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Low Mood

What is it?

Low mood, or depression, can cause you to lose interest and enjoyments in activities that you once loved. It affects people in very different ways, often changing how they behave or feel about themselves. Some people who experience low mood are still able to go about their daily lives, however for others who experience this to a greater extent, it can make simple daily tasks extremely difficult.

People with low mood may feel:

  • down, upset or tearful
  • restless, agitated, or irritable
  • isolated and have difficulty relating to other people
  • they are finding a lack of pleasure in things you usually enjoy
  • angry or frustrated over minor things
  • they are lacking in self-confidence or self-esteem
  • a sense of hopelessness
  • more tired

This can sometimes impact on:

  • social events and activities they usually enjoy
  • have some difficulty speaking, thinking clearly or making decisions
  • concentration and memory
  • sleeping — making it difficult to get to sleep, or sleeping too much
  • appetite — causing people to have reduced appetite and losing weight, or eating more than usual and gaining weight
  • having some physical symptoms such as aches and pains with no obvious physical cause

If you are experiencing low mood, it may impact your daily life. You may find you struggle with school work, it may affect your relationships with peers and family or stop you from doing activities you enjoy and this can become an added pressure on to you.

It might feel hard to explain how you are feeling to others, you may isolate yourself. This could worsen your low mood and encourage feelings of isolation and loneliness. There are many ways of opening up the conversation about how you are feeling, but if you aren’t ready to tell someone close to you there are people you can talk to anonymously and confidentially about how you are feeling.

Talk to someone you trust will listen about how you’re feeling. Make sure it’s in a quiet and calm environment where you feel safe and start slowly. Remember you are not alone and you will start feel better once you have the right supports in place.

Resources & Support

Video

Trigger warning: Some people may find the following video distressing.

I had a black dog, his name was depression (YouTube)

This video below describes the experience of living with depression.

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