Mood disorders include Major Depressive Disorder, Persistent Depressive Disorder (Dysthymia), Bipolar-related mood conditions, and other presentations involving significant disruption to emotional regulation and mood. They affect how you feel, think, function, and relate to others; often across every area of life.
Common signs and presentations
You may be experiencing mood disorders if you recognise any of the following:
- Persistent low mood, emptiness, or a pervasive sense of sadness lasting more than two weeks
- Loss of interest or pleasure in activities you once enjoyed; including things you used to love
- Fatigue and low energy that does not improve with rest
- Changes in sleep: sleeping too much, too little, or waking in the early hours
- Changes in appetite or weight
- Difficulty concentrating, making decisions, or completing tasks
- Feelings of worthlessness, excessive guilt, or self-criticism
- Hopelessness about the future
- Irritability, restlessness, or emotional volatility
- In Bipolar presentations: periods of elevated mood, reduced need for sleep, impulsivity, or grandiosity, alternating with depressive episodes
What to expect in sessions
Treatment begins with understanding your unique mood pattern and the factors that maintain it. What your mood disorder looks like for you, what triggers it, what sustains it, and what has helped or not helped in the past. From there, we build a treatment plan together that is realistic, compassionate, and grounded in what the evidence shows works.