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Mood Disorders

When it comes to behavioral health, we stand on the edge of a frontier—if we can decode the mysteries of the brain, we can solve one of the most pressing and prevalent health challenges of our time.

Nearly one in five adults in the United States will experience a mood disorder, such as depression or bipolar disorder. Many more will survive a traumatic event, which may worsen an existing mood disorder or cause a new one to develop.

Mood Disorders - Man giving presentation

From the heights of mania to the depths of depression to radical fluctuations between, these illnesses can exact a tremendous toll on a person’s well-being as well as their loved ones. Further complicating these challenges and raising new ones, stress and social isolation caused by COVID-19 may leave a lasting impact on the behavioral health of our communities.

The world-renowned brain and behavioral health experts at UTHealth have the ingenuity and passion to break down barriers and provide a continuum of care to help individuals and their families overcome mood disorders.

While rates of mood disorders and suicide are increasing across the nation, so is our collective understanding of the brain and our expertise in treating and preventing behavioral illnesses. Now, new therapies, quicker diagnoses, and better access to care are all within sight and nearly within reach.

Your support of Many Faces. One Mission. can help us refine the standard of care for mood disorders in our communities and realize life-changing breakthroughs to deliver better treatments to individuals in need.

  • "Across UTHealth, we have the resources and expertise to maximize efforts to provide relief to Houstonians suffering from mood disorders. Leveraging the latest research and education surrounding mental health, we can provide innovative and comprehensive care and help set the standard for how these disorders—and all mental illnesses—should be treated."

    Jair C. Soares, MD, PhD

    Pat R. Rutherford, Jr. Chair in Psychiatry

    Professor and Chair, Faillace Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences

    Executive Director, UTHealth Harris County Psychiatric Center

    McGovern Medical School at UTHealth

  • UTHealth Center of Excellence on Mood Disorders

    At UTHealth Center of Excellence on Mood Disorders, our brain and behavioral health experts are studying the causes of these disorders and developing innovative treatments, ranging from therapies that stimulate certain regions of the brain to new medications. Discovery scientists at the center partner with clinicians at the Mood Disorders Clinic at the UT Physicians Psychiatry Outpatient Clinic to bring advances in the lab directly to patients.

  • UTHealth Trauma and Resilience Center

    Through the UTHealth Trauma and Resilience Center, we are healing the psychological damage caused by trauma and mitigating its impact on mood disorders. Experts at the center provide comprehensive treatment to help veterans, first responders, and survivors of elder abuse, domestic violence, disasters, and severe accidents overcome traumatic life experiences.

  • Research 

    Our experts are leading groundbreaking research to understand how the brain changes throughout different phases of bipolar disorder and investigate new treatments. Through the Greater Houston Area Bipolar Registry, we are collecting clinical data on children with bipolar disorder and following their progress into young adulthood to pinpoint ways to make earlier diagnoses and interventions.

    We are also tapping into research about biological mechanisms to develop better therapies for treatment-resistant depression, including deep brain stimulation to target the part of the brain responsible for mood regulation; transcranial magnetic stimulation, a non-invasive outpatient procedure that directs magnetic energy toward specific areas of the brain; and using drugs like ketamine that could provide faster antidepressant effects.