Why am I so easily irritated? Where does my irritability come from? These are some questions that may roll around your mind if you find yourself snapping at your loved ones, yelling at your dog, or experiencing road rage. Irritability is an instinctual reaction to feeling overwhelmed. There’s often a root cause for this irritability whether that be physical or emotional. Determining why you are experiencing irritability is incredibly important to be able to move past it. On today’s show we’re going to dig deep to find what that cause is and leave you with concrete strategies to put you back in control of your emotions.
Key Takeaways
1. Many times, irritability may be due to various physical issues. Make sure to check in with your doctor!
2. Take a bottom-up approach to irritability. Utilize tools to calm your mind and body down.
3. Make a mindset shift through reframing. You control your thoughts; it’s incredibly important to challenge your cognitive distortions.
Episode Moments/Quotes
[4:36] – “You are connected to your body, so what you are thinking, what you are feeling, shows up in your body” -Dr. Neely addresses physical reasons for irritability
[11:05] – Dr. Neely explains some common psychological reasons for irritability.
[14:58] – “You got this. There is nothing that is in front of you that you can’t move through. You have to recognize it, put it in check, and you have to do the work” -Dr. Neely
[16:00] – Tools to help you in the moment while dealing with irritability.
Research on the Topic
Healthline online magazine explains that irritability is a feeling of agitation that can be experienced by people of any age. Irritability is characterized by feeling easily frustrated or upset. Irritability has many causes including physical, emotional, and medicinal/substance roots. Physical conditions such as menopause, diabetes, certain respiratory disorders, low blood sugar, and sleep deprivation are just a few of many physical causes for irritability. Emotional causes for irritability include, but aren’t limited to, stress, anxiety, depression, and bipolar disorder. Medicinal/substance roots can include medication side effects, drug or alcohol use, and nicotine or caffeine withdrawal. Whatever the cause of irritability might be, it’s important to check all your bases to ensure overall health.
Want More?
Check out episode 32: Controlling Anger-Before It Controls You for more information about this topic!
Resources/ Things Mentioned During The Show:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/dropthebspodcast/
Psychology Today https://www.psychologytoday.com/us
