Dysphoria is a state of unmotivated anger and irritability, sometimes aggressiveness, directed at everyone around them without exception. Typical of organic disorders and epilepsy.

Who are more: men or women?

The state of causeless sadness, irritability and even aggression after successful sexual intercourse is called postcoital dysphoria. As Robert Schweitzer, a scientist from the Queensled Institute of Technology, found out, this type of dysphoria most often affects women. Schweitezer surveyed 200 female representatives, and 33% of them admitted that they experienced a feeling of melancholy immediately after intimacy at least once in their lives. Moreover, such experiences were not at all associated with a negative attitude towards the partner, rather, on the contrary. For a long time, it was believed that postcoital dysphoria only affected women. However, in 2018, employees of an Australian university refuted this myth.

The results of a study by experts from Australia were published in the British edition of the Independent. Experts conducted an online survey of 1,200 men living in Germany, Australia, New Zealand, Russia and England and having a regular sexual partner. When scientists analyzed the data, the survey results amazed them. It turned out that there were significantly more males who experienced postcoital dysphoria than females: 41% versus 33%. Moreover, 20% of the men surveyed said that they felt sad after sex once in the last 4 months, and 4% of the volunteers claimed that they suffered from such dysphoria regularly.

Dysphoria is the opposite of euphoria

All people at certain points in their lives suffer from bad mood and loss of energy. And everyone is used to dealing with this in their own way. Some people find it helpful to communicate with friends, others decide to go on vacation. But sometimes a bad mood is not just a state of sadness or fatigue, but a sign of a serious psychological disorder.

Dysphoria is the opposite of euphoria. If euphoria is characterized as a state of suddenly surging joy, happiness, and a serene mood, then dysphoria is a disorder of the emotional sphere with a predominance of low mood, irritation, leading to manifestations of aggression and anger.

Causes and symptoms of pathology

There are several classifications of dysphoric disorder. One of them is based on the intensity of symptoms (mild and severe forms), while the other is based on the causes of origin (gender, premenstrual, postcoital).

These forms of the disorder can be observed against the background of any physical or mental illness. For example, dysphoria often occurs with epilepsy, drug addiction, schizophrenia, neuroses, senile dementia, etc.

Classifications by symptom intensity:

1. Mild form of dysphoria. This form of disorder is often mistaken for a character trait of the patient. This type manifests itself as irritability, grumpiness, and touchiness. Most often observed in patients with viral and infectious diseases, as well as in people undergoing drug treatment.

2. Severe form of dysphoria. Characterized by a feeling of despair and hopelessness, along with outbursts of malice and anger. Often associated with the use of surfactants - psychoactive substances (alcohol, drugs).

Classification of dysphoria based on causes:

1. Postcoital dysphoria. It appears immediately after sexual intercourse and lasts from a couple of minutes to several hours. It occurs more often in men, since they are most actively involved in the process and are more tired. Also, immediately after intercourse, their hormonal levels change dramatically, which leads to symptoms of dysphoria. In women, this type of disorder is usually associated with dissatisfaction with the partner or the quality of sexual intercourse.

2. Gender dysphoria. Manifests itself in a disorder of gender self-identification. Such a person feels that his biological sex does not correspond to his psychological one. For example, a man feels like a woman, and because of this he dresses accordingly. This phenomenon is called transvestism. Dissonance (inconsistency) in this matter leads to painful experiences for the patient, and social disapproval of this phenomenon leads to aggravation of symptoms.

3. Premenstrual dysphoria: occurs in women due to PMS (premenstrual syndrome). A temporary phenomenon characterized by an increase in irritability, fatigue and feelings of melancholy.

Treatment of dysphoria

The type of treatment will depend on the cause of the disorder, its severity and form. If a patient has a mild form of dysphoria due to a cold, premenstrual syndrome, or taking steroids, then relaxation methods, medications that relieve anxiety and tension, and exercise should be used.

For more severe forms of dysphoria, psychotherapy and medication with antidepressants and antipsychotics (depending on the cause) are usually prescribed.

For gender dysphoria, treatment is first prescribed by a psychiatrist. A psychiatric examination is carried out, as a result of which treatment can be symptomatic, hormonal or even surgical (sex reassignment). In any case, psychotherapy sessions are prescribed.

Prevention

First of all, it is necessary to prevent those diseases that cause dysphoria. If these are colds, then you should strengthen your immune system. If this is dysphoria due to neurosis, you need to protect yourself from stress and do your favorite things more often.

If you know that you periodically experience a similar condition, then you should prepare yourself. For example, dysphoric disorder may appear due to unfavorable weather conditions (high temperature, excess humidity). In this case, you need to minimize the impact of these conditions on the body (buy a fan, ventilate the room).

For premenstrual dysphoria, you need to take painkillers (if pain is observed), take vitamins, and try to be in a comfortable environment for you. If necessary, hormonal medications are prescribed.

It is important to find the cause of this condition, and not try to treat only the symptoms. If you have not found a clear cause, such as a physical illness, consult a psychologist. He will be able to identify psychological problems or help understand life circumstances that may also be the cause of the disorder.

Why is this happening?

Kruger and other authors of the scientific work “Specificities of the neuroendocrine response to orgasm during sexual arousal in men” are confident that it’s all about the “pleasure hormone” dopamine, a neurotransmitter that takes part in the transmission of information between nerve cells. After achieving orgasm, the level of dopamine in the body drops sharply: it is “overshadowed” by prolactin, to which we owe a feeling of satisfaction. However, the sensations associated with a decrease in dopamine are not very pleasant: they can be compared to the sensations experienced by a drug addict after stopping taking drugs. However, if dopamine remained at the same level even after sexual contact, then men (as well as women) would never stop.

Interestingly, some experts in the field argue that postcoital dysphoria is a real pathology. For example, the authors of the book “Sexology” Alexander and Alexey Stolyarov write that this syndrome may be associated with severe trauma or brain diseases suffered in childhood. According to the Stolyarovs, most often in such cases the hypothalamus is involved (this is where dopamine is produced). And the chief sex therapist of the Soviet Union, G. S. Vasilchenko, noted that previously this phenomenon was even designated as “one-day neurasthenia.”

Dysphoria

I

Dysphoria (dysphoria, Greek dysphoreō hard to bear, to be irritated)

a mood disorder with a predominance of melancholy-angry, gloomy-dissatisfied, combined with irritability, aggressiveness, and often fear. Occurs more often in epilepsy, schizophrenia, various organic diseases of the central nervous system, and psychopathy.

With mild D., pickiness, quarrelsomeness, grumpiness, touchiness, and, in some cases, irony and causticism are noted, which can apply only to certain individuals, events or concern everyone. Usually mild D. is mistaken for a characterological feature inherent in the individual. Severe D. is manifested by melancholy and anger. A melancholy mood can be combined with anxiety, despair, hopelessness, fear: anger, often tense, can alternate with rage. D., especially pronounced, is accompanied by movement disorders (mainly restlessness, which in some cases reaches the degree of motor excitement), less often a state of lethargy up to substupor. It can be complicated by such psychopathological disorders as delusions of various contents, altered consciousness (usually twilight), and confusion. D., which occurs in persons with the consequences of organic brain damage (for example, after suffering traumatic brain injuries) is constantly accompanied by hyperesthesia (up to hyperpathia), headaches, dizziness, etc., in some cases, senestopathies (Senestopatii). With D., which occurs in epilepsy and schizophrenia, impulsive desires (vagrancy, alcoholic or sexual excesses, etc.) are possible. Dysphoria can appear spontaneously or under the influence of external, usually minor reasons (for example, ordinary negative emotional influences), and there is a discrepancy between the depth of D. and the reason that caused it. The onset of D. is often sudden. Duration - several hours or days, less often weeks; in the latter case, disorders characteristic of the depressive syndrome are observed - weight loss, vegetative disorders, etc. A short-term D. ends critically, a prolonged one - often gradually. If D. was accompanied by symptoms of psychosis, especially twilight stupefaction, then it is followed by complete or partial amnesia. D., which does not reach the severity of psychosis, usually indicates a sluggish course of the underlying disease, for example, schizophrenia. In epilepsy, the reduction or disappearance of grand mal seizures and other paroxysms is often accompanied by an increase in dysphoria. In D.'s state, illegal acts and suicides are easily committed.

Treatment is aimed at the underlying disease. Lungs D. are stopped with neuleptil. In case of severe D., neuroleptic drugs are added to neuleptil. Patients with severe D. should be placed in a psychiatric hospital.

II

Dysphoria (Greek: irritation, annoyance)

a mood disorder with a predominance of melancholy-angry, gloomy-dissatisfied, combined with irritability, aggressiveness, and often fear.

Epileptic dysphoria (d. epileptica) - D. in a patient with epilepsy, occurring suddenly, characterized by a tendency to impulsive actions, the development of delirium or twilight stupefaction; may precede an epileptic seizure, follow it, or be its equivalent.

Source: Medical Encyclopedia on Gufo.me

Meanings in other dictionaries

1. DYSPHORIA - DISPHORIA (from the Greek dysphoreo - I can’t stand it well) - English. dysphoria; German Dysphorie. Angry, melancholy, depressed mood, accompanied by extreme irritability, a tendency to aggression, with certain mental illnesses. see EUPHORIA. Sociological Dictionary
2. dysphoria - dysphoria g. A mental state characterized by an angry-sad mood, irritability and aggressiveness. Explanatory Dictionary by Efremova
3. DYSPHORIA - DYSPHORIA (from the Greek dysphoreo - hard to bear, irritated) - mental disorder - angry, melancholy, depressed mood with extreme irritability, a tendency to aggression in some mental illnesses. Large encyclopedic dictionary
4. dysphoria - spell. dysphoria, -and Lopatin's Spelling Dictionary
5. Dysphoria - (Greek dysphoria - irritation, annoyance). Mood disorder. A gloomy, gloomy, angry-irritable mood prevails. The emotional state of the patient is often characterized by substantive uncertainty. Explanatory dictionary of psychiatric terms
6. Dysphoria - (from the Greek dysphoréo - hard to bear, irritated) a mood disorder characterized by a tense, angry-sad affect with severe irritability, leading to outbursts of anger with aggressiveness. Observed in epilepsy (See Great Soviet Encyclopedia
7. dysphoria - DISPHORIA -i; and. [Greek disphoreō] Honey. A person’s mood characterized by irritability, anger, gloominess, and a tendency toward aggressiveness. Kuznetsov's Explanatory Dictionary
8. dysphoria - noun, number of synonyms: 2 syndrome 12 anxiety 53 Dictionary of synonyms of the Russian language

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