Blog

Low mood at work can be easy to hide and hard to name. This guide groups the common signs, explains why workplaces matter and outlines where to turn for help.

When the working day starts to feel heavy

Picture a support worker who used to enjoy her shifts but now dreads the drive to each visit, forgets small tasks and feels close to tears by mid-afternoon. Or a family carer in Sydney who juggles an office job with looking after a parent and has stopped feeling anything except tired. Experiences like these can point to depression showing up at work, and they are more common than many people realise.

How workplaces can shape mood

Work is rarely the single cause of depression. More often, a stressful or unsupportive environment adds pressure for someone who is already vulnerable or already living with the condition. Psychiatrist Rashmi Parmar, MD, of Community Psychiatry, has pointed out that both the amount of stress in a role and the support available to staff can influence whether a job contributes to depressive symptoms.

The World Health Organization (WHO) links negative work settings with a range of problems:

• poorer mental and physical health
• more time off work
• reduced productivity
• greater use of alcohol and other substances

In the United States, Mental Health America has found that employee assistance professionals rank depression among the three biggest issues they deal with in workplaces.

Signs colleagues may spot first

People often become skilled at hiding how they feel, so the earliest clues are sometimes noticed by others. Parmar lists changes such as:

• pulling back from team members and social contact
• letting personal grooming slip or looking noticeably different
• turning up late, skipping meetings or calling in more often
• putting things off, missing due dates and making more mistakes
• seeming distant, forgetful or uninterested
• looking worn out through much of the day
• snapping at people, appearing overwhelmed or becoming tearful over minor issues
• hesitating or seeming unsure when starting tasks

Signs you may notice in yourself

The inner experience of depression at work mirrors depression in general, though it can be coloured by the job itself. Grouping the signs can make them easier to recognise.

Feelings

• a sad or flat mood that hangs around
• worry that spikes in tense moments or follows you home
• a sense of hopelessness, worthlessness or heavy guilt
• irritability, anger and a shorter fuse than usual
• crying at work, sometimes for no clear reason

Thinking and motivation

• struggling to focus or to hold on to new information
• finding decisions harder to make
• losing interest in duties that once felt rewarding
• a general boredom or indifference towards the role

Body and habits

• low energy, headaches or an unsettled stomach
• eating noticeably more or less, with weight changing as a result
• sleeping badly, or sleeping so much that naps creep into work hours
• leaning on alcohol or other substances to get through
• more sick days, late starts or early finishes

Why it matters to speak up

Long hours make work a big part of life. The US Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates full-time employees there average 8.5 hours of work on weekdays and 5.5 hours on weekend days and holidays when they work. Mental Health America’s 2021 report also described a 62 percent jump in people using its online depression screen between 2019 and 2020, with around 8 in 10 of them showing moderate to severe symptoms. Across the United States, more than 17 million adults experience depression each year.

Taking the next step

Noticing these patterns is a reason to reach out, not to push through alone. A GP is a good first contact: they can listen, check for other contributing factors and arrange a referral to a psychologist or counsellor if that would help. In a crisis, or if you are thinking about hurting yourself, call 000 or contact Lifeline on 13 11 14 immediately. Talking with a trusted manager about workload or flexible arrangements may also make the day more manageable.