Lumbung InsightFeb 7Written By Indy Hurun Ein
“I’m not doing anything anymore because lately I feel like I’ve been moody.”
“Ouch, I don’t know why it’s so moody to be a person.”
“Ah, I’m male with him, the person is really moody, you know it’s not clear.”
Moody, a word we commonly hear, whether on social media, news, lectures, or everyday conversations. Some already understand the meaning of the word moody, but there are also those who still wonder why moody can appear and what will happen next.
Meet Mood and Moody
Before knowing more about moody, we first understand about mood. Moodis something that is felt by a person for hours, days, even weeks without knowing the cause or reason for the appearance of the feeling.
Sometimes, we see mood and emotion are the same thing. In fact, there is a difference between the two. Mood is present without us recognizing the causative situation, while emotion is present by knowing the causative situation. In addition, the duration of mood occurs longer than emotions.
For example, when someone insults you, you feel angry. The anger present here is an emotion, because you know the cause. Meanwhile, an angry mood is present when you feel angry without anyone disturbing or doing evil to you. You can continue to feel this angry mood for a few days or even weeks.
Mood changesto moodswing/moody when it occurs up and down. Moody’s just happened without any prior notice. Like, happy to sad, or suddenly feeling angry. Another more specific example is, when you are feeling happy and very enthusiastic in activities, suddenly a gloomy and confused feeling is present without knowing the exact cause.
Moody can be normal, but it can also lead to symptoms of psychological disorders (such as, bipolar and cyclothymic disorder). What we need to realize is that when we lose control of managing moody, to interfere with daily life, do not hesitate to consult a professional.
The twists and turns of a moody person
Human beings have the ability to recognize the feelings of self and others, and to know the causes and effects of those feelings appearing. This ability is known as self-awareness. When self-awareness has not played a role well, then someone can experience moody. Moody can occur because a person has not been able to recognize his own feelings. This is further reinforced by changes in feelings without an apparent cause. Finally, a person gets stuck in a circle of feelings that he does not understand.
Moody can also be experienced due to lack of sleep. A person with less sleep hours can experience emotional instability. Emotional instability in the form of being more sensitive, easily tired, easily irritated, and vulnerable to pressure.
This relationship between sleep and moodiness is evidenced by research using fMRI (Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging, atool to see the parts of the brain that are most active when there are processes of thinking, feeling, and behaving) by comparing the brains of humans who get enough sleep with those who are sleep deprived.
As a result, the amygdala (the part of the brain that plays a role in detecting danger, fear, and other negative emotions) sleep-deprived people was 60% more active than people who got enough sleep and the role of the prefontal cortex was less optimal (the part of the brain that plays a role in rational thinking, making decisions. As a result, he becomes more alert, alert, and sensitive to negative stimulation.
Thus, people who lack sleep experience a decrease in emotional control because the part of the brain that plays a role in this “loses” with the emergence of emotions themselves.
In addition, an imbalance of neurotransmitterssuch as serotonin and dopamine in the brain can also cause problems in a person’s mood. Serotonin acts as a controller of emotional stability and feeling happy. While dopamine, also plays a role in managing emotions and raises a sense of satisfaction, pleasure, and enthusiasm. When there is an imbalance in these two neurotransmitters, then a person more easily feels negative emotions to lose control in managing negative emotions that are present.
Moody’s Impact
Keep in mind, a sudden decrease in mood also has an impact on people around us. For example, when we are suddenly bete and gloomy, others will be confused and wonder. Questions such as, “Is something wrong? Did I hurt you and upset you?”.
There are mirror neurons in the brain that cause humans to also feel the mood, emotions and behavior of others. This is also known as mood contagion. For example, when someone suddenly feels gloomy, then other people who try to talk to him also feel gloomy. In fact, it can also lead to resentment towards him who is gloomy.
In addition, mood also affects the process of assessing and understanding information. Good or bad mood conditions also play a role in processing the information present. For example, a sad and chaotic mood condition makes it difficult for us to think clearly in situations that occur. Not infrequently the activities we are doing are also disrupted. If this happens continuously, a person will feel tired and resentful of the moody situation that comes.
It should be understood that even moody people do not want to experience this. In doing so, he became more and more stuck with problems in himself.
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Hopefully with this article you can better understand the moody people around you (or maybe ourselves who experience moody). Moody didn’t just show up because they wanted to, but there was a lot behind it.
Mood DisordersIndy Hurun Ein
Indy is studying at the Faculty of Psychology UIN Jakarta. Indy has a penchant for writing and is actively involved in the world of writing articles and research related to Psychology. Indy can be reached via email [email protected]