For A while now I been emotionally unstable, e.g. randomly getting angry over nothing or suddenly depressed for no reason, and these can be in 5 mins, and I rarely feel happy or upbeat and when i do it does not last long, and its always negative emotions is there a way I can stabilise my emotions and have a brighter outlook.
You need a good hug from me! What is the issues that kept bothering you? Maybe you should talk to someone, vent out all your frustration. Get angry, cry and scream. I find it useful when I talk about it instead of keeping it to myself.
(*hug*) (*hug*)And a massive hug from me aswell .. Maybe you've got a lot going on with everything, like exams and personal stuff and its just slowly build up; thats what happens to me when I dont share things for a while - it just builds up inside of me subconsciously... if that makes any sense. (Knowing what I'm like, probably not..) Hey, maybe you should try writing things down on a sheet of paper every time you feel annoyed; when I heard this idea I laughed, like why would anyone do that? But it really works. Just write down what you're feeling and why you're angry and then once you've understood what you're thinking, shred the paper .. it work for me, sometimes, hopefully it'll work for you as well. No harm in trying, right? :- ) Or, its good to cry sometimes, just gets it out of your system. All the best..
Like the others above, I would suggest trying to figure out what causes these emotional swings. There are many possible sources, possibly conspiring together. For instance, I found that experienced a lot of negative emotional stress when I was not getting enough sleep and I was not on a regular sleep schedule. Stress from work or academics or personal issues. Poor eating habits. Not enough time moving or outside. One thing I wonder is how you feel overall when you are not having these sudden changes. Would it be fair to say that you are feeling happy and then suddenly you are are angry? At the time, do you realized that this has come out of nowhere or does it feel like pent up frustrations finally being expressed? Try to find the sources of stress or imperfection in your life. If there is nothing that seems particularly problematic another possibility might be that it is a biologically oriented issue. In general, I suggest, through my own experience, that if you can get to a mental health professional such as a counselor or therapist (psychiatrists generally focus on prescribing medicine), they can be really helpful. They are an objective confidential ear to whom you can air your dirty laundry and in addition they also are skilled in figuring out what might be important -- helping you ask the right questions about your life. If you are in college, they often provide free counseling services, and many insurance plans provide mental health services with a standard co pay.
Seeing a counsellor would be a great thing to do - even if it's just to have someone tell you that what you're feeling is normal. As an 18 year old man - dealing with the transition to adulthood as well as a sexual orientation that is other than 'straight' it might be quite normal for you to feel the way you're feeling. I found working with someone - being able to talk about what was bothering me and getting some practical coping tools and suggestions - really helped.
