

“If you are constantly fighting with your partner and your home is not a safe space, your brain feels as though it is in danger and constantly pumps cortisol (the stress hormone) throughout your body,” says Robinson. Over time, frequent conflict can cause a breakdown in trust, communication, and emotional safety, all of which can fuel depression symptoms. But if fights are a hallmark of your relationship, it’s easy to lose hope. High-conflict relationshipĮvery couple has relationship problems. Nancy Irwin, a psychologist in Los Angeles, California. “If one person is unhappy with the arrangement, then it is really a one-sided dependent relationship, which can suffocate the other partner,” says Dr. Whether the couple knows it or not, this can be taxing. Enmeshed relationshipĭepressive symptoms can surface when one partner feels like they can’t function or be happy without the other.Įnmeshment occurs with a lack of boundaries, making it difficult for you to see where you end and another person begins. “This isn’t sustainable and doesn’t allow both people to feel as though their needs are being met,” she says. Jennifer Weaver-Breitenbecher, a psychotherapist in Riverside, Rhode Island, adds that codependency also tows a heavier emotional load on one or both partners in a relationship. CodependencyĬodependency describes a pattern of putting someone else’s needs before your own, even at the expense of your happiness.Īs you can imagine, this can be extremely draining on your mental, physical, and emotional faculties, which could mimic depression symptoms. There may be other dynamics at play here.
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If a mental health professional rules out a diagnosis of clinical depression, or you notice that symptoms aren’t present most of the day, every day for at least 2 weeks, it’s natural to wonder why you’re so sad in your marriage. Many of the symptoms overlap with the more classic forms of depression.

“Ask yourself, if you woke up tomorrow and magically felt better, what would have changed? If the answer has to do exclusively with your relationship, it is likely that is what is making you unhappy.”ĭepression because of marriage will look different for everyone. “We cannot say what does or does not cause depression, however being in an unhappy relationship can definitely lead to depressive symptoms,” says Amber Robinson, a licensed psychotherapist in Los Angeles, California. When your marriage fills you with despair, a mental health professional might diagnose you with situational depression - that is, it’s directly related to your present circumstances, rather than being pervasive in every area of your life. If you’re thinking, “My marriage is making me depressed,” you’re not alone. What depression may look like in marriage

