Stages of Depression
Written by: THE BALANCE
Medically reviewed by Dr. Sarah Boss, MD
Last updated: January 19, 2026
Fact checked
Quick Summary
  • Depression is a mental disease in which one gets tired of his daily routine of life.
  • He remains overwhelmed by the negative thoughts and remains sad most of the time.
  • At the start of the depression, it is easy for the person to get back to his normal mental state.
Reading time: 6 min

Depression is a mental disease in which one gets tired of his daily routine of life. His mental compatibility of managing everyday life affairs gets lost. He remains overwhelmed by the negative thoughts and remains sad most of the time. This mental illness often leads people to suicidal thoughts. Depression grows slowly. It has various stages. At the start of the depression, it is easy for the person to get back to his normal mental state. One who is in the final stages finds it difficult to get cured. Following are the stages of depression. Let us discuss them in detail.

Depression imbalances your mental peace. Initially, it takes away your sleep pattern. It makes you anxious and over-thinker. This overthinking and stress also interfere with your sleep pattern. Your healthy routine of sleep gets disturbed. Some people face insomnia and they fail to sleep at night. It makes them tired and uncomfortable all the time. While some people do over-sleeping. They take sleep more than healthy people and remain dizzy all the time. Chemical imbalance in the body because of abnormal mental thinking leads to disturbed sleep patterns. (source: NIMH, n.d.)

Feelings and happiness are crucial aspects of life. Depression takes away the feeling of happiness from people. People, who are depressed, remain surrounded by their negative thinking and emotions. It does not spare the time to feel the realities and happiness of life.

Activities to Improve Mental Health (source: WHO, 2023)

They separate themselves from life and bound themselves in their bubble of depression. It indicates the second stage of depression. People become socially shy as they avoid public gatherings and get together. Their social isolation further adds up to their depression and deteriorates their situation. (source: APA, n.d.)

Hopelessness and loss of any aim in life indicate the third stage of depression. Being hopeful is necessary for life. One cannot struggle or put enough effort into life until his hope is alive.

Optimism is the foundation of success. As depression takes over the thinking process of the person, one loses the charm of things. Depressed people tend to become pessimistic. They fail to find any ray of hope in their hearts. It is also toxic for the mental growth and mental sustenance of humans.  (source: MedlinePlus, n.d.)

Just like sleep, variation in the hunger patterns also takes place. Some people lose their appetite and fail to fulfill body’s requirements for food. It negatively impacts their health and makes them lose weight. When the body does not get enough food, it also fails to perform the required physical activities. On the other hand, some people start eating more and excessively.

They use food as a way of managing depression. It is also unhealthy as it increases their weight. They consume more calories than required by the human body. Obesity also has very negative impacts on the health of the human body and is the sole reason for other diseases. Taking a balanced and controlled diet is the best way of remaining healthy. (source: NHS, n.d.)

As depression is directly impacting the thinking process, it also controls the anger of the person. It makes a person get irritable and angry quickly. A depressed person finds it hard to control his emotions and he pours them out fiercely. He fails to calm down and adopt rational thinking about matters of life. As a result, he becomes irritated quickly and overreacts even on the minute issues of life. (source: NICE, 2022)

Fluctuations in the chemicals of the body also cause an increase in the anger of the person. People also avoid the company of such a person. Resultantly, he gets more isolated and alone. It fails to provide any help to the person and his mental condition keeps getting out of control.

Depression also results in abrupt mood swings in the person. Moods swings refer to the change or shift in the mood of the person. Depression makes these changes quickly. At one moment, one is happy and at the other moment, one is sad. The fluctuation in the mood swings is also unhealthy for the person himself. He becomes socially awkward and ultimately becomes socially shy. These rapid changes in the mood are also an indication of the progression of the depression toward the 6th stage. Numerous tactics and ways of controlling it are necessary for managing mood swings. (source: ADAA, n.d.)

Depression also leads to anxiety. Symptoms of depression include becoming slow, sluggish, and sad. The depressed person remains detached from the activities and happenings of life. Depression at times leads to the development of anxiety in the person. (source: NEJM, 2018)

As a result of the anxiousness, one feels nervous as his heartbeat increases manifold. Depression and anxiety put more challenges on the mental process of humans. All of these symptoms and mental disturbances keep people occupied emotionally and psychologically. They fail to cope with life and its challenges. It hurts them both emotionally and financially as they fail to perform activities of life.

The final and most critical stage of depression is having suicidal thoughts. The depression completely takes over the thinking and mental space of the person. Because of this, one only keeps getting pessimistic and sad. These negative thoughts do not allow one to look at the positive aspect of life. This pessimism and negativity take away their peace of mind and mental satisfaction. Resultantly, they end up having thoughts of self-harm and self-destruction. It indicates the person is at the peak of this negative thinking. There is an immediate need for help and support to such people. Psychotherapy sessions are necessary for keeping them from such thoughts. (source: Lancet, 2017)

All of the stages of depression need immediate help. They are indicators of the severity of depression in a person. People with depression need to get support, as any delay can further deteriorate their condition. A healthy mind is equally important as a healthy body. They should get the medication, counseling, and social support for getting out of this mental illness.

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