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How often do you end up screaming profanities into the air? Screaming and hissy fits – do they seem familiar to you? Finding the reasons for being cranky can definitely solve more than half the problem in the first place.
There could very well be a plethora of reasons behind the condition, which you know and some that you are unaware of. Whatever the reason behind the condition be, it is quite important to ensure that you tend to get rid of the same.
By the end of this article, you will have a fair share of knowledge about the reasons for crankiness and how you can overcome the same.
Why Am I So Cranky?
Being cranky occasionally is okay because we are all stressed from time to time but that doesn’t technically mean that being irritated and frustrated all the time is depicting something good at all.
There could very well be a number of reasons behind the condition and it is important to ensure that you pay close attention to the reasons for feeling cranky before it develops into something unmanageable.
1. Lack of Quality Sleep
Not getting enough sleep throughout the night is often one of the most common reasons behind the problem of why you are always cranky throughout the day.
According to the National Sleep Foundation, it is important for an adult to get at least 7-9 hours of sleep on an average to help ensure the proper functioning of the body.
The lack of quality of sleep through the night often results in fatigue which encounters the irritability in your behaviour. Getting proper sleep (R) does have quite a heavy impact on one’s mood.
2. Something’s Bugging your Subconsciously
Often times, we know there’s something wrong with us but we fail to exactly pinpoint the cause behind the same.
Something in the back of our mind keeps constantly bugging us, making it harder for us to understand why we are acting out so irritated and frustrated. Additionally, there are also people who are often not even aware of what they are feeling and fail to express the same correctly, thus further making a nuisance out of the situation.
But, the moment they realize the reason that’s bugging them, the pent up frustration comes out as stress and frustration all together.
Experts suggest “talking till it gets better” as the perfect solution for such conditions. Doing this for a few times can actually help a lot in getting over the problem and finding better ways to overcome it.
3. You are Hungry (or Hangry)
Hunger can often be one of the reasons for being cranky. Pair it up with the anger boiling inside because of the lack of food and you are in for a ride.
The longer you are hungry and go without food, the crankier you are going to be. The best way to overcome the condition is by prioritizing food and not the accessory works.
When you are skipping through meals to get work done, there is a sudden drop in the levels of blood glucose in the body. Not many people will realize this but the condition does trigger the brain to release the hormones like adrenaline and cortisol.
These hormones, in turn, boost the stress levels, and can reflect signs of agitation, poor concentration and crankiness altogether.
4. Diet Coke
How many of you are shocked with this mention? Quite a lot, right? Well, the consumption of diet coke can often seem like a “good option” but it’s not.
In a conducted study (R), it was found that the participants who drank 4 cans of diet coke on a daily basis were at 30% more risks of being depressed than the ones who didn’t.
While there has been no conclusive approach to what could be the possible reason behind the same, the researchers believe that the presence of aspartame in the diet cokes is responsible for causing an imbalance in the neurotransmitter functioning in the brain, thus causing mood swings.
The same could very well be one of the possible reasons for feeling cranky on more occasions than one.
5. Dementia or Forgetfulness
Dementia or even having the habit of forgetfulness could be an answer to “Why am I so cranky?”
Forgetting the smallest of things, be it conversations or even the placement of things around in the house could very well be a reason behind your cranky behaviour. The lack of recollection of memory can make one agitated and cause a feeling of irritation all the more.
When you have your needs not satisfied because of the lack of memory of certain things, the same can end up being a problem for your behaviour.
6. Wrong Sleep Schedule
As mentioned before, getting proper sleep throughout the night is important. If you are not getting the same, chances are that the same reflects on your behaviour.
Often times, people who are night owls but have an early morning work schedule tend to be cranky all throughout the day, mainly because they have their sleep interrupted through the morning.
Sleep schedule is important to maintain if one wants to get a proper day of productivity achieved. If you have an early morning, it is important that you train your mind to sleep early instead of 3 in the morning.
7. Caffeine
Caffeine is often one of the most important factors that keep you going through the day but the same could also be one of the reasons for being cranky.
But, often times, going overboard with the coffee or caffeine in general, can have negative impacts on one’s mood. It makes you become dependent on the coffee to get you through the days.
Not just that, even the lack of caffeine throughout the day can end up making you feel cranky throughout the day, which is yet another issue all the more.
It is not advisable to give up caffeine as a whole because the same can cause issues and withdrawals but it is always best suggested to be considerate of the amount of caffeine you are consuming.
8. Lack of Consumption of Healthy Fats
Fats are not all bad, as many would often believe it to be. It is quite a very mythical belief. Fats do make up for some of the most important structures in our body, hence insinuating why it is so important for the body on the whole.
The omega-3 fatty acids which has been found to have quite a lot of impacts on the overall functioning of the body has also been found to have a lot of important influence on our moods too. Studies (R) (R) (R) have found the impacts of the omega-3 fatty acids in healing the condition associated with anxiety, depression and even bipolar disorder.
The lack of healthy fats in the body like that of omega-3 fatty acids have been found to have labored release of neurotransmitters like GABA (R) which is responsible for keeping us calm and content. Your aversion to fatty foods could very well explain why you are always cranky.
9. Chronic Pain
Pain itself does have the possibility of making you cranky and irritable. But, the persistence of chronic pain in the body has been asserted as one of the primary reasons for crankiness.
The discomfort that the condition of chronic pain (R) (R) brings in is often one of the reasons for feeling cranky. While many people don’t want to acknowledge the pain they are in, the same is relayed via the irritability.
The sharp shooting pain does have the possibility to end up making the person lose their temper and act on the same because of the pain and nothing as such all the more.
10. Dehydration
Much like your hunger, even dehydration has the capability of ending up being one of the reasons for being cranky.
Dehydration has been found to have negative impacts on the blood flow in the body, which, in turn, ends up causing obstruction to the optimal transport of oxygen to the brain. This is one of the primary conditions that can not just affect one’s mood but the overall well being as well.
Even conducted studies have found that dehydration does end up contributing to memory loss as well as affect the problem solving skills all the more.
The lack of optimal levels of water in the body makes the cells in the body to shrivel, thus causing the body to be fatigued, which in turn, often contributes to the crankiness.
11. Premenstrual Dysphoria Disorder
Experiencing signs and symptoms associated with mood swings and temperament a few days before you is about to get your period is common and very widely seen and experienced by several women as well.
But, the problem arises when you are experiencing these symptoms even weeks after the periods are done with. Such a condition is explained as premenstrual dysphoria disorder (R).
The main reason why this happens, as experts suggest, is because of the levels of hormone variation in the bloodstream. While the symptoms can last for some time in some women, for others, the same can definitely extend on to more than what it should be.
This syndrome could very well be one of the reasons for always feeling cranky that you can’t even pinpoint the reason out to be.
12. You are Sensitive
No, we are not talking about your skin sensitivity but the one relating to your behaviour.
You’ll be surprised to know and understand for a fact that one of the most common reasons why you are always cranky is because of the fact that you are too sensitive. People like these are often very easily overwhelmed, which often bursts out in the form of crankiness and irritation.
It is best suggested to ensure you keep your pace in check and find through ways to fight back through the feelings effectively.
How To Overcome Being Cranky All The Time?
You are the owner of your feelings. It goes without saying that if you are struggling through the feelings of irritability; it is completely up to you on how you handle the situation effectively.
Instead of feeling on the edge all this time, you can easily find a solution on how to manage the condition effectively.
1. Find the source
In order for you to fight back and overcome the irritability, it is important to ensure that you know the cause behind the same. If you don’t do so, chances are that you won’t be able to fight through the problems all the more.
Once you know what’s causing it, address it.
2. Talk to Someone
Confiding in someone can be one of the best ways to overcome the condition of being irritable and cranky. You wouldn’t technically realize this but one of the best ways to fight through the problem is by confessing the problems to someone else.
This helps in getting some of the burden off of the shoulders and thus helps in finding a constructive way to fight through the condition even more so.
3. Reduce the caffeine
Instead of basing out your life on caffeine, it is important that you keep a close eye on the amount of caffeine that you are consuming on a daily basis.
Drinking too much caffeine does have the capability of making you irritable and can even contribute to lack of sleep at night which further causes issues with the mood swings and crankiness.
4. Digital Detox
We are often so blocked out with the smartphone that we fail to recognize the importance of a life outside.
The social media platforms don’t technically help with the condition in any form. So, if you have been trying to find the reasons for being cranky and overcome the same, the best way to do so is by going on a digital detox.
Get rid of these platforms for a week and you will notice an amazing difference at the end of the road.
5. Get Some Alone Time
We live in such a fast paced and hectic scheduled life that it does become a lot harder to maintain some time just for yourself.
The lack of getting me time can often be a contributing factor to the crankiness and the irritability. The best way to overcome that is by ensuring that you get some alone time to explore yourself.
You can just sit idle or read a book or do anything that makes you feel good and content from within.
The reasons for being cranky could very well be a number of things and factors. If you have been struggling with the condition of being irritable all the time, chances are that you could be suffering from one of these conditions. Work on yourself to overcome them for good.
