Irritability: What to understand, how to manage and where to avail mental health service in Bangalore

Irritability is a universal experience. It can range between mild irritability and more severe forms of it like agitation or rage on the lines of anger. Despite its commonality, if the feeling sustains for a long period of time, or the frequency increases as much as causing dysfunction on an everyday basis, it most often is indicative of an underlying mental health concern. Some of the underlying contributing factors to frequent irritability are as follows:

1. Prolonged high stress circumstances: Some of which could be:
   
   • Relationship difficulties
   • Stressful job situation
   • Life changing events and related adjustment
2. Mood disorders:
   
   • Depression: A mood disorder characterizing persistent low mood, lack of pleasure in earlier pleasurable things/activities, increased fatigability, low confidence, increased feelings of guilt, suicidal ideation and decreased attention and concentration lasting for over two weeks. Irritability can manifest in a mild to moderate range of depression.
   • Dysthymia: Long standing low grade depression where functionality isn’t affected, however experiencing irritability on almost an everyday basis but able to get through the day.
3. Anxiety disorders:
   Anxiety is often connected with overstimulation from a stressful environment or perceived threat, combined with the anticipatory inability to deal with that threat. Often when anxiety is left unacknowledged or unexpressed, it can turn into frustration, which can lead to irritability/anger. This is because an individual who expresses irritability will have an underlying fear about something in their life.

4. Unhealthy lifestyle practices:
   • This refers to the very basic restorative bodily functions of sleep, appetite and exercise. Sustained deprivation of these could cause ranging levels of irritability and also lead to lifestyle disorders or moderate to severe forms of mental health concerns.
5. Lifestyle disorders:
   • Lifestyle has a huge impact on the bodily functions. Unhealthy lifestyle as explored in the previous point can cause hormonal imbalances and organic dysfunction. Disorders like hypo/hyper-thyroidism, PCOS (Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome), high blood pressure and diabetes are often linked with disturbances in mood and irritability levels.

1. Maintain a healthy lifestyle for a healthy mental health.
2. Manage a mood journal and note down moments in the day that triggered the irritability. To supplement it, also think about other possible behaviours instead of what was displayed in that moment.
3. Practice meditation/mindfulness on an everyday basis. These practices may take some time to show significant changes. However, it acts as an armor against general stress.
4. Share often with a friend or family member if it feels like it is too many things to handle. Remember “burden shared is burden halved”
5. Cultivate or practice a hobby at least 2-3 times in a week. It has the power to act as a cushion.
6. In case of relationship issues (parental, romantic, spousal, friendships), understand and practice boundaries that could enhance the relationship. If toxicity is identified, take a step back. One could even seek professional help to understand this better.
7. In the case of work related stress; remember that more the stress, more the relaxation needs to be. Accommodate conscious relaxation on an everyday basis to switch off and unwind.
8. Seek professional help if it feels overwhelming. There is mental help available.