What are mood swings - #7323

For the past few months, I’ve been feeling like my emotions are all over the place, and I can’t figure out why. One minute I’m perfectly fine, and the next, I feel irritated for no reason or on the verge of tears. It’s been happening more frequently, and now I’m starting to wonder—what are mood swings, really? Like, is there a clear reason why this happens, or is it just something random that some people deal with more than others? I’m 28, and I wouldn’t say I’m overly emotional in general, but lately, small things set me off. I can be having a normal conversation, and suddenly I feel this intense frustration, even though nothing actually happened. Then, a few hours later, I’ll feel totally fine again, almost like it never happened. I don’t know if this is stress-related or if it could be something hormonal. What are mood swings usually caused by—do they always have a trigger, or can they just happen for no reason? Another thing I’ve noticed is that my energy levels seem to be tied to my mood changes. When I’m feeling low, I feel exhausted, even if I slept well. But when I’m in a good mood, I feel completely normal. Is that part of what are mood swings, or could that mean something else is going on, like a vitamin deficiency? I haven’t had any major life changes recently, no new medications, nothing like that, so I don’t really understand why this is happening. I also started tracking my moods, and it seems like they get worse right before my period. Does that mean this is just PMS, or could it be a sign of something more serious, like a hormonal imbalance? How do I know if what are mood swings in my case is normal or if I should be worried about something like PMDD? And if this is stress-related, what actually helps? I try to exercise regularly and eat pretty well, but I don’t really know what else I should be doing. If anyone else has dealt with something like this, how did you figure out the cause? Should I get hormone levels checked, or is there something else I should look into?