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Do you have to have a reason to feel depressed?

45 Answers
Last Updated: 02/07/2022 at 9:07am
1 Tip to Feel Better
United States
Moderated by

Alex DS Ellis, MA, LMFT

Marriage & Family Therapist

Feeling depressed or anxious can be so overwhelming. I want to help you feel better and be able to enjoy life. You are not alone and you deserve emotional support.

Top Rated Answers
LovelyFlower94
August 18th, 2015 6:54pm
No! This is one of the many reasons why many people don't speak out about their depression, they sometimes feel that they do not have a 'valid' reason to be depressed because from the outside their life seems perfect. However, depression can affect anyone of any background and any age.
Anonymous
February 22nd, 2015 12:00am
No, not at all. In fact, it's way more common to NOT have a reason. Depression can come at any time, to anyone, for any reason, including no reason at all.
LondonGirl22
April 10th, 2015 12:10pm
No not always. It's clinically considered to be a chemical imbalance in your body - so in a way it's your body's way of telling you that something's not quite right.
Anonymous - Expert in Depression
August 4th, 2015 1:23am
There is always a reason - but not the kind that you think. It may be chemical/hormonal change, events that have happened to you, a result of other disorders, a change in medication, a change in mindset, low self-esteem, anxiety, numbness, emptiness, confusion of thought or emotion, or simply bottled up emotions that are now finally being released.
RizanarB
March 21st, 2016 1:57am
No. Depression is an mental illness that is very hard to control and doesn't really have an cure. Being sad is very different than being depressed. You don't have to have an reason to suddenly or slowly feel depressed.
Anonymous
August 18th, 2015 2:09pm
No. You can depressed but you don't need a valid reason because depression is something uncontrolable and can just randomly spike so you don't need a reason for the way you feel.
DancingAlong
December 7th, 2015 6:05pm
Nope. Depression is something that doesn't make sense. We can have the "best lives ever" and still experience period of depression. Depression has no boundaries about who it affects.
CaptainBettyTheTerrible
April 1st, 2015 9:44pm
Depression is often (though not always) triggered by external events - either immediately after they've happened or by remembering and dwelling on them.
Anonymous
January 26th, 2016 6:46am
Not at all! Depression is a mental disease- you can have it your whole life or have it triggered by something. You can't choose whether you have it or not, and you can't choose if there will be something specific involved with it
NadiaWarm
June 30th, 2015 2:32pm
Not really sometimes it is caused by emotionally being drained from working too hard or just sitting and doing nothing
Ava1122
September 4th, 2017 4:26am
Not necessarily. There can be a variety of reasons that we can feel depressed. Sometimes it could be hormone imbalances, something that happens a lot when we're teenagers. Sometimes its a reaction to something significant that has happened in our lives, and sometimes, there isn't necessarily a particular reason that we feel the way we do. The important thing to do when you sense that you aren't yourself, is to get help as soon as you can. It only makes it so much harder when we try to battle depression by ourselves, even if we don't want anyone to know, or the extra company. As people, we were made to be in community with each other, to support one another.
contentedForest51
May 22nd, 2015 1:25pm
we all have one , even if it was small , but still it counts. as soon as we know what caused it we will be able to handle it.
BatWings89
November 30th, 2015 8:39pm
No, you do not. While Depression can be a symptom of physical illnesses (thyroid problems, Vitamin D deficiency etc.) or be a reaction to an event or a drug, it can be "idiopathic" as doctors would say, which means without obvious cause. And even if there was a cause there is no need to know the cause for the feelings to be valid.
Anonymous
August 10th, 2015 4:36pm
No - there doesn't have to be a reason. Depression can affect us all and there isn't always a clear reason why. Fortunately there is a lot that can be done to overcome depression! Start by talking to someone about it, getting regular exercise and having some productive hobbies such as art or an instrument. Try to accept positivity into your life.
Anonymous
March 14th, 2016 11:45pm
No, you don't need a reason for any emotion or feeling, but if this is something that is ongoing, there may be a bigger issue at hand.
Anonymous
November 16th, 2015 10:56am
Plenty. Past bullying at school, being abused in a relationship, grief from losing my dad and daughter, low self esteem by my appearance, break ups.
naturelovesyou
December 1st, 2015 2:43pm
Not always, however there must be a trigger to it. Sometimes we forget to attend to our little problems that we don't realise it grows into something deeper. No matter what causes it, what you feel is what you feel even though sometimes it is hard to translate this into reason.
GentleEyes7
May 14th, 2015 12:55am
No you do not. Depression is a mental illness. Just like there is no reason someone might get cancer there is no reason why someone might get depression. Be kind on yourself and always use resources to broaden your knowledge.
Anonymous
January 4th, 2016 8:41am
Depression is a very multifaceted experience, which can make it very difficult to pinpoint its underlying reason(s). That's why so many have found joining forces with a professional (counselor, psychiatrist, etc.) extremely valuable when tackling depression: they are able to use their own self-knowledge and the skills of the professional to track down the reason(s) for the depression and the best way(s) to begin resolving it. tl;dr - I believe so, but that doesn't mean finding it is always easy.
Anonymous
June 18th, 2015 2:12am
Many people don't, or they can't pinpoint a specific reason. Sometimes depression may be caused by the accumulation of small failures, or a big failure, or big grief, anything.
Obnoxiousbutconsistent
March 23rd, 2018 2:36am
Not always, depression can effect anyone of any age with any backstory, since depression is an illness and nothing in your life can change that
floralprouvaire
June 5th, 2018 7:18pm
No!! Depression can be as simple as a deficit of chemicals in the brain. Although it's also worth noting that it's a natural response to a world we live in that can be horrifying at times. When you feel powerless, you feel hopeless and depressed. That isn't to say it's a good thing, but you don't have to justify it.
Anonymous
December 21st, 2021 12:40am
I've had a countless amount of depressed periods throughout my life so far, and none of them have been easy. Trying to explain how I'm feeling to others has always been just as difficult. The usual responses were always along the lines of asking me exactly what I was depressed about. Sometimes I had a specific answer for them, but more times than not I didn't. Some tried to invalidate what I was going through by telling me that I needed a reason to be depressed, and it always made me feel worse in the end. They very clearly didn't understand exactly what depression is. Since depression is caused by a chemmical imbalance in the brain, it's very possible to be depressed without knowing exactly why. Researching about depression and how it works really helped me to deal with it, and I'd recommend anyone to do the same.
softstrawberry
January 15th, 2018 3:05am
of course not! anyone can experience depression. you don't need a reason.
ChasingSunsets7
February 13th, 2018 5:28am
No. Depression can happen at any moment and any time, whether you're doing something or nothing completely at all. But at the same time depression is mostly caused by a reason, whether it's relationships, jobs, friendships, family, etc. Those have a huge influence on depression, and it's ushally what causes depression to happen. But there are days where everything is going pretty good and still don't want to get out of bed.
hopetohelpp
June 25th, 2018 1:25am
No, you don't. Depression is a condition that doesn't depend on anything. You don't need a reason to be depressed, the waves of blueness just come and go whenever they feel like it, and as trashy as it might feel that's not much we can do about it. If you're looking to seek for help about depression i sugges you find a therapist near you, trust me, it really helps.
Anonymous
September 10th, 2018 8:57pm
No, you do not have to have a reason to feel depressed. Depression could be because of family history. It could be due to a serious medical condition. Also, it could be due to medications. It could also be Seasonal Affect Disorder. It could be due to drug and alcohol use. It could be due to early losses and trauma. Depression could also could be caused by stress. Depression can be caused by personality. Depression can be hormonal. Depression can be biochemical. All in all, there are many causes for depression. You do not have to have a reason to be depressed.
Hakku
October 1st, 2019 7:41am
Sometimes, You do not need a reason feel depressed. It is also unrealistic to try to be happy all the time, However, you can choose to react to life in a positive manner. Negative feelings will come back to you and it is certainly not wrong to feel this way. I know how hard it is to get out of bed every morning when feeling this way. Take your first step to being gentle with yourself, take all the time you need to think about what you have done in the past few years, Sometimes, you just need a different perspective to discover yourself. You are an individual with your own path and You are unique in so many different ways, you are stronger than you think, you are not falling behind, you are doing a great job hanging in there. Baby steps! A tiny achievement is an accomplishment!
Anonymous
October 21st, 2019 11:33am
No. When I was told that I should have a reason to be depressed, it made me feel terrible because I didn't have any reason to feel suffocated by this illness. It just sometimes creeps silently when you're enjoying a movie then comes and devour your mind when you're about to sleep. It really sucks when people think that you're only depress when something bad happened. It's not like that. It's not always that way, if it was, then I think people wouldn't struggle getting out of this illness or feel happy because they know a reason, they have a map that they can use to get out.
Anonymous
November 10th, 2020 2:29pm
I think there is always a reason. But the reason may or may not be recognized. Depression can be related to some experience or biological issue. It may take time and efforts to truly understand why a person feel depressed. It is commonplace that depressed people will deny their feelings because being depressed is sometimes perceived to being lazy, weak, worthless or even harmful. However the feeling shows up. It is true. A person does not have to have a reason, or anything other thing, to feel depressed. As long as a person is alive, he or she can feel depressed.