What does it mean when your unstable?
To be unstable is to lack stability, meaning things could change without warning, like an unstable bookshelf that is likely to fall down. If you are unstable emotionally, you might be ecstatically happy one minute and horribly depressed and angry the next. The adjective unstable means the opposite of stable.
The situation is unstable and potentially dangerous. Both clay and sandstone are unstable rock formations. He was emotionally unstable. Coleridge was also a highly unstable person.
Some common synonyms of unstable are capricious, fickle, inconstant, and mercurial.
lacking stability, fixity, or firmness. disposed to temperamental, emotional, or psychological variability.
Causes of Emotional Instability
There are several factors that contribute to whether or not someone will develop emotional instability. These include genetics, mental health history (including past trauma), and exposure to certain stimuli such as drug use and abuse.
- Impulsivity.
- Mood swings.
- An overwhelming fear of abandonment.
- Extreme anxiety and irritability.
- Anger.
- Paranoia and being suspicious of other people.
- Feeling empty, hopeless and worthless.
- Suicidal thoughts.
UNSTABLE (adjective) definition and synonyms | Macmillan Dictionary.
Hence, the most unstable particle is the neutron with a half-life of only 106 minutes.
- Get Quality Sleep.
- Exercise.
- Eat Healthy.
- Practice Self-Care.
- Create Structure.
- Practice Mindfulness.
- Meditate.
- Ground Yourself.
- Step Back and Observe. ...
- Get Other People's Perspectives. ...
- Don't Play Into Their Drama. ...
- Walk Away When They Attack You. ...
- Demand Respect. ...
- Stay Calm. ...
- Don't Fall for Gaslighting. ...
- Suggest Therapy.
How do you fix a mentally unstable person?
- DO Listen with an open mind. ...
- DON'T Make comments such as “You're fine” or “Cheer up” ...
- DO Ask Questions. ...
- DON'T Say you know how they feel if you don't. ...
- DO Encourage them to seek help. ...
- DON'T Question their medical decisions. ...
- DO Help out with daily tasks.
An equilibrium is considered stable (for simplicity we will consider asymptotic stability only) if the system always returns to it after small disturbances. If the system moves away from the equilibrium after small disturbances, then the equilibrium is unstable.

The person's vital signs might be unstable (not steady) and may not be within their normal limits. They're very ill. The doctor can't predict how the patient will do.
unstable (adj.)
early 13c., "apt to move," from un- (1) "not" + stable (adj.). Similar formation in Middle High German unstabel. Meaning "liable to fall" is recorded from c. 1300; sense of "fickle" is attested from late 13c.
n. in psychology, a tendency toward lack of self-control, erratic behavior, shifting attitudes and beliefs, and rapidly changing or excessive emotions. —unstable adj.
The atmosphere is said to be absolutely unstable if the environmental lapse rate is greater than the dry adiabatic lapse rate. This means that a rising air parcel will always cool at a slower rate than the environment, even when it is unsaturated.
- Stable equilibrium.
- Unstable equilibrium.
If a system in equilibrium is disturbed slightly, then if it is stable it tends to return to or oscillate about its original equilibrium state. An unstable system tends to continue to move away from its original equilibrium state when perturbed from it.
Hence, we conclude that Mode is the most unstable average.
UNSTABLE STRUCTURE
A structure which has not sufficient number of reactions to resists the load without moving is called unstable structures.
What to say to someone who says they are unstable?
- 1) “I'm here for you.”
- 2) “You are not alone.”
- 3) “You are worthy and deserving.”
- 4) “You don't have to apologize.”
- 5) “There is treatment available to you…”
- 6) “Let me know what you need.”
Self-harming behaviour ("scarifying"), suicidal thoughts and suicides often occur in people with emotionally unstable personality disorder. The emotional life is often constantly swaying and characterized by inner emptiness.
Thankfully, anyone can learn to become more emotionally stable. The key is to identify and eliminate these unhelpful mental habits that cause so much excess emotional suffering.
Get Help for Your Friend or Family Member
You can call a crisis line or the National Suicide Prevention Line at 1-800-273-TALK (8255). If you think your friend or family member is in need of community mental health services you can find help in your area.
The movement of the book will disrupt the position of the ice cream cone when it is placed to rest on its apex on a book. This is an illustration of unstable equilibrium.