My mom has told me, as someone diagnosed with anxiety and depression, that I also have those two mental health illnesses, which makes sense to make and I have accepted. However, lately I've been picking up on a weird new behavior of my moods, and I'm not sure if this is a normal part of "teenage hormones" or something more. Last night was a perfect example of these moods. During the school day, I was fairly depressive because of health class teaching about reproductive systems, which led to dysphoria. But a few hours after I got home, I was hyper. Like, my mom and I went to the store, and I was extremely energetic, my thoughts were racing, it was crazy. Then before bed, I started crying and slipping back into the depression. Is this a regular thing for sufferers of depression and anxiety? Because when I was hyper, I wasn't really anxious. I was just super happy and energetic. But the thoughts racing part was weird. It felt very unlike me. Does anyone have any idea what this sounds like?
Wait, so your mom is diagnosed with anxiety and depression, and has decided that you are? Uh, no. First, she's not qualified to make that determination, and second, there's a lot of nuance in separating normal teenage angst and mood swings from actual anxiety and depression. I can't tell you for certain, but here are a couple of thougths: -- The child's neurotransmitter pathways (which play most of the role in development of mood disorders) are strongly affected in their growth and development by bonding with the parent, and can be affected by the parent's moods or mood disorders, but for the most part the conditions are only partially genetic, if at all. -- If you have the trait where you might be prone to anxiety and depression, it isn't a certainty, and intervention while you are still young can make a dramatic difference in the long term. Medication isn't the solution; therapy is, as that will actually, over time, alter the neurotransmitter pathways. -- It is also very possible that what you are expereincing is entirely a function of normal teen mood swings. -- What you are describing *could* be entirely normal, or it could be symptoms of bipolar disorder. But before you decide that's the case, you really need a proper evaluation by a psychologist. -- All of this can (and probably will) change somewhat if/when you go on hormones.
Well, yes. I have all of the physical/mental symptoms and it runs in the family. My parents are working to get me to a therapist in general as well, so they'll probably help to determine that for certain. Ok, so hopefully therapy will help any problem I have/don't have, which is very good to know. Thanks for the information, I'll just keep an eye on things.
