I'm going through something right now. Am I experiencing everyday emotions, or could this be a mental health condition?

Negative emotions like sadness, fear, and anger can be overwhelming. When you feel bad, it can be hard to have fun, spend time with other people, or try new things. If you feel really bad, you might start to worry that something is wrong. This article will help you understand the difference between everyday emotions and warning signs of a mental health condition. 

Typical Emotions

What emotions are okay to feel? All of them! Even emotions that make you feel bad are normal and important to have. All emotions give you information and help you to make decisions. If you feel sad about getting into a fight with a friend, your sadness lets you know that your friendship is important to you. If you feel stressed about getting a bad grade on a test, your stress motivates you to study so that you can do better on the next one. Here are some examples of emotions you might experience on a regular day: 

Feeling sad, angry, or lonely after having a fight with a friend 
Feeling irritated at having to do something you don't want to do, like clean your room 
Feeling unmotivated to do things that are hard or confusing 
Feeling angry or hurt because someone said something mean to you 
Feeling rejected and misunderstood when you are not included in something 
Feeling guilty if you did something that you knew was wrong, like cheating 
Feeling anxious about a big test or performance 
Feeling jealous if your sibling has something nice that you don’t have 
Feeling embarrassed after someone laughed at your mistake 
Feeling empty if you’re bored or distracted 
Feeling grief and sadness after losing someone close to you 
Feeling bad after something upsetting happened and then feeling good after something exciting happened

Typical Reactions

Even though negative emotions are normal, they are not always easy to deal with. People react to negative emotions in a lot of different ways, including: 

Crying  
Being quiet 
Being irritable 
Wanting to be alone 
Avoiding hard conversations 
Being too unmotivated or distracted to complete tasks 
Distracting with things like TV or social media 
Not wanting to go to work or school for a day

These are expected reactions to overwhelming negative emotions. They don’t usually last a long time or get in the way of important things like school and friendships. 

When to Ask for Help

If your emotions and the ways that you react to them do start getting in the way of important things like school and friendships, you might be experiencing symptoms of a mental health condition. You should consider asking for help with your mental health if you: 

Feel little to no joy when doing things that are usually fun 
Have a hard time leaving the house, going to work, or attending school 
Are starting to fail classes or let your grades slip 
Are getting into a lot of fights with friends and family 
Start sleeping way more or way less than you did before 
Start eating way more or way less than you did before 
Can’t pay attention to anything 
Start doing risky or dangerous things without thinking about the consequences 
Start using drugs or alcohol to numb your feelings 
Have thoughts about hurting yourself 
Feel negative emotions like sadness or anger most of the time or all the time 
Feel completely numb or empty most of the time or all the time 
Are hearing voices that other people don’t hear 
Are seeing things that others don’t see 
Are thinking about death or suicide

Asking for Help

If you're experiencing symptoms of a mental health condition, reach out for help as soon as you can. Asking for help can be tough, but it's worth it. Help is available. You can use these articles to find information about getting help for your mental health: 

Hours of operation Monday-Friday, 10 a.m. – 10 p.m. EST

Call: 800-950-NAMI (6264)

Text: 62640

Webchat: www.nami.org/help

Email: helpline@nami.org