How to Deal with Depression After a Breakup
When a relationship ends, it can cause significant changes in your income and also cause a lot of emotional turmoil. Some splits are easier than others. You can let go quickly and move on. You might feel angry, sad, bitter, and brokenhearted.
All of these feelings are normal after a breakup, but if they last for a long time, make you feel sad or numb, and make it hard to do things in your life, it could be a sign that something more serious is happening. Some stressful events in life, like a breakup or divorce, can cause severe and long-lasting emotional pain.
One study found that even normal feelings after a breakup are similar to clinical depression.
When a relationship ends, and you feel sad or have other signs of depression, this is sometimes called an adjustment disorder with depressed mood or situational depression. Because these feelings can last from six months to two years with adjustment disorders, it is essential to know what they are to get help and support if needed.
Depression after a breakup
After a split, people can feel anywhere from a little to a lot of sadness. Sometimes, these thoughts can be strong for only a short time. In other situations, people might feel a range of mild to solid sorrow that comes and goes and lasts for a longer time.
Because people’s mental responses to a breakup can be so different, it can be hard to know when to ask for help. Some signs of depression that are more serious are:
- Hopelessness or feeling like you can’t do anything
- Losing or gaining weight; changes in appetite
- Sleeping too much or too little
- Loss of pleasure and interest
- Feelings of worthlessness
- Feeling sad, empty, or useless
- Fatigue and lack of energy
- Thoughts of death or suicide
People feel grief and sadness when they go through hard and trying things in life. Researchers have found that breakups can have profound effects on people. People say that when a relationship ends, they feel upset, lonely, and like they’ve lost their self-worth.
Give yourself time to feel sad about the relationship ending. Responses can include grief, sadness, frustration, bargaining, anger, denial, and sorrow. It’s a time of adjustment, so give yourself as much time as you need to feel what you feel, figure out what’s going on, and get better. Even though these feelings are sad, they usually change as your mind, heart, and relationships heal from the breakup.
Talk to your therapist about your feelings if your symptoms seem more severe than normal sadness after a breakup or if they worsen.
What Makes People Sad After a Breakup?
Feelings brought on by the end of a relationship are situational depression. A breakup can be a significant turning point in someone’s life. Not only does it mean you can’t be with someone you used to love, but it can also lead to a whole chain of other changes in your life.
Friends on both sides may choose sides, which can end other friendships. You might have to change your income, where you live, or even how you and your ex-spouse raise your kids.
The way you feel about yourself can also change after a breakup.
One study found that the end of a romantic relationship affected how college students felt about their academic success, including their ability to focus, homework, and test scores.
Another study found that breakups change how people see themselves, and people who have a more significant change in how they see themselves are also more likely to feel sad after the split.
All of these changes can be difficult. They can make you feel lost, uncertain, worried, or sad. And in some cases, it can worsen the sadness symptoms and make them last longer.
What’s a rebound relationship?
Breakup depression is not an accurate medical word or diagnosis, but that doesn’t mean what you feel after a breakup isn’t an actual condition.
If you decide to talk to your doctor or a mental health worker about it, they may ask you questions about how long, how often, and how bad your symptoms are.
Depending on your symptoms, your doctor might say you have an adjustment disorder with low mood, sometimes called “situational depression.” Adjustment disorders are problems that can happen when you have a lot of stress or have trouble working after something stressful happens.
As time passes, your situation improves, and you recover from the breakup. In most cases, you will find yourself gradually feeling much better.
If your symptoms are mild to moderate, you may be able to handle them by practising good self-care and surrounding yourself with a strong support system.
Talk to your doctor or therapist if your symptoms are more severe or need extra help coping. Counselling can help you gain perspective, address negative thought patterns, and establish coping skills that may help you both now and in the future.
For you to be diagnosed with depression under DSM-5, you must:
- Start having symptoms within three months of the stressor (in this case, a breakup).
- Have symptoms that are out of proportion to the seriousness of the trauma, and
- Your symptoms should not be the result of another mental disorder.
Getting on the path of recovery
The good news is that even if a breakup does cause you to have depressive symptoms, they usually get better about six months after the split.
As time passes, your situation gets better, and you start to get over the breakup, you will usually begin to feel better and better.
If your symptoms are mild to moderate, you can handle them by taking good care of yourself and surrounding yourself with strong support.
Talk to your therapist if your symptoms are worse or if you feel like you need a little extra help. Counselling can help you see things from a different point of view, deal with harmful thought patterns, and learn ways to deal with problems that may help you now and in the future.
If your symptoms are awful or don’t seem to improve, your doctor may also give you antidepressants or other medicines that can help.
Whether you’re feeling normal sadness after a breakup or something more serious, there are things you can do to help you get through it. There’s no way to know who will get depressed after a breakup, but there are things you can do to make yourself more able to handle stress.
Among the things you can do, you can:
- Creating a strong social support network, including online networks
- Taking care of yourself and your health
- Learning how to solve problems
- Working on improving your self-esteem
- Setting goals to work towards
- Taking steps to solve your problems.
Give yourself a reason to live
Give yourself time and space to deal with your feelings in true, respectful, and helpful ways, such as through art, music, movement, writing, etc.
Research has also shown that writing about how you feel or about good things that have happened to you can help you deal with a stressful event better.
Also, it can help to find ways to keep busy. Even though you might want to stew, doing things that keep your mind and body alive will keep you from dwelling on depressing things. Try starting a new job around the house or a new hobby you’ve been curious about.
Working out and hanging out with friends can also help you feel better and deal with the stress of a breakup. Research has also shown that writing about how you think or about good things that have happened to you can help you deal with a stressful event better.
Breakups can make you feel like you don’t have control over your life and even make you question who you are. Focusing on the parts of your life over which you have more control, like your work or hobbies, can help you feel more in charge and give you a sense of mastery again.
A word from Hope Trust
When a close friendship ends, it can mean many different things. Sometimes these changes can be good. They can help you grow or lead you to a more loving and caring relationship.
Sometimes, they can make people feel sad for a long time. Even though it’s normal to feel depressed or crushed after a breakup, you should talk to a professional if your feelings are stronger or last longer than expected. Hope Trust has over 25 verified psychologists and psychiatrists to help you through tough times.
Focus on caring for yourself and reaching out to friends and family for help. If your symptoms seem to be getting worse, don’t be afraid to talk to a therapist.
Call 90008 5000 or click www.hopetrustindia.com for an online or in-clinic appointment with a counsellor.