The Greek word Anhedonia implies, literally, “without joy.” It is characterized by an inability to sense pleasure or satisfaction and is a symptom of depression. It is also linked to a number of other mental health issues.
What is Anhedonia?
Anhedonia varies from apathy in that, whereas apathy refers to a general lack of motivation or energy investment, anhedonia refers to a lack of a specific feeling: pleasure. It can, however, be interpreted as indifference. It is rare for someone to have both apathy and anhedonia at the same time.
When a person suffers from long-term anhedonia, they may have relationship issues, especially if they no longer enjoy the emotional or physical connection. Anhedonia can also make it more difficult to build connections; for example, a person with social Anhedonia who dislikes spending time with others may have a more difficult time forming social attachments. Anhedonia has been associated with a variety of mental health issues, including schizophrenia, PTSD, bipolar disorder, anxiety, and some types of dementia.
Anhedonia Causes
In certain circumstances, lifestyle decisions might impact the existence of anhedonia. Procrastination and motivation issues can lead to greater anhedonia, although these concerns may also have their origins in the brain.
Depression
Anhedonia is frequently related to depression, and it is a major symptom for many depressed people. Anhedonia is a self-perpetuating condition. For example, a voracious reader may discover that they no longer like reading. They may get depressed as a result of their inability to participate in previously loved activities.
While there are several ideas concerning the origins of sadness, Anhedonia is linked to a malfunction in the brain’s reward system. Dopamine, a neurotransmitter that contributes to sensations of reward or pleasure, may not be present at enough levels in patients suffering from this depressive symptom.
Bipolar disorder
Anhedonia in bipolar depression may be induced by dysregulation of the reward processing systems. During a depressive episode, for example, a person who is Anhedonic may find it difficult to remember the benefits of a certain activity, making that activity they formerly enjoyed less pleasant.
Schizophrenia
Anhedonia, a well-known diagnostic criterion for schizophrenia, can be difficult to treat in those who have the illness. Anhedonia can impact up to 80% of schizophrenia patients. It is classified as a negative symptom, indicating the lack of something that most healthy individuals have (in this case, pleasure). Anhedonia, according to some research, is more difficult to treat since it is a negative indication of schizophrenia.
Posttraumatic stress (PTSD)
Individuals suffering from PTSD do not rare to have anhedonia. When anhedonia manifests as a PTSD symptom, it typically has an impact on how a person perceives relationships, sex, and feelings. It may also contribute to the emotional numbness that arises as a coping mechanism after trauma. According to one study, those who suffer from anhedonia as a result of PTSD may react less positively to stimuli that would have previously made them feel good.
Anxiety
Anxiety and anhedonia clients are more likely to develop depression. Anhedonia is commonly shown as a loss of enjoyment in activities that cause concern in anxious settings. According to one study, anxiety can lead to depression through anhedonia, which occurs when individuals become insensitive to anxiety-inducing behaviors.
The understanding exact source of your anhedonia may be the first step toward healing. It may be disheartening to lose pleasure in something that formerly brought you joy, but anhedonia does not have to be permanent. Anhedonia can be effectively managed with the help of a qualified mental health professional.
What are the Symptoms of Anhedonia?
In general, there are two kinds of anhedonia symptoms: physical symptoms (“physical anhedonia”) and social symptoms (“social anhedonia”). Keep in mind that the intensity of anhedonia varies. You may find enjoyment in certain elements of your everyday life but not in others. You may also experience numbness or a loss of sensation.
Physical symptoms of anhedonia may include:
• Inability to derive positive emotion from physical sensations
• Food may not taste as good as it once did; it may taste bland
• Physical touch, such as hugging or hand-holding, may no longer bring comfort
• Sex may not feel pleasurable (sexual anhedonia)
Social symptoms of anhedonia, when you no longer take pleasure from your relationships, may include:
• Lack of interest in forming new relationships
• Withdrawal from previous relationships
• Not wanting to socialize, increased stress about social situations
• Not wanting to be intimate — emotionally or sexually
• Inability to feel empathy or compassion toward yourself or others
• General negative feelings about others and yourself
• Reduced motivation to pursue relationships, make social plans or engage with others
• Social anxiety
How is Anhedonia diagnosed?
Anhedonia can be diagnosed in a variety of methods, including self-report following the completion of a clinician-administered questionnaire, answering questions on a scale, or diagnosis by a mental health professional following a comprehensive interview. The expert would most likely inquire about the individual’s symptoms, prior drug usage, and general mood. Other medical reasons for anhedonia, such as substance abuse, vitamin deficiencies (e.g., Vitamin D), or thyroid gland abnormalities (e.g., hypothyroidism), must be investigated since these may aggravate depressive symptoms. A physical examination as well as a blood test to check vitamin and thyroid hormone levels may be performed by the mental health expert.
What are the most important facts to know about anhedonia?
Anhedonia is a symptom of depression and drug abuse disorders that refers to the inability to feel pleasure. It might be due to a decrease in the activity of the ventral striatum, a brain region involved in reward and motivation. Chemicals that govern the brain, such as dopamine and GABA, may be dysregulated in Anhedonia patients. Diagnosis is based on a conversation with a mental health professional and the completion of a scale that rates one’s interest in daily activities. If a person is diagnosed with Anhedonia, the goal is to engage in more dopamine-boosting activities, such as socializing and exercising. If Anhedonia is a sign of a larger underlying health issue, treating the sickness can help alleviate anhedonia symptoms. Anhedonia does not have to be permanent, and it is treatable by a mental health professional.
How is Anhedonia treated?
There are currently no Anhedonia-specific therapies. However, changing one’s lifestyle and addressing the underlying problems may be beneficial. Strength training and cardiovascular exercises (such as running or jogging) produce adrenaline and dopamine, which can give brief relief as well as be a key element of long-term therapy. This is especially true for persons suffering from drug abuse and PAWS. A primary care physician can assist a patient by excluding a physical cause of their symptoms. If no underlying medical difficulties exist, the primary care physician may recommend that the client consults with a psychiatrist, psychologist, or another mental health expert. Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), a type of talk therapy, is frequently used by mental health practitioners to treat anhedonia. CBT assists people in being aware of and changing their negative thinking, as well as responding more effectively to stressful events.
If additional health disorders, such as Parkinson’s disease or schizophrenia, are suspected, the mental health professional may prescribe dopamine agonists (e.g., pramipexole, ropinirole, and rotigotine) and antipsychotic drugs (e.g., risperidone, quetiapine, and olanzapine). If anhedonia is a sign of depression, a doctor may give drugs such as selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRI) (e.g., citalopram, escitalopram, and fluoxetine). However, studies have shown that persons with depression and anhedonia are more resistant to antidepressant medication therapy than people with depression who do not have anhedonia. While SSRIs are still often used to treat depression, doctors are exploring other anti-anhedonic medicines, such as ketamine, a powerful painkiller, and anesthetic that can overcome treatment resistance. Psychedelic microdosing, or consuming very tiny, non-hallucinogenic doses of psychedelic chemicals such as psilocybin or lysergic acid diethylamide, has also been effectively used.
Electroconvulsive therapy is another therapeutic option for severe depression (ECT). A certified mental health specialist inserts electrodes on the surface of the scalp and sends electric currents into the brain while the person is sedated. This induces convulsions, which can help with treatment-resistant depression. Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation and Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing, two emerging depression treatments, may potentially help with anhedonia therapy.
Seek Cognitive Behavioural Therapy to modify your thoughts, feelings and behaviour. Download the app now.
Can anhedonia go away?
One of the issues with anhedonia is that you may first be unaware that what you are experiencing in your everyday life is normal and treatable. You may feel that there is something wrong with you or that you did something wrong to cause the onset of these symptoms. You may be afraid that you will never feel normal again, or that you do not deserve to; anhedonia patients frequently experience self-blame and shame. You should be aware that you did nothing wrong. Anhedonia is something that many individuals who have a mental health or physical issue feel – it is not your fault, and you did not cause it. There are excellent therapies available, and you will be OK. Consider all the delights and joys that await you once you feel like yourself again.