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Signs of Depression After a Job Loss & 9 Ways to Cope

Published: February 1, 2022 Updated: June 21, 2022
Published: 02/01/2022 Updated: 06/21/2022
Headshot of Davina Tiwari, MSW, RSW, CSFT
Written by:

Davina Tiwari

MSW, RSW, CSFT
Headshot of Naveed Saleh, MD, MS
Reviewed by:

Naveed Saleh

MD, MS
  • How Common Is Depression After Losing a Job?Prevalence
  • Job Loss Depression SymptomsSigns & Symptoms
  • Risk Factors for Depression After Job LossRisk Factors
  • Tips for Coping With Depression After Losing a JobCoping
  • When to Seek Professional Help for Depression After Job LossWhen to Get Help
  • How to Help a Loved One Experiencing Job Loss & DepressionHelp a Loved One
  • Additional ResourcesResources
  • Job Loss Depression InfographicsInfographics
Headshot of Davina Tiwari, MSW, RSW, CSFT
Written by:

Davina Tiwari

MSW, RSW, CSFT
Headshot of Naveed Saleh, MD, MS
Reviewed by:

Naveed Saleh

MD, MS

It’s not unusual to develop feelings of depression after losing a job. A job loss can add a huge amount of stress to your life and damage your self-esteem. It can result in isolation and a loss of social interaction and support networks. Reducing feelings of depression after a job loss can start with adding structure to your days, reaching out to friends, and spending time on hobbies. Talking to a therapist can also be an important step in reducing feelings of depression.

BetterHelp has over 20,000 licensed therapists who provide convenient and affordable online therapy. BetterHelp starts at $60 per week. Complete a brief questionnaire and get matched with the right therapist for you.

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How Common Is Depression After Losing a Job?

Depression is very common following job loss. With no income coming in, those affected are struggling to feed themselves and their families, manage health care expenses, afford school costs, and pay their rent or mortgage. With job loss, many social aspects of health are in jeopardy and, correspondingly, it’s only natural to develop reactive depression or feel sad as a result.1

Sadness vs. Depression After a Job Loss

It’s important to note the possible key differences between sadness and depression, as people may feel sad following job loss, but this may not necessarily be diagnosed as depression. Defining the differences between sadness versus depression is key to learning how to recognize depression and to observe how depression can have a much more prolonged and severe impact on an individual.2

A person who just lost their job may feel sad for a few days or intermittently, but not on a persistent basis. A persistent low mood (for more than at least two weeks) is a sign of depression. Similarly, someone may feel sad but may not necessarily lose interest in activities they enjoy or experience impairment in their work search or their social lives, which are factors that are commonly associated with depression.

Moreover, if someone is feeling sad about their job loss, this may not directly translate into an increase or decrease in sleeping or eating, lack of motivation in trying to find a new job or take care of their needs and personal hygiene, or a sense of hopelessness, helplessness, or worthlessness, which are often the case with depression. Lastly, just because someone is sad does not automatically mean they will begin having thoughts about suicide or self harm or devise a plan for harming themselves.

Does Gender Impact Job Loss Depression?

Both men and women are commonly affected by depression after job loss, but the effect appears to be slightly greater in men. One suggested reason for this depression is because, in a traditional family, men may be the sole income earners and therefore tend to tie their self-worth and identity to their job, and so job loss can leave them feeling more vulnerable in terms of their self-esteem and their sense of self. However, in regions and cultures in which men and women are both employed to a similar extent and contribute  equally to the household finances, the gender differences regarding depression following job loss are less stark.3

Women who remain in the workplace after their colleagues have been terminated often experience significant depression, but this is not the case for men. A possible reason for this difference is because women may be more worried about the potential for job loss, given they often are tasked with juggling their career responsibilities and family life, so they may experience anticipatory anxiety about a pending layoff.3

On a related note, women who have pre-existing depression may be more likely to lose their jobs—one theory being that their mental health needs may lead to more sick time, so their attendance record may be taken into account by employers who are trying to choose which workers to keep and which to let go. In this context, it appears the connection between job loss and depression potentially carries higher risks for women both in terms of depression possibly contributing to job loss, and job loss or the anticipation of job loss contributing to depression.3

Rates of Depression After Job Loss by Age

One study observed that depressive symptoms were very common for older adults 55+ who were nearing retirement who lost their jobs and had a lower income; this effect of mood was not seen in high-grossing income individuals.4 One of the suggested reasons why job loss can be so devastating for older workers is because they may be nearing the end of their career and may have limited future job prospects, may feel stuck or in limbo financially as they may not yet qualify for government senior pensions to supplement their income, and they may encounter health issues for which they no longer have access to extended benefits.4

In addition, they may find that they are at the top of their pay scale given their breadth of experience, and so they may be overpassed for work opportunities compared to a more budget-friendly younger employee. They may also feel disgruntled about the loss of seniority that may come with job loss. And, because they are much later in their career, older workers may encounter heightened stress in relation to limitations in professional growth and development, wealth appreciation, and worries around achieving sufficient retirement funds or having to delay their retirement as a result.4

Job Loss Depression Symptoms

Depression is often characterized by changes in mood, behavior, thought processes, and physiological changes. To be diagnosed with depression, a person must exhibit five or more symptoms during the same 2-week period with either depressed mood or loss of interest or pleasure present.2

Interestingly, there may be specific signs of depression related to job loss that could manifest in various ways following termination, including:

  • Loss of identity as so much of a person’s sense of self and self-esteem is tied up in their occupation4
  • Loss of social support and feelings of isolation and loneliness due to no longer being able to connect with their colleagues, who may be important members of their personal network4
  • High stress surrounding ongoing unemployment, being hired into poorly matched positions, and experiencing persistent financial and career difficulties, which can all lead to longer term depressive symptoms4
  • Lack of structure, routine, and consistency in their daily lives that comes with job loss can contribute to feelings of aimlessness, lack of control, and a lower life satisfaction5
  • Feelings of guilt and perceived self-blame around doing something wrong that could have contributed to job loss7

These signs can be harder to spot in those with what is often referred to as high-functioning depression. For someone to be diagnosed with depression, these symptoms must lead to functional impairments in terms of work, social, family, and/or other key areas of life. Furthermore, these symptoms cannot be confounded by other mental health disorders, substance misuse, or other medical issues.2,8

Risk Factors for Depression After Job Loss

While job loss can be a stressful event by itself, there are a range of factors that could raise the risk that someone will become depressed, such as:5

  • Experiencing a loss of life satisfaction
  • Financial stress
  • Experiencing other mental health issues, such as anxiety or stress
  • Experiencing ongoing threats to job security and stability
  • Being unemployed for 6+ months
  • Challenges meeting daily needs, including shelter, food, and health care
  • Feeling dissatisfied with personal relationships
  • Having limited access to a social-assistance system where you live that provides medical and financial supports to those impacted by unemployment
  • Living in a region where there are major income discrepancies between the general public, leading to feelings of resentment, despair, and hopelessness

9 Tips for Coping With Depression After Losing a Job

At a time like this when you’re experiencing emotional, psychological, and financial stressors, it is more important than ever to focus on your coping skills.7

Here are nine tips for dealing with job loss depression:

1. Give Yourself Permission to Feel Your Feelings

Allow yourself to experience your range of emotions surrounding your job loss. Losing your job can lead to many different feelings, like concern that you may not find another position in the near future that suits your skill set and abilities, feelings of embarrassment or shame, and more. Coming to terms with your feelings is an important first step towards improving your mental health.

Try to allow yourself to feel what you feel and think what you think in the moment and not try to hide behind a smile—it will be that much harder to resolve if you keep pushing these thoughts and emotions away. Sometimes allowing yourself to feel is necessary to be able to deal with the challenge head-on, and then you can turn your attention to moving forward.

2. Don’t Beat Yourself Up

Try not to be self-critical—recognize other factors at play that contributed to your job loss. It’s sometimes only natural for someone to question whether something they said or did could have caused the job loss, however it’s important to note there are many aspects that could have led to your job loss that had nothing to do with you.

Try to consider alternative reasons why you may have been let go; make a note of these and reference them when needed. This step may help you keep your self esteem intact and enable you to minimize self-blame and negative self-talk.

3. Count Your Blessings

Consider what you’re grateful for. As challenging as this may be right now, try to think about a few positives that may have come out of this difficult situation. For example, maybe you might now be able to focus on a career change you’ve always wanted to pursue, or maybe you are now more able to redefine your priorities and what is important in your life, or perhaps you are able to finally slow down and think about your future goals and develop a better work-life balance for your next position.

Maintaining a gratitude journal of some kind may enable you to push yourself to consider the bright side when everything feels so hard.

4. Reach Out to Your Support Network

You may feel ashamed to ask for help, but speaking to someone you trust and feel you can confide in can go a long way  toward helping you cope better with your current stressors. Your social support may even be able to help you think of things from a different perspective, or quality time with them can be a helpful distraction for a little while.

Even if it’s brief, try to set up regular calls, video chats, or text conversations with your loved ones so you can get the emotional support you need on a consistent basis.

5. Find What Matters to You

Immerse yourself in activities that are meaningful, important, and valuable to you. Keeping yourself active can help improve your mental health and allow you to focus on things you enjoy in life. You can even explore a new hobby or interest you haven’t attempted before but have always wanted to try. Alternatively, maybe there is a special cause you would like to volunteer for or get involved in. Find ways to make use of this newfound time that allows you to enhance your life.

Make a schedule of activities during the week and weekend so you make sure you are doing at least one enjoyable or meaningful activity each day.

6. Keep up a Daily Routine

Having a completely unstructured, open-ended day might only add to your stress, frustration, and low mood. Try to keep yourself occupied in positive ways to help you feel more in control of your life.  By building up a schedule, this will help you create a stable and structured routine.

Focus on your lifestyle and habits: Get enough sleep, exercise, nutrition, and hydration to meet your needs and goals. Now is a great time to try to do a reset and consider how you will improve your lifestyle. Perhaps you would like to build a sleep routine into your life, exercise more to enhance your overall health, eat better, and drink more water. No matter what you’d like to work on, pick one area to begin with and just start. Once you start, you may find it is easier to build momentum and keep going.

You can set a timer to remind yourself it’s time to get to bed or an alarm to wake you up at the same time every morning. It may help to put your exercise clothes out the night before as a visual reminder to do your workout, or commit to 10 or 15 minutes of exercise a day—whatever feels realistic to you. Create a meal plan and stick to grocery shopping once or twice a week for fresh produce so you can work towards meeting your healthy eating goals. Keep a water bottle near you or use lime or lemon to flavor your water to make it that much more easy to stay hydrated.

7. Use Relaxation Strategies

Try to learn how to relax your body and mind as this may help you to better manage stress.

Some relaxation techniques you could try include:

  • Deep breathing
  • Meditation
  • Progressive muscle relaxation
  • Repeating a mantra to yourself
  • Visualizing your happy place
  • Grounding techniques

For deep breathing, imagine the widths and lengths of a box and use that as a cue to breathe in, pause, breathe out, and pause as you visualize moving along the lines of a box. Use your phone apps to explore free applications that may offer guided meditation as a good starting point. Think of statements you can say to yourself that could help you challenge your depressive thoughts (e.g. “it may be hard to get a job, but I’m updating my resume, customizing my cover letter, and applying for as many suitable jobs as I can”). Imagine in your mind a scene that is relaxing to you, such as a forest, the beach, a garden, or anything you find serene to help you relax.

8. Focus on Your Positive Qualities

Consider your strengths, abilities, skills, and positive qualities. Reminding yourself of what you like about yourself, what great things your close family and friends have said about you, and what excellent attributes you could bring to a new job may help you stay motivated while you continue looking for a new job.

Writing these positive attributes down may not only help you develop a list of strengths but can also be a helpful reference whenever you find you need to give yourself a mental or emotional boost.

9. Focus on What You Can Control

There’s many things surrounding job loss that you can’t control, including being hired for your next job. Right now, focus on what you do have control over, which might be updating your cover letter and resume, tracking positions you’ve applied for and the outcome, preparing for interviews, crafting an interview outfit that helps you feel confident and put-together, getting your references in order, networking with professionals in the same field, taking online classes to improve your skills, possibly start a new business venture you’ve always wanted to test out, and anything else you can think of that might help build your confidence as you get back out into the workforce.

Make some notes about which of these proactive tasks you would like to start with as you try to move your career forward. Begin with your highest priority goals, break them down to smaller steps, and start with the first one. You might find that things start to flow more easily from there.

If it helps, use a journal to make note of which of the above coping tips and strategies you’ve tried: what’s worked well and what hasn’t. By using a range of coping tools, you may find that the impact of the job loss on your daily life may not be as severe as it otherwise could be and that your mental health might recover more quickly.

When to Seek Professional Help for Depression After Job Loss

Seeking out help for your depression early on can give you a greater sense of control over your life and enable you to handle your stressors more effectively. Through effective therapy for depression, you may be able to proactively deal with your low mood shortly after it starts, which can ultimately stabilize your emotional well-being as you navigate this stressful time in your life. It’s important to get help as soon as possible after noticing symptoms of depression.

If your depression goes unmanaged for weeks or months or perhaps even longer, it can become harder to motivate yourself, cope with your emotions, and deal with other health issues or other challenges that may stem from your depression (like substance misuse, social isolation, relationship issues). Ultimately, if your depression is not treated, it could potentially lead to a mental-health crisis where you feel you are at risk of harming yourself or others, particularly if you are starting to have any thoughts about hurting yourself or another person. In these types of situations, you need to go to your nearest emergency room or call 9-1-1.8

How to Get Help for Depression

A good first step is to speak with your primary-care physician about treating your depression. Your physician can decide with you whether it makes sense to explore antidepressant medication, a referral to a psychologist or psychiatrist, or some other type of intervention. Given your family doctor is your primary provider, it’s important they be aware of your concerns so they can work with you to figure out how they can best help you.8

Choosing a therapist can feel overwhelming, but there are lots of options. A great place to start is an online therapist directory, where you can search for a professional near you who specializes in depression. Finding a mental-health professional who is supportive, non-judgmental, helps you with problem-solving, assists you in identifying your strengths, and supports you with improving your coping skills can enable you to better manage your mental health.

How to Help a Loved One Experiencing Job Loss & Depression

It can be difficult to see a loved one struggle with depression. As a family member, friend, or colleague of someone who is depressed, you can play a vital role in helping them learn how to cope. Stay in touch with them on a consistent basis, listen to their concerns and worries, be non-judgmental, patient, and compassionate, ask how you can help, and give them suggestions for where they can get assistance from a professional if they are open to it.

Monitor them for possible suicidal thoughts or behavior or self-harm behavior, and support them in a practical way (e.g., help with childcare, make them some meals, spend quality time with them, help with grocery shopping or other important tasks, or go with them to medical appointments if they need moral support). Helping a loved one may also include something as simple as engaging them in a fun activity to give them a momentary, enjoyable distraction.8

What may be less helpful is judging or blaming them for their mental illness, minimizing the impact of depressive symptoms, not engaging with them, not offering help and support, giving unsolicited advice, and not taking their concerns seriously.8 It also is important to not let your own emotional well-being deteriorate while you’re trying to help your loved one; you need to put healthy boundaries in place so you can stay strong mentally, emotionally, and physically in order to help someone else and to model strong coping skills. You also unfortunately can’t make your loved one’s depression go away but you can be by their side while they try to recover from this mental health illness.9

Additional Resources

Education is just the first step on our path to improved mental health and emotional wellness. To help our readers take the next step in their journey, Choosing Therapy has partnered with leaders in mental health and wellness. Choosing Therapy may be compensated for referrals by the companies mentioned below.

BetterHelp (Online Therapy) – BetterHelp has over 20,000 licensed therapists who provide convenient and affordable online therapy. BetterHelp starts at $60 per week. Complete a brief questionnaire and get matched with the right therapist for you. Get Started

Online-Therapy.com – Receive help for depression. The Online-Therapy.com standard plan includes a weekly 45 minute video session, unlimited text messaging between sessions, and self-guided activities like journaling. Recently, they added Yoga videos. Get Started

Brightside Health (Online Psychiatry) – If you’re struggling with depression, finding the right medication can make a difference. Brightside Health treatment plans start at $95 per month. Following a free online evaluation and receiving a prescription, you can get FDA approved medications delivered to your door. Free Assessment

Choosing Therapy’s Directory – Find an experienced therapist specialising in depression. You can search for a therapist by specialty, availability, insurance, and affordability. Therapist profiles and introductory videos provide insight into the therapist’s personality so you find the right fit. Find a therapist today.

Choosing Therapy partners with leading mental health companies and is compensated for referrals by BetterHelp, Online-Therapy.com, and Brightside.

For Further Reading

  • Mental Health America
  • National Alliance on Mental Health
  • MentalHealth.gov

Job Loss Depression Infographics

Depression After a Job Loss Depression After a Job Loss Is Very Common Number of Adults Reportedly Experiencing Depressive Symptoms During and Pre-Pandemic

Signs of Depression in People Who've Lost a Job Tips for Coping with Depression After Losing a Job Getting Help for Someone Experiencing Depression After Losing a Job

Supporting Someone with Depression After Losing a Job

9 sources

Choosing Therapy strives to provide our readers with mental health content that is accurate and actionable. We have high standards for what can be cited within our articles. Acceptable sources include government agencies, universities and colleges, scholarly journals, industry and professional associations, and other high-integrity sources of mental health journalism. Learn more by reviewing our full editorial policy.

  • Canadian Public Health Association. (n.d.) What are the social determinants of health? Retrieved from: https://www.cpha.ca/what-are-social-determinants-health.

  • Truschel, J. September, 2020. Depression Definition and DSM-5 Diagnostic Criteria. Retrieved from: https://www.psycom.net/depression-definition-dsm-5-diagnostic-criteria//a

  • Andreva, E., Magnusson Hanson, L., Westerlund, H., Theorell, T., & Brenner, M. October, 2015. Depressive symptoms as a cause and effect of job loss in men and women: evidence in the context of organisational downsizing from the Swedish Longitudinal Occupational Survey of Health. BMC Public Health, 15(1045). DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-015-2377-y

  • Gallo, W., Bradley, E., Dubin, J., Jones, R., Falba, T., Teng, H.-M., & Kasl, S. July, 2006. The Persistence of Depressive Symptoms in Older Workers Who Experience Involuntary Job Loss: Results From the Health and Retirement Survey. The Journals of Gerontology, 61(4), 221–228. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/geronb/61.4.S221

  • Pappas, S. October, 2020. The toll of job loss. The unemployment and economic crises sparked by COVID-19 are expected to have far-reaching mental health impacts. American Psychological Association, 51(7), 54. Retrieved from: https://www.apa.org/monitor/2020/10/toll-job-loss

  • Van Beusekom, M. September. 2020. Depression triples in US adults amid COVID-19 stressors. Retrieved from: https://www.cidrap.umn.edu/news-perspective/2020/09/depression-triples-us-adults-amid-covid-19-stressors

  • Smith, M.A., Seagal, J., & Robinson, L. April, 2020. Job Loss and Unemployment Stress. Retrieved from: https://www.helpguide.org/articles/stress/job-loss-and-unemployment-stress.htm

  • Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA).(n.d.). Understanding and Finding Help for Depression. Retrieved from: https://ontario.cmha.ca/documents/understanding-and-finding-help-for-depression/

  • Smith, M., Robinson, L., & Segal, J. September, 2020. Helping Someone with Depression. Retrieved from: https://www.helpguide.org/articles/depression/helping-someone-with-depression.htm

update history

We regularly update the articles on ChoosingTherapy.com to ensure we continue to reflect scientific consensus on the topics we cover, to incorporate new research into our articles, and to better answer our audience’s questions. When our content undergoes a significant revision, we summarize the changes that were made and the date on which they occurred. We also record the authors and medical reviewers who contributed to previous versions of the article. Read more about our editorial policies here.

  • Originally Published: January 21, 2021
    Original Author: Davina Tiwari, MSW, RSW, CSFT
    Original Reviewer: Naveed Saleh, MD, MS

  • Updated: February 1, 2022
    Author: No Change
    Reviewer: No Change
    Primary Changes: Updated for readability and clarity. Reviewed and added relevant resources.

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Headshot of Davina Tiwari, MSW, RSW, CSFT
Written by:

Davina Tiwari

MSW, RSW, CSFT
Headshot of Naveed Saleh, MD, MS
Reviewed by:

Naveed Saleh

MD, MS
  • How Common Is Depression After Losing a Job?Prevalence
  • Job Loss Depression SymptomsSigns & Symptoms
  • Risk Factors for Depression After Job LossRisk Factors
  • Tips for Coping With Depression After Losing a JobCoping
  • When to Seek Professional Help for Depression After Job LossWhen to Get Help
  • How to Help a Loved One Experiencing Job Loss & DepressionHelp a Loved One
  • Additional ResourcesResources
  • Job Loss Depression InfographicsInfographics
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