Depression causes a range of emotional and physical effects that can significantly shape behavior. Someone living with depression can experience huge changes to their social life, daily responsibilities, and routine, because of how the condition affects their behavior.
Behavioral signs of depression exist on a spectrum, beginning with small signals that someone’s not feeling great and ending with severe self-neglect after a deep and chronic depression.
This article will explore:
Mental health affects behavior because it influences how you think, feel, and respond to the world around you. This holds true for depression, which can drastically change how you think and feel, and is characterized by persistent feelings of sadness and a loss of interest.[1] These emotional symptoms of depression can cause you to behave differently because of neurochemical changes in the brain.
There are also physical symptoms of depression, such as sleep disturbances and changes to appetite, which can drive other behavioral symptoms.[1] At first, these symptoms might be most noticeable with friends, in the mornings, or at mealtimes, but then slowly take over your life.
Below, we explore some of the most common depression behavior changes.
A loss of interest and motivation is a core feature of depression, as the brain no longer produces feel-good neurochemicals in the same way. This can reach the point of anhedonia, which is the name for when someone experiences almost no pleasure, enjoyment, motivation, or interest in anything.[1][2]
This can result in several behavioral symptoms, such as:
These changes can be confusing for people who care about you. A loss of motivation can look like laziness or even rudeness when people want to spend time with you. In fact, it comes from the brain not producing the chemical signals that normally make effort feel worthwhile.
Depression can cause you to withdraw significantly from your social circle. It could stem from a lack of motivation, as discussed above, but there are other drivers of social withdrawal when it comes to depression.
For instance, you may feel a lack of confidence and courage to get out there into the world. It might be because depression can cause low energy and make you feel as though you’re too fatigued to see friends.[3]
Importantly, depression and isolation have what’s known as a “bidirectional” relationship. This means that they affect each other. Depression causes people to self-isolate, and being isolated can also cause depressive symptoms. This makes it especially hard to get out of the trap of withdrawal, because the longer it goes on, the urge to be alone can increase.[4]
Experts suggest that depression is a primary predictor of self-neglect.[5] It’s strongly correlated with people finding it hard to manage their physical and mental health care needs.[5]
Self-neglect is defined as a refusal or failure to attend to your own emotional, social, and physical needs. It might involve:[5]
Changes in self-care and hygiene can be incredibly difficult for people with depression, as they can be a source of shame. These changes can be caused by low motivation, as discussed above, with self-care tasks becoming overwhelming. Some people with depression may carry such terrible feelings of low self-worth that they don’t believe they deserve to be taken care of.
Self-neglect can become a behavioral health crisis if it reaches an extreme point. When someone is no longer able to take care of themselves, it’s usually a sign that urgent mental healthcare is needed.
People with mild depression have less intense symptoms and fewer long-term impacts, particularly if they get treatment early. However, if depression-related behavior changes are more severe and long-lasting, there are more long-term risks to health and well-being.[6]
People with depression are at higher risk of developing chronic diseases, such as:[6]
This can be due to self-neglect, or because they find it harder to access healthcare that could help detect, prevent, and treat physical health conditions early.[6]
Due to the link between depression and social withdrawal, some people find it hard to form trusting, deep, and intimate relationships. If this persists over a long time, they may feel deeply unsatisfied and lonely in later years.
AMFM is here to help you or your loved one take the next steps towards an improved mental well-being.
If you feel like you can’t function because of depression, it’s most likely time for professional mental health treatment. There are many options for treating changes in behavior from depression.
If your depression behaviors have gone on for a long time, your treatment may need to be a longer-term process. It can require careful work to untangle the habits and beliefs that have developed over many years, so be kind to yourself if you don’t start to feel better right away.
A behavioral health approach focuses less on emotion and mental activity when treating mental health conditions. Instead, it emphasizes the behavioral impacts of mental health conditions like depression and attempts to reverse them. The idea is that by changing behavior, you can change how you think and feel, creating an upward spiral of positive change.
Behavioral health techniques are informed by cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), which shares its philosophy of behavioral change.
Behavioral healthcare for depression and daily functioning may involve:[7]
It may break tasks down into manageable steps and then invite you to rate your mood after completing them. It gradually breaks the cycle of depression behaviors and gives you evidence of your capability. Plus, mood-lifting activities then make it easier to do more of them.
You can also try talk therapies for depression, such as humanistic or psychodynamic therapy. Rather than jumping straight to behavioral changes, these therapies are known as “insight-based,” which means they help you understand yourself.
Humanistic and psychodynamic approaches don’t view depression as the result of faulty beliefs. Instead, they see it as a developmental issue. This means depression comes about because of childhood experiences and should be treated within a therapeutic relationship.[8]
These options may be more appealing to you if you want more time to speak about your feelings in therapy. If your depression has been caused by childhood neglect or abuse, or it stems from a bereavement, it can be useful to spend more time unpacking complicated feelings.
In psychodynamic therapy, you might explore depression as a sense of grief for the loving caregivers that you never had. Children can experience frustration and hurt because of their parents but internalize those feelings (leading to depression) because they can’t voice them. Putting them into words in therapy can be key to identifying unmet needs and false beliefs about your worthiness.[8]
Humanistic therapy provides a therapeutic relationship based around empathy, honesty, and unconditional acceptance. This is thought to provide a unique kind of relationship, one without conditions, expectations, or judgment. This can be a fruitful setting to nurture self-acceptance and self-love, often helping people with depression develop their self-determination and a unique identity.[8]
A Mission For Michael (AMFM) provides treatment for adults experiencing various conditions. Depression support is a phone call away – call 866-478-4383 to learn about our current treatment options.
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At AMFM Mental Health Treatment (A Mission for Michael), we recognize that depression behavior changes can be treated in a wide variety of ways. That’s part of why we offer many types of therapy, and why we’re dedicated to personalizing mental health care for every person who seeks our support.
A first conversation usually starts with understanding what depression has looked like for you specifically, since the behavioral changes it causes can differ a lot from person to person. Our team of expert clinicians believes in treatment persistence so you can achieve lasting, life-changing outcomes.
We offer an intimate, focused mental health treatment experience for adults in home-like settings that are carefully maintained to be peaceful, comfortable spaces. In addition to residential treatment, AMFM Mental Health Treatment also offers multiple levels of outpatient treatment.
Our locations in California, Minnesota, Virginia, and Washington accept insurance and are in-network with many major providers. To check your insurance coverage for mental health care, simply complete our confidential online verification form.
Call us at 866-478-4383 if you would like to start the admissions process or learn more about how we can support your mental well-being. Our compassionate team is available 24/7 to answer your questions and provide guidance with no obligation.
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At AMFM, we strive to provide the most up-to-date and accurate medical information based on current best practices, evolving information, and our team’s approach to care. Our aim is that our readers can make informed decisions about their healthcare.
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