When Is Sadness a Problem?

Relationships
Relationships bring happiness and fun much of the time. But tension or conflict in important relationships, or relationships that break up, can cause sadness, too. Many kids fight with family members, especially their parents, in the struggle to grow up and gain independence.

People often feel sad when all is not right between them and their loved ones, or when they get criticized or yelled at a lot. They fight about things like money, clothing, haircuts, school, and friends. In school, problems with teachers and grades may cause some sadness as well.

If a sad feeling goes on for too long, hurts too deeply, and makes it hard for you to enjoy the good things about your life, it's called depression.

Here are some of the signs and symptoms of depression:

• feeling empty or numb
• feeling hopeless (like there's nothing to look forward to)
• feeling guilty or worthless
• feeling lonely or unloved
• feeling irritable and annoyed a lot (every little thing gets on your nerves)
• feeling like things are not fun anymore
• having trouble keeping your mind on schoolwork or homework or getting bad grades

• having trouble keeping your mind on things like reading or watching TV or not remembering what a book or a TV show was about
• having less energy and feeling tired all the time
• sleeping too much or not enough
• not eating enough and weight loss or eating too much and weight gain
• thinking about death or thinking about suicide
• spending less time with friends and more time alone
• crying a lot, often for no reason
• feeling restless (being unable to sit still or relax)
• having certain body feelings, like lots of stomachaches, or chest pain