Anhedonia: What Is It and How Does It Affect Your Wellbeing?

Most people have never heard of anhedonia. If you work in the medical profession, you’re probably familiar with it, though. You may also understand that it impacts a surprising number of people in the general population.

Anhedonia treatment does exist, and some people need it if they are bothered by this condition. In this article, we’ll talk about what happens if you are afflicted with anhedonia, and we’ll also go over what it can do to the people diagnosed with it.

What Exactly is Anhedonia?

Anhedonia is a condition where the person afflicted with it cannot feel pleasure. Things that usually give someone pleasure, like a mug of warm cocoa on a cold night, spending quality time with family, or going for a walk with your dog on a pleasant summer day, do not spark the same joy that most people would feel if they experienced them.

What Causes It?

There are lots of things that can cause anhedonia. One of the more common ones is depression, or major depressive disorder, as it is more commonly known in today’s medical parlance.

There are also conditions like dysthymia, disruptive mood dysregulation disorder, and substance-induced depressive disorder that can result in this diagnosis. The treatments available will sometimes depend on identifying the particular condition that’s causing it. If you seem to be unable to experience joy, then usually, seeking help from a medical professional is a smart move.

What Else Can Cause It?

We’ve mentioned some serious medical conditions that can cause anhedonia, but there are also some more mundane situations where you might feel this way. If you’re working constantly, you may not be able to experience pleasure or joy when spending time with family or friends. Cutting back on your hours at work can be the solution.

If you’ve recently suffered a tragedy, like the death of a family member or a beloved pet, you may experience it then. Usually, you will be able to feel joy again in time. You need to go through the natural grieving process first, though.

If you have a lot on your mind, like financial problems, for instance, you might experience anhedonia. If you get to a point where you’re not so worried about your monetary situation, you may be able to enjoy the activities that you once could.

How Does Anhedonia Affect Your Wellbeing?

No matter what’s causing your anhedonia, if you ever experience it, you’ll quickly realize it can be challenging to live through. Humans are built to feel enjoyment sometimes, just as they are also conditioned to experience things like stress and pain.

Life is a tapestry of all of these feelings. If you can’t experience joy, then existence can quickly start to feel bleak and meaningless.

Temporary anhedonia is common, but if you can’t experience joy and see no signs of that changing, you need to seek help from a medical professional. Living without joy can only go on for so long before you’re in danger of submitting to hopelessness.