The Roller Coaster

[Cernan]

Hello, I've found that my mood tends to go in a roller coaster. Sometimes I feel fantastic and am very hopeful about life and then I crash and I get depressed and feel hopeless. I noticed the other day for the first time that I was starting to have an up on the roller coaster and I tried to level myself out so try not to feel too good for fear of crashing. I'm just wondering if that is a good approach to take.

Thanks for your time.

[Brooke]

Hi, I'm not a professional, but I read your post and wanted to give you my personal thoughts. I too have a roller coaster of emotions. I think even if you are not bipolar, we all have them to an extent. Since taking antidepressants, my mood has stabilized, but I'm feeling that "flat" feeling that I've heard other people complain about when you are on meds. But of course I still have my ups and downs, and can totally relate to you trying to hold back feeling good and excited for the fear of crashing.

I can't tell you if that's right or wrong, but I so understand. We all want to feel more stable. I feel like when I used to socialize (even though I have social anxiety), I would have a great time but when I came home, my brain would be too stimulated and I wouldn't be able to sleep all night. I would be ruminating over conversations I've had and rethinking everything. Even though it was a fun night, due to too much stimulation and excitement, I would crash for days after that. So right now, I'm being careful not to socialize with a bunch of people at one time or as frequently as I did before.

I hope it gets easier for you to deal with your emotional roller coasters.