Are You Sad or Depressed?

Sadness or depression may exist in the same category, but they’re still very different things.

One is an emotion, a temporary state that will pass…that’s sadness.

And the other is more of an all-encompassing experience that frames the way you view the world…that’s depression.

What is Sadness?

Sadness is an emotion that arises naturally in response to loss, disappointment, or major life changes.

When it comes to sadness, there is not typically a lot for you to do to actually “fix” it.

Feel It to Heal It?

Sadness falls in the “feel it to heal it” category. By paying attention to the sadness, accepting that it’s there, your body is able to naturally move the energy and as it moves, you start to feel better.

But depression is different. 

Depression alters how you view the world (and yourself). 

Depression works differently than sadness. It’s not as simple, as “feel it to heal it.” Why? Because depression isn’t just an emotion, it’s a full body experience that impacts your emotions, your thoughts, and your actions.

It impacts the lens you view life from.

It changes how you think.

What is Depression?

Depression can show up as persistent sadness, but it can also impact your sleep, your appetite, your energy level, your desire to do things.

Deeper than that it changes how you feel about yourself. People struggling with depression tend to view themselves very negatively. They feel like they are worthless and not good enough.

Those thoughts about themselves start to impact how they show up in the world. It impacts whether they try to connect with others or try to actively work towards their goals.

For many people, depression can show up with a thought like this “well if it’s not going to work out anyway, why bother trying? 

How Depression Changes Your Thoughts

Depression tends to cause people to have certain unhelpful thinking patterns. One of the most common, is all-or-none thinking.

This type of thinking is very black-or-white. It’s very one way or the other. There is no middle ground, no gray area.

Either I believe “I am successful” or I believe “I am a failure.”   

And since it’s very hard to be perfect at everything, most of the time thoughts (and the person) get lumped into the “I must be a failure” category.

The Deeper Meaning of Believing “I’m a failure.” 

When someone says “I’m a failure,” they generally don’t mean that they failed at one particular thing.

What they typically believe underneath (consciously or subconsciously) is “I’m a failure at all times in all things.”

Even if they aren’t actively aware of that belief, that is the message they are sending to themselves when they say “I’m a failure.”

Precision of Language.

This is where word choice and word meaning become very important. If you are consistently telling yourself “I am a failure,” that impacts how you feel about yourself not just in that one area, but overall how you feel about yourself as a human.

So, here’s the rule…be accurate in what you say.

If you failed a test…say “I failed a test.” If you didn’t get a job you applied for…say “I failed at getting that job.”

Be specific.

It’s not fair to say “I am a failure” unless you have legitimately failed at everything you’ve ever tried in your entire life!

How Therapy Can Help Depression

Working with a therapist for depression, can help you identify the thoughts that make your depression worse. Being able to change those thoughts, can help you change your internal voice to be more supportive so that even if life still seems to suck externally, your internal world is at least a little more pleasant for you to reside in. If you have questions about depression treatment or would like to book a session with me, please use the Contact Me button below.