What is a Nervous Breakdown? A nervous breakdown occurs when a person is no longer able to function normally, even doing small things like chores or personal hygiene. Although the condition is not an official mental health diagnosis, it can have a serious and negative impact on someone's life.
Crying spells, crying over nothing at all, or crying about small things that normally wouldn't bother you may be signs of depression. Inability to concentrate. If you are depressed, you may be forgetful, have trouble making decisions, or find it hard to concentrate.
A nervous breakdown (also called a mental breakdown) is a term that describes a period of extreme mental or emotional stress. The stress is so great that the person is unable to perform normal day-to-day activities. The term “nervous breakdown” isn't a clinical one. Nor is it a mental health disorder.
Some of these include sadness, worry, intense stress, changes in eating and sleeping habits, wanting to withdraw from friends and family, and feeling overwhelmed. It is crucial to identify and seek professional help to gain an understanding of what is causing or contributing to these feelings of mental distress.
feel overwhelmed — unable to concentrate or make decisions. be moody — feeling low or depression; feeling burnt out; emotional outbursts of uncontrollable anger, fear, helplessness or crying. feel depersonalised — not feeling like themselves or feeling detached from situations.
The Duration of a Nervous Breakdown Varies by Individual
A nervous breakdown is not a diagnosable mental health condition, and that means there are no official criteria to describe it, including duration. These mental health crises are highly variable, lasting a few hours for one person or weeks for another.
A nervous breakdown is ultimately caused by an inability to cope with large amounts of stress, but how that manifests exactly varies by individual. Work stress, mental illness, family responsibilities, and poor coping strategies are all things that can lead to a nervous breakdown and the inability to function normally.
A nervous breakdown can last from a few hours to a few weeks. If your breakdown has been going on for a while, and you need some relief, the following ten tips are for you. They will help you not only survive this difficult time, but they might even help you grow from this difficult experience.
Treatment for a nervous breakdown may involve therapy, medication, and self-care or lifestyle changes. Working with a therapist can help someone manage negative emotions, explore the causes of those feelings, and change thoughts and behaviors to minimize stress and better cope with it.
This experience often stems from feeling like things are out of your control — like life's happening to you and you're not an active agent. You have too many emails, social events, or obligations, and the mountain of things feels impossible to tackle. Feeling overwhelmed also often causes procrastination.
If you are stressing out over small things, perhaps lack of sleep is the cause. When your body is sleep deprived, you are not thinking clearly, and your mood is altered. You may feel like you are on the brink of being angry or crying over small things. This is an indicator that more sleep is essential in your life.
When you struggle with anxiety even small everyday tasks can seem like mountainous obstacles. As a result, you'll start to feel even more overwhelmed and nervous because you can't get things done. That's because anxious thoughts tend to “blow up” even the smallest things.
This crisis will leave you unable to function normally, to go to work or school, to take care of children, or to do any of your usual activities. Symptoms of a nervous breakdown may include emotional distress as well as physical effects, like chest pains and difficulty breathing.
A nervous breakdown results from a sudden or prolonged period of stress, often rooted in underlying mental health conditions. A panic attack, in essence, is a type of nervous breakdown. Panic attacks are episodes of overwhelming anxiety and fear that often arise out of the blue, sometimes without explanation.
It's important to remember that even if you or a loved one is having or has had a mental breakdown, it is a temporary condition. With the right treatment, you, or your loved one, can recover and begin to heal.
But in general, 3 main symptoms are associated with a psychotic episode: hallucinations. delusions. confused and disturbed thoughts.
If you're having a mental health emergency, it's important to get help right away. Though the thought of going to the emergency room (ER) might be daunting, it's often the best way to keep you safe during the crisis. Visiting the ER can connect you with resources that will help you manage and overcome these issues.
A nervous or mental breakdown does not have any defined symptoms, aside from difficulty or inability to function “normally.” But what qualifies as functioning normally or being “fully functioning” differs among people from different regions, cultures, and even families.
Drugs such as Xanax (alprazolam), Klonopin (clonazepam), Valium (diazepam), and Ativan (lorazepam) work quickly, typically bringing relief within 30 minutes to an hour. That makes them very effective when taken during a panic attack or another overwhelming anxiety episode.