Emotional Exhaustion: What Is It & What Can You Do About It?

First, what is emotional exhaustion?

Emotional exhaustion is pretty much just what it sounds like. It happens often in periods of prolonged or intense stress, and in general makes you feel an inescapable sense of fatigue. Because it’s an emotional or mental exhaustion, it’s not the kind of tiredness that will go away with a nap. And it’s tricky because it’s the kind of thing that can sneak up on you–you might not realize you’ve been in the midst of a long period of intense stress until you’re already overwhelmed. 

When you hit that point of emotional exhaustion, it doesn’t just impact your energy level or mood. It also can impact things like your relationships, your ability to engage in your hobbies, your professional performance, your patience level, your self esteem, and even your problem solving skills. 

When you’re emotionally exhausted, pretty much every area of your life is impacted. Some mental symptoms you may experience can include: 

• Cognitive difficulties: You’re not able to think as quickly, problem solve as effectively, and your imagination, concentration and memory all suffer. 

• Mood unpredictability: Emotional exhaustion means you’re not able to regulate your own emotions or self soothe as well as when you have rest and balance in your life. That means small things which normally might not upset you may now send you over the edge, causing big changes in mood or a sense that you can’t control your feelings. 

• Relational problems: Emotional exhaustion can also impact your ability to have patience, to be an active listener, your enthusiasm for your social life and relationships, and your strength in connecting with others. Overall, your social energy is extremely depleted. 

But that’s not the only way we can recognize emotional exhaustion! It also shows up in our bodies. Some physical symptoms of emotional exhaustion you may experience can be: 

• Trouble sleeping: periods of intense stress often cause sleeping difficulties. Emotional exhaustion also frequently is felt alongside a feeling of “brain fog” which can make getting out of bed in the morning difficult, which helps create an irregular sleeping pattern, and still often leaves you feeling unrested.

• Trouble eating: Emotional exhaustion can cause digestive issues, as well as big changes in appetite. The two combined and the impact they have on your body can also lead to weight loss, another physical symptom of emotional exhaustion. 

• Frequent aches: Whether by headaches, stomach pains, muscle aches, etc. frequent aches and pains can be a sign that you are not getting the physical or emotional rest you need. 

Can you prevent emotional exhaustion?

Preventing emotional exhaustion is all about balance and boundaries. Some common things that can lead to the intense stress that sets off emotional exhaustion are things like: 

• A demanding work environment

• Poor work/life balance

• Lack of self care

• Lack of personal resources (money, food, support) 

• Perfectionism 

• An unexpected life event

• Living with a chronic illness

While some things that cause emotional exhaustion are out of our control–like our access to resources, living with a chronic illness, unexpected life events or the demands of our workplace–there are some ways we can work to prevent emotional exhaustion before it happens. 

Finding where you can enforce firmer boundaries is the first step.

What is it that’s getting you exhausted? What’s overwhelming you? When are you noticing these symptoms come up? Are there people you could turn to for support? 

The next step would be finding things that help to rejuvenate you.

You need both relaxation as well as revitalizing rest. That means take time to do nothing so you can get a break from the pressure, and find ways to fill your time with things that bring you joy to help balance out any emotional drain you may be feeling from other areas of your life. 

Establishing routines that help you keep your time balanced, and seeking the support of a mental health professional can also help you to find ways to cope with emotional exhaustion when it happens, as well as to take proactive steps to avoid it. 

If you need support coping with emotional exhaustion, we can help. Our clinicians are trained in evidence-based treatments that can help change the way you treat yourself. Get in touch today to book a session!

6 Tips To Help You Feel Your Feelings

Do you have a hard time dealing with uncomfortable emotions? If you do, you’re not the only one! Uncomfortable emotions are, well, uncomfortable. It doesn’t feel good to feel uncomfortable, so it makes sense that we often go out of our way to avoid feeling uncomfortable emotions. However, emotions serve an important purpose. When we avoid our feelings, we’re just opening ourselves up to more distress later. When feelings aren’t dealt with, they have a way of coming back even more intensely, and often at an inconvenient time. 

Emotions are messengers, but we usually aren’t taught how to decode the messages they are sending us. Even when you do understand what the message is underneath the emotion, it can be hard to know what to do in the moment when you’re feeling a distressing feeling. 

Emotions are important, which is why we have them. In fact, they can help us survive. For example, babies display their emotions to alert their caregivers that they need help, since they can’t take care of themselves. Emotions can help us make decisions and guide our behaviors, as well as influence the way we understand and communicate with others. 

So, how can you make it easier to feel your feelings? Here are 6 tips to help you feel your feelings: 

Identify + acknowledge what's going on

If you’re having trouble identifying what you’re feeling, try using an emotion wheel to pinpoint what you’re experiencing. We can’t feel our feelings if we don’t notice and acknowledge them, so this is an important step. As you get more practice, it will be easier to identify what emotion you’re feeling and notice it as it pops up. 

Sometimes, you might get caught up in whatever the emotion is before you realize what’s going on. When that happens, take a pause and a deep breath. Naming what you are feeling gives you more information on how to deal with the emotion moving forward. You’ll also learn how to spot patterns in your emotional responses, which can be helpful. 

Do a body scan

Where are you feeling this emotion in your body? Is there anywhere that you notice is more tense than usual? Do you feel hot or cold anywhere? Are there any sensations that you notice? Are you experiencing any pain? 

Checking in with how your body feels when you’re emotionally activated is a helpful way to get back into the present moment. When we’re in the middle of our feelings, it can be hard to be focused on what’s happening right now. Scanning your body and taking note of any sensations can help you identify where you experience emotions in your body. This can also be another way to identify your emotions when you’re having a hard time naming them. 

Validate what you're feeling

Feeling validated is powerful, even when you validate yourself. It feels good to acknowledge that what you’re feeling is okay and that there’s nothing wrong with you for having feelings. Sometimes we start judging ourselves and jumping to conclusions before taking some time to reflect and see that it actually makes sense that we feel this way. 

Another aspect to this is to give yourself lots of compassion. The world is already tough enough, you don’t need to be mean to yourself on top of it. How would you treat a friend going through what you’re going through? You’d probably be supportive, understanding, and kind. Treat yourself like you would treat a friend. You deserve compassion. 

Do what you can to reassure yourself

We all need reassurance from time to time, and especially when we’re feeling emotionally vulnerable. Do what you can to reassure yourself that things will be okay. It might even help to tell yourself something like “I’m here now, and I'm not going anywhere,” or “It won’t always feel like this.” We all need to have people on our side, and that includes being on our own side. Try to be the calm, adult voice of reason that your younger self needs to hear. 

Give yourself options

When you’re feeling emotionally activated, it can be hard to remember what can help make you feel better. It can be helpful to make a list of things that make you feel safe in advance so you have options when you're in the thick of your feelings. 

This could be as simple as keeping a note on your phone of things that soothe you in intense moments, or things that have helped you regulate your emotions in the past. You can even go as far as to make yourself an emotional distress toolbox. A toolbox could hold items like a meditation exercise, a candle or essential oil with a calming smell, fidget toys, grounding objects, or pictures of people and places that make you feel safe. When you’re feeling your feelings, take a look at the options you’ve prepared yourself ahead of time and see if that helps you as you process your emotions. 

Talk to someone

One of the hardest things about talking about your emotions is the sense of shame that they can bring up. Shame is a particularly uncomfortable feeling to deal with. Shame can result in pushing feelings away when it comes up to avoid the pain of confronting it. When you feel shame, it might feel like you can’t speak about it, because that brings up all those bad feelings and body sensations. 

However, shame thrives on keeping it to yourself. When you share your feelings of shame with others that you trust, shame loses its power. Seeing others treat you with compassion when you share what you feel ashamed about can help motivate you to be that compassionate to yourself. 

You can talk to anyone you trust and feel safe around, like a friend, a family member, a spiritual advisor, a mentor, or even a therapist.

If you’re interested in learning more ways to regulate your emotions and cope with your feelings, working with a therapist can help give you the tools you need. Get in touch today to get started. 

Processing Non-Death Related Grief

What do you think of when you think of grief? Someone you loved + lost? Sadness? Heartache? Numbness? Charlie Brown? There are no wrong answers. Grief is experienced differently by everyone. 

Grief covers a wide variety of experiences, and many of us have felt grief at some point in our lives. Grief can be felt over the death of someone, the loss of a friendship or relationship, divorce, moving, switching jobs, losing your faith, the death of a pet, anticipating a future loss, and so much more. 

Some of us might assume that grief is exclusively reserved for death, but there are lots of ways grief can come up in someone’s life.  So, if grief isn’t just the sadness that you feel after experiencing the death of someone close to you, what is it? What does it mean to be grieving? 

Dictionary.com defines grief as: “something that causes keen distress or suffering.” 

This definition works, but it doesn’t really speak to the complicated nuances of grief. Grief Recovery takes it one step further in their definition of grief: “Grief is the conflicting feelings caused by the end of or change in a familiar pattern of behavior.”

We all experience changes in our daily patterns from time to time, and it can be a really disrupting experience. Now that we understand that grief is about more than loss of life, we can recognize the emotional process we go through during periods of extreme change as grief.

When we thinking of grief, we typically think of loss of life of some kind, but grief can be felt for a variety of reasons. Some experts call this kind of grief disenfranchised grief.  Kenneth Doka coined the term, which means “Grief that persons experience when they incur a loss that is not or cannot be openly acknowledged, socially sanctioned or publicly mourned”. 

Disenfranchised grief is the grief that comes up we feel we are not able to openly acknowledge or mourn our loss. It can be extra difficult to grieve this way, because a big part of the grief process is getting support from folks in your life, and disenfranchised grief can make you feel like you’re alone. 

Here are some situations that can lead to grief:

• Moving 

• Changing schools

• Leaving a job

• Starting a new job

• Loss of faith

• Change in financial status

• Divorce

• Change in health status

• Ending a friendship

• Loss of a home

• Infertility

• Estrangement from family

Things to remember about grief: 

Loss is not a competition 

You don’t have to prove your loss to anyone or perform grief in a certain way. If anyone gives you a hard time, that’s their problem, and not yours. Your grief is personal to you, so you get to direct your process. Some types of loss are harder for people to understand, like a loss of faith. Not everyone feels the same way about faith + religion, so folks who don’t have a religious background might not understand the unique pain that comes with a loss of faith. Remember, you don’t have to prove anything to anyone. 

Talk it out

Just because you feel as though you are not entitled to publicly grieve doesn’t mean that’s the case. There’s still a lot of stigma around mental health issues in this country, but don’t feel like you have to bury your feelings of grief for the comfort of other people. You can ask permission to vent or talk about sensitive subjects, but don’t feel like you can’t be open and real about your feelings just because you’re not grieving a death. 

Actively process your feelings

As with most feelings, you can’t just bury grief down and expect it to pass. Grief is going to hurt - there’s no way to avoid it.  Even though it feels impossible, it’s important to actively process your feelings when you’re grieving. There are lots of different ways to start the process of feeling your grief. Journaling, meditation, therapy, regular movement, and making art are a few places to start. 

Take your time

Grief, unfortunately, is a long process. There’s no way around the pain of grief. Ignoring the pain will just make it worse, so its important to acknowledge your feelings. The way you feel has an impact on your health, mentally and physically, so make sure you’re not burying your feelings away. You might be feeling a whole mix of emotions, like anger, sadness, disbelief, fear, relief, numbness, devastation, loneliness, and others. Let your feelings come, without judgment. 

If you’re struggling with your grief, know that it’s often a painful process and there’s no shame in asking for help. Our counselors can help you find a way to process your grief that works for you. 

35 Positive Affirmations for Anxiety and Depression That Will Transform Your Life

Thoughts affect your reality — they create an energy and perspective that shape your actions. Positive affirmations can help you adopt a positive mindset and changes in your life. Although there are many things in life we cannot choose, we can always choose new thoughts and perspectives — new ways of thinking and possibilities for the future.

Here are 35 positive affirmations from author and speaker Louise Hay, to inspire you and heal your life of anxiety, stress, and depression, to bring you comfort, joy, and peace.

“All is well in my world. Everything is working out for my highest good. Out of this situation only good will come. I am safe!”

“It’s only a thought, and a thought can be changed.”

“The point of power is always in the present moment.”

“Every thought we think is creating our future.”

“I forgive myself and set myself free.”

“I am Divinely guided and protected at all times.”

“I trust the process of life.”

“Deep at the center of my being is an infinite well of love.”

“I am loved, and I am at peace.”

“My happy thoughts help create my healthy body.”

“I love and approve of myself.”

“I have compassion for all.”

“I deserve all that is good.”

“I now live in limitless love, light, and joy.”

“It is safe for me to speak up for myself.”

“I forgive everyone in my past for all perceived wrongs. I release them with love.”

“Today is a sacred gift from Life.”

“I cross all bridges with joy and ease.”

“I experience love wherever I go.”

“I do not have to prove myself to anyone.”

“I trust my intuition. I am willing to listen to that still, small voice within.”

“I am greeted by love wherever I go.”

“The past is over.”

“I welcome miracles into my life.”

“I am in the process of positive change.”

“Nourishing myself is a joyful experience, and I am worth the time spent on my healing.”

“Whatever I need to know is revealed to me at exactly the right time.”

“I trust the process of life.”

“I listen with love to my body’s messages.”

“I forgive myself for not being perfect.”

“All is well in my world. I am calm, happy and content.”

“I am in charge of how I feel and today I am choosing happiness.”

“Life is very simple. What I give out comes back to me. Today I choose to give love.”

“As I say yes to life, life says yes to me.”

“I am at home in my body.”

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Therapist in mclean, tysons corner, merrifield, falls church, arlington and vienna

Victoria Chialy Smith, PhD is a licensed clinical psychologist serving the Falls Church, McLean, Great Falls, Vienna, Arlington, Alexandria, and the greater Washington DC region. She provides individual therapy to children, teens, and adults with stress, anxiety, and depression. Our practice provides Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), mindfulness and acceptance based therapies, and other top, premier evidence-based treatments. Call, email, or schedule an appointment with us online today. We’re happy to help!

15 Inspirational Mental Health Quotes That Will Help You Feel Less Alone

15 Inspirational Mental Health Quotes That Will Help You Feel Less Alone

It’s hard to live with depression, anxiety, and stress and it can feel lonely at times, as if others cant or dont understand. But the truth is that there are people out there who do, who have been through their own journeys and struggles. Here are some quotes that will help you feel less alone.

“I fight for my health every day in ways most people don’t understand. I’m not lazy. I’m a warrior.”

“Gardens are not made by sitting in the shade.”

— Rudyard Kipling

“Failure is a great teacher and, if you are open to it, every mistake has a lesson to offer.”

— Oprah Winfrey

“If you stumble, make it part of the dance.”

“The most beautiful people we have known are those who have known defeat, known suffering, known struggle, known loss, and have found their way out of the depths. These persons have an appreciation, a sensitivity, and an understanding of life that fills them with compassion, gentleness, and a deep loving concern. Beautiful people do not just happen.”

— Elisabeth Kübler-Ross

“Your illness is not your identity. Your chemistry is not your character.”

— Pastor Rick Warren

“Even if we don’t have the power to choose where we come from, we can still choose where we go from there.”

— Charlie from “The Perks of Being a Wallflower”

“’I wish it need not have happened in my time,’ said Frodo.
‘So do I,’ said Gandalf, ‘and so do all who live to see such times. But that is not for them to decide. All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us.’”

— J.R.R. Tolkien from “The Fellowship of the Ring“

“You are valuable just because you exist. Not because of what you do or what you have done, but simply because you are.”

— Max Lucado

“In the middle of winter I at last discovered that there was in me an invincible summer.”

— Albert Camus

“It’s up to you today to start making healthy choices. Not choices that are just healthy for your body, but healthy for your mind.”

— Steve Maraboli

“One of the things that baffles me (and there are quite a few) is how there can be so much lingering stigma with regards to mental illness, specifically bipolar disorder. In my opinion, living with manic depression takes a tremendous amount of balls. Not unlike a tour of Afghanistan (though the bombs and bullets, in this case, come from the inside). At times, being bipolar can be an all-consuming challenge, requiring a lot of stamina and even more courage, so if you’re living with this illness and functioning at all, it’s something to be proud of, not ashamed of.
They should issue medals along with the steady stream of medication.”

— Carrie Fisher, Wishful Drinking

“There is hope, even when your brain tells you there isn’t.”

— John Green, Turtles All the Way Down

“There is no standard normal. Normal is subjective. There are seven billion versions of normal on this planet.”

— Matt Haig, Reasons to Stay Alive

“But no matter how much evil I see, I think it’s important for everyone to understand that there is much more light than darkness.”

— Robert Uttaro

“Sometimes the people around you won’t understand your journey. They don’t need to, it’s not for them.”

— Joubert Botha

“I am not afraid of storms for I am learning how to sail my ship.”

— Amy March

Which of the quotes was your favorite? Did any of them resonate with you? Let us know in the comments below; we’d love to hear from you.

therapist serving mclean, tysons corner, merrifield, falls church, arlington and vienna

Victoria Chialy Smith, PhD is a licensed clinical psychologist providing individual therapy to children, teens, and adults with stress, anxiety, and depression. Our practice provides Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), mindfulness based therapies, and other top, premier evidence-based treatments, and serves the Falls Church, McLean, Great Falls, Vienna, Arlington, Alexandria, and the greater Washington DC region. Call, email, or schedule an appointment with us online today. We’re happy to help develop the best treatment for you!

List of Emotions

Sometimes you might feel an emotion, but not have the words to explain or identify what it is that you are feeling.

If this is the case, know that it is natural. We all have different backgrounds and life experiences. For example, some of us may have grown up in a household where emotions weren’t discussed much, and it isn’t until we are adults faced with life itself when we realize and begin to work on this gap. Others of us may begin to struggle with feelings of depression or anxiety from a young age, requiring a greater understanding of coping skills and emotions than others your age.

The purpose of emotions

Emotions can be positive or negative and can occur at different levels of intensity and frequency. Emotions can serve different purposes, including providing information to us about certain situations, or communicating to others how we feel. Emotions can also serve to motivate us or to help us avoid dangerous situations or potential threats. What’s fascinating about emotions is that they involve a mind body connection, as what we experience is processed in our minds and felt in our bodies and physiological responses. In other words, emotion is multidimensional.

The trouble with emotions is that they are not always right and can sometimes be misleading. For example, some people may feel generalized anxiety and tension all day even in the absence of any threat. Others may be prone to feelings of depression and tend to interpret different situations with a negative thoughts, thus in turn creating greater feelings of depression.

Practicing emotion identification and regulation

Developing a greater awareness of your emotions can help you develop ways to cope with difficult emotions that arise, make healthy decisions, enhance relationships with others, and develop a proactive sense of mastery over your life. Identifying emotions and how you feel in a given situation is often the first critical step towards figuring out how best to manage them.

Below is a list of emotions to help you identify how you may be feeling

Abandoned

Abhor

Absorbed

Acceptance

Aching

Admiration

Adoration

Adrift

Affection

Afraid

Aggravated

Aggressive

Agitated

Agony

Alarmed

Alert

Alienated

Alive

Alone

Amazed

Ambitious

Ambivalent

Amused

Angry

Angst

Anguished

Animated

Animosity

Annoyed

Antagonistic

Anticipating

Antsy

Anxiety

Anxious

Apathetic

Apologetic

Appalled

Appreciative

Apprehensive

Ardent

Aroused

Ashamed

Astonished

Astounded

Attachment

Attraction

Aversion

Awe

Awful

Awkward

Baffled

Bashful

Befuddled

Bemused

Betrayed

Bewildered

Bitter

Blah

Blessed

Bliss

Blithe

Blue

Boastful

Bold

Bored

Bothered

Brave

Breathless

Brooding

Bubbly

Bugged

Calamitous

Calm

Camaraderie

Captivated

Carefree

Caring

Ccutious

Certain

Chagrin

Challenged

Cheerful

Choked

Clueless

Cocky

Cold

Collected

Comfortable

Commiseration

Committed

Compassionate

Complacent

Composed

Concern

Concerned

Confident

Conflicted

Confused

Consternation

Contemplative

Contempt

Content

Contentment

Contrite

Cordial

Courage

Courageous

Cowardly

Cozy

Crabby

Crafty

Cranky

Craving

Crazy

Crestfallen

Cross

Cruel

Crummy

Crushed

Curious

Cynical

Dark

Defeated

Dejected

Delighted

Delirious

Denial

Depressed

Derisive

Desire

Desolation

Despair

Despondent

Detached

Determined

Detestation

Devastated

Devotion

Disappointed

Disbelief

Discouraged

Disdain

Disgraced

Disgruntled

Disgust

Disgusted

Disheartened

Disillusioned

Disinterested

Disliked

Dismal

Dismay

Dismayed

Disoriented

Dispirited

Distaste

Distracted

Distress

Distressed

Distrusting

Disturbed

Doleful

Dopey

Doubtful

Down

Downcast

Drained

Dread

Dreadful

Dreading

Dreary

Dubious

Dumbfounded

Eager

Earnest

Ease

Ebullient

Ecstatic

Edgy

Elated

Embarassed

Embarrassed

Embarrassment

Emotional-Detest

Empathic

Emptiness

Empty

Enchanted

Enchantment

Energetic

Engrossed

Enigmatic

Enjoyment

Enlightened

Enlightenment

Enmity

Enraged

Entertainment

Enthralled

Enthusiasm

Enthusiastic

Envious

Envy

Euphoria

Euphoric

Exasperated

Excited

Excitement

Excluded

Exhausted

Exhilarated

Exhilaration

Expectant

Expectation

Exuberance

Exuberant

Fanatical

Fascinated

Fatigued

Fear

Fearful

Feisty

Felicitous

Fervor

Fight-Or-Flight

Flabbergasted

Floored

Fondness

Foolish

Foreboding

Fortunate

Frazzled

Free

Fretful

Frightened

Frisky

Frustrated

Fulfilled

Fulfillment

Furious

Gay

Genial

Giddy

Glad

Gleeful

Gloomy

Goofy

Grateful

Gratified

Greedy

Grief

Groggy

Grouchy

Grudging

Grumpy

Guarded

Guilt

Guilty

Gung-Ho

Gusto

Hankering

Happy

Harassed

Hate

Hateful

Hatred

Heartache

Heartbroken

Helpless

Hesitant

Hollow

Homesick

Hopeful

Hopeless

Horrified

Hostile

Hot

Humiliated

Humored

Hurt

Hyper

Hysterical

Impatient

Incensed

Indifferent

Indignant

Indignation

Infatuated

Infatuation

Inferior

Infuriated

Inner Peace

Innocent

Insecure

Inspired

Insulted

Intense

Interest

Interested

Intimacy

Intimidated

Intoxicated

Intrigued

Introspective

Invidious

Invigorated

Irascible

Irate

Ire

Irritability

Irritated

Isolated

Jaded

Jealous

Jealousy

Jittery

Jocular

Jocund

Jolly

Jovial

Joy

Joyful

Jubilant

Jumpy

Keen

Kind

Lazy

Lblissful

Left Out

Lethargic

Liberated

Liberation

Lighthearted

Liking

Listless

Lively

Loathsome

Lonely

Longing

Lost

Love

Loved

Lovesick

Loyal

Lucky

Lust

Mad

Mean

Meditative

Melancholic

Melancholy

Mellow

Mercy

Merry

Miffed

Mildness

Mirth

Mischievous

Miserable

Mollified

Moody

Morbid

Mortified

Motivated

Mournful

Mourning

Moved

Mystified

Nasty

Nauseous

Needed

Needy

Neglected

Nervous

Neutral

Nonplussed

Nostalgic

Numb

Obscene

Obsessed

Offended

Optimistic

Outrage

Outraged

Overwhelmed

Pacified

Pain

Panic

Panicked

Panicky

Paranoia

Paranoid

Passion

Pathetic

Peaceful

Peevish

Pensive

Perky

Perplexed

Perturbation

Perturbed

Pessimistic

Petrified

Petty

Petulant

Pity

Playful

Pleased

Pleasure

Positive

Possessive

Powerful

Powerless

Preoccupied

Pride

Protective

Proud

Provoked

Psyched

Pumped

Puzzled

Quiet

Quizzical

Rageful

Rapture

Rattled

Reassured

Receptive

Reflective

Regretful

Rejected

Relaxed

Relief

Relieved

Relish

Reluctance

Remorse

Repugnance

Resentful

Resentment

Resignation

Resolved

Responsible

Restless

Revolted

Revulsion

Rotten

Sad

Safe

Sanguine

Sassy

Satisfied

Scandalized

Scared

Scornful

Secure

Self-Conscious

Selfish

Sensitive

Sensual

Serendipitous

Serene

Settled

Sexy

Shaken

Shame

Shamed

Sheepish

Shock

Shocked

Shy

Sick

Silly

Sincere

Skeptical

Sluggish

Small

Smoldring

Smug

Snappy

Solemn

Solicitous

Somber

Sore

Sorrow

Sorry

Sour

Sparkly

Speechless

Spirited

Spiteful

Sprightly

Startled

Stirred

Stressed

Strong

Stung

Stunned

Stupefied

Submissive

Succor

Suffering

Suffocated

Sullen

Sunny

Superior

Sure

Surprised

Suspicious

Sweet

Sympathetic

Temperamental

Tender

Tense

Terrific

Terrified

Terror

Testy

Thankful

Thirst

Thoughtful

Threatened

Thrilled

Timid

Tired

Titillation

Tormented

Torn

Torture

Touched

Tranquil

Traumatized

Trembly

Trepidation

Triumphant

Troubled

Trust

Trusting

Uncertain

Uncomfortable

Uneasy

Unhappy

Upbeat

Upset

Uptight

Vehement

Vengeful

Vexed

Vicious

Vigilant

Vindicated

Vindictive

Warm

Wary

Weak

Weary

Weird

Welcome

Woe

Wonder

Wonderful

Worn-Out

Worried

Worry

Worthless

Wrathful

Wretched

Yearning

Zeal

Zest

Isn’t it incredible how many emotions there are? Moods are incredibly complex, as they can often involve many different emotions at once and in different shades and intensities. Emotions color our lives in beautiful ways, but at their worst and most intense can also be difficult to suffer through. If this is the case, try working with a therapist who can help support you toward feeling balanced again, able to take negative moods as they come and to celebrate positive moods for the joy they bring.

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DBT, mood management, depression treatment psychologist in mclean, falls church, arlington, and vienna

Victoria Chialy Smith, PhD is a licensed clinical psychologist providing individual therapy to children, teens, and adults. Our practice provides Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), mindfulness based therapies, and other premier evidence-based treatments, and serves the Falls Church, McLean, Great Falls, Vienna, Arlington, Alexandria, and the greater Washington DC region. Call, email, or schedule an appointment with us online today. We’re happy to help!