6 Strategies Used by Psychologists for Mood Disorders

Going to a psychologist in the face of mental health problems is something that, luckily, is becoming more normalized. This tendency also occurs in cases in which people develop mood disorders, alterations that in certain contexts social are normalized and seen as something "normal" and "part of life", thus implying that each person must take charge of their problems without seeking aid.

However, a part of the population continues to maintain an incomplete and biased view of this kind of psychological alterations, even going so far as to experience a feeling of guilt when considering prioritizing their mental health and seeking professional support, something that from their point of view is a sign of weakness.

In order to offer a more complete vision of how psychotherapy works in the face of this type of psychopathology and to show why it is necessary to contact professionals, here we will give a review of the strategies most used by psychologists in the face of mood disorders.

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What are mood disorders?

Mood disorders are part of the set of most common psychological disorders in Western societies. For this reason, psychology professionals have a wide variety of modalities of therapeutic intervention with which to attend this type of of disorders, and knowing the nature of their treatments is essential for anyone who wants to know this field of health in depth mental.

Mood is the emotional disposition that people have towards life, and it is closely related to the sources of motivation that die to the person, as well as their way of managing positive and negative affects.

The state of mind is also popularly known as "mood" and this can be positive, negative or neutral. depending on a great variety of eventualities, elements of the context, and personal characteristics of each individual.

In this sense, mood disorders They are a very common type of psychological disorders that are based on an emotional imbalance or a notable alteration in the person's mood, which generates a feeling of discomfort or, on the contrary, they lead to a situation in which the health of oneself or others is put at risk.

Although they generally give rise to states of negativity and discomfort in the person, mood disorders can also manifest as periods alternating sadness and euphoria (bipolar disorder) or as states of irritation, low self-esteem, tiredness, apathy, confusion or even flattening affective.

Unlike cases of sadness or temporary emotional suffering, mood disorders occur over longer periods of time, have a very serious impact on the quality of life of those who suffer from them and are usually reflected in an impoverishment of the individual's life in relation to their social relationships and the activities in which they are involved.

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Main strategies used by psychologists in the face of mood disorders

As previously indicated, psychologists can now put into practice a great deal of variety of therapeutic strategies to address any of the mood disorders existing. What is important is that each intervention is tailored to the mood disorder in question and the particular needs and characteristics of each person attended, since they are complex pathologies and multicausal.

Regarding the modalities of intervention that have proven to be more effective for the treatment of disorders of mood, we can highlight those of the cognitive-behavioral tradition, as well as Third-Party Therapies Generation.

1. diagnostic strategies

To start the psychological intervention, the professional must put into practice the application of a series of diagnostic strategies that help him to know in depth the type of disorders that must be treated and start a personalized action plan.

In this first phase, an initial interview is carried out to verify the type of symptoms that the patient suffers. the person cared for and if their disorder matches the criteria described in the manuals diagnoses. The main objective is to know the contextual and behavioral elements of the patient's daily life that keep this disorder “afloat”, in order to extinguish them and/or replace them with others.

2. Behavioral Activation

Behavioral Activation is one of the most widely used therapeutic techniques in cases of depression, and is based on gradually integrating enriching daily activities and with motivating potential, progressively helping the patient to return to a normal life and with daily activities in which to get involved in a way active.

This technique is based on enhancing the motivation and interest of the person beyond the introspection loop that feeds the depressive symptoms, so that it begins to progressively develop all kinds of behaviors and activities capable of leading him to feel interested in his environment, in social relationships, and in life in general.

• Related article: "Behavioral Activation: one of the most effective therapies against depression"

3. Cognitive Restructuring

Cognitive Restructuring is the basis of Cognitive-behavioral Therapy and is a therapeutic process in which the person is taught to carefully analyze and question all their dysfunctional beliefs that had been contributing to the existence of the disorder.

These negative thoughts are what contribute to maintaining a state of discomfort and depression in the person, that is why changing these thoughts by others more positive, adaptive and adapted to reality we will get the person to improve progressively.

Cognitive Restructuring is a progressive training in which, through dialogue, the The patient learns to change his way of thinking and to question what he took for granted. sitting.

• You may be interested in: "The 6 techniques of cognitive restructuring"

4. Social skills training

Learning social skills, especially for those people who have the most difficulty in communicating and relating successfully with other people, is another of the most useful learning and training for people with mood disorders. cheer up. Is a fundamental help when it comes to breaking with the dynamics of social isolation linked to various forms of depression.

5. mindfulness

Mindfulness or full attention technique has proven to be effective in mood disorders, especially in cases in which it is necessary to prevent relapses in depression.

It is a technique with which we learn to live the present moment more fully, detaching ourselves from the tendency to make constant moral assessments and to feed obsessive thoughts about the past or the past future.

6. Anxiety Management Techniques

Many mood disorders can co-occur with anxiety symptoms or disorders, that is why these must be treated separately to overcome the problem globally.

These anxiety symptoms can manifest as irrational fears, phobias, obsessions, compulsions, or all kinds of Concerns that contribute to making the person suffer and that must be overcome with the help of a health professional. psychology.