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Depression and feeling sad

Many young people feel sad or down from time to time when life seems like it's horrible and no one understands you, and it’s normal to feel like this. If you feel like the sad thoughts and feelings are stopping you from being happy, enjoying your life, or making you feel that life isn’t worth living, then it might help to talk to someone who can listen without judging you.

Feeling depressed, sad or unhappy?

Feeling depressed, sad or unhappy?

Feeling depressed, sad or unhappy?

Many young people feel sad or down from time to time. If you feel like the sad thoughts are stopping you from being happy and enjoying life, it can really help to talk to somebody. Watch this video about depression.

Transcript

Ever had one of those days where you wake up and nothing feels quite right?

That’s me, having one of those days. I was waking up everyday with thins sinking feeling.

It’s difficult to describe why I was feeling down. Everything I did was just that little bit harder.

School was terrible. All my lessons just merged into one, I couldn’t concentrate on anything. It was like I didn’t fit into the world anymore.

I felt sad and alone even when I was in a place full of people. It was like being invisible. Well…almost.

I was too ashamed to talk to my friends about the horrible thoughts in my head. Could you image the conversation? ‘How are you? Good, but sometimes I want to kill myself.’

Not likely. I knew I didn’t want to feel like this anymore. So I went onto the ChildLine website, just to see if they could help. And you’ll never guess what…There were so many people online, all talking about the feelings I was having!

I posted a message and another girl replied. Then I chatted to a ChildLine counsellor.

She helped me understand why I was feeling so down and how I could find the strength to get through it. It was such a relief.

I’m getting back on my feet now, but it takes time. ChildLine taught me that you don’t always have to put on a brave face to everyone.  Anyone can get depressed. Talking really helps.

 
 
 
 
 

Feeling sadTalking about how you are feeling

Some adults don’t realise that children and young people get just as upset and sad as they do. This can make it hard to get adults to listen and take you seriously when you are feeling down. Talking to ChildLine about how you feel can help to start dealing with difficult feelings.

What exactly is depression?
People sometimes say they are feeling depressed when they are having a bad day and you might even say that you are feeling like that yourself, but ‘depression’ is actually an illness that can affect people’s lives completely, and has to be diagnosed by a doctor.

It’s more serious than just the natural ‘down’ feeling that you may feel sometimes if you’ve had a bad day. Young people can suffer from depression just as adults do.

 Depression

Watch our video on feeling sad 

Want to contact ChildLine?


If you're not sure about what contacting ChildLine is like, watch this short film about what happens when you call us

Feeling sadHow is depression caused?
Depression can be triggered by lots of different things, such as:

If someone in your family has, or has had depression, you may be more likely to develop depression, but only in certain situations, such as those listed above.  This doesn’t mean that you definitely will develop depression so try not to worry if you do have a family member with depression.

Sometimes there is no obvious reason for feeling depressed and it doesn’t have to be caused by anything that has happened or is happening to you.

  • What can I do if I’m feeling down?

    It can seem like the hardest thing to do, but talking to someone about how you feel, whether that is a friend, relative, parent, carer or trusted person means that you are starting to deal with your feelings. If you keep your feelings to yourself, that can make the sad feelings turn into something worse. 

    If you don’t have anyone you feel that you can talk to, you can contact ChildLine at any time.

  • How can feeling sad or down affect you?

    People who are feeling sad or down let their feelings out in different ways. Someone who is suffering from depression might be hurting themselves in some way as a way of coping. These are some of the things someone may do if they are feeling sad, down, or suffering from depression:

    • Self harm - People self-harm in different ways such as cutting themselves, taking drugs, drinking alcohol in large quantities or sniffing gas/solvents, or hurting themselves in other ways. Read more about damaging yourself and how to get help.  
    • Eating problems – Many young people experience difficulties with eating food at some time in their lives. Starving yourself, overeating, vomiting or using laxatives to help you lose weight after overeating are all potentially dangerous ways of dealing with difficult feelings.
    • Suicide – Some people feel so bad about themselves and their life that they think that the only way out is to kill themselves.  If you are thinking about ending your life or worried about one of your friends, please call us or talk to someone you trust about it. Read more about suicide.

  • What are the signs of depression?

    Many signs or symptoms of depression are just the same as when you feel down or sad.  If they continue for a long time, or get worse, the it might be time to talk to someone and tell them how you feel.  Things that may mean you have depression are:

    • a sad or anxious state most of the time
    • not enjoying things that you used to enjoy
    • tiredness or low energy, even when you have rested
    • not eating much or overeating
    • problems sleeping
    • feelings of worthlessness
    • feelings of guilt
    • mood swings
    • aches or pains that have no obvious cause.
    • negative thoughts and feelings
    • not wanting to see people or go out.

    If you have some or all of these symptoms, you should speak to someone.  You can always talk to ChildLine and we can help you find support if you are feeling like this.

  • What do I do if I think I’m depressed?

    If you think that you are depressed you should talk to your doctor as soon as possible.  If you are scared about going on your own, you could ask a friend or your parent/carer to go with you.  Your doctor will be able to test to see if you have depression and will help you decide about treatment.

    Whether you feel sad, are dealing with depression or are damaging yourself in some way, ChildLine is always here for you to talk to and can help find ways of coping.  Please call us or talk to us online . We can help you and are here to listen and can put you in touch with other organisations in your area who can help to support you through difficult times.

  • Where can I find out more about depression?

    Samaritans 08457 909090   www.samaritans.org
    Young Minds 0207 3368445 www.youngminds.org.uk
    Beat (eating problems) 0845 634 7650  www.b-eat.co.uk
    NHS Direct  0845 4647  www.nhsdirect.nhs.uk

Let it out

Feeling sad?

It’s normal to feel sad sometimes, but if your sad thoughts and feelings are stopping you from being happy, it can help to talk about it. You can visit the message boards and see what other young people are talking about.

Message boards

Loneliness and isolation


Someone who feels lonely or isolated may not actually physically be alone or cut off – they might be surrounded by other people and still feel like they are on their own. Find out more about loneliness and isolation.

Have you seen our Facebook advert?

Take your mind off things for a while


Tie your worry to a balloon and watch it float away.

How did this help?

How did this information about depression and feeling sad help you?

 
 
 
 
 
Depression and feeling sad 

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