • Reduced ability to cope with stress due to a combination of biological, psychological, and social factors