5 Body Language Signs of Depression

There are some easy ways to spot depression. Anyone can tell you they feel fine, but one thing that doesn’t lie is their body language.

People sometimes don’t know they're depressed and think the way they feel is normal.  Here are the signs to spot depression in maybe yourself or others. Individually, none of the signs show that a person is depressed. However, if you see a combination of 3 or 4 of the body language cues, you can definitely suspect something is wrong.




1. Bad Posture
This is the most obvious of the body language signs. We can all picture someone moping around with their shoulders hunched forward and with their back rounded. Bad posture can just be a bad habit, but it also can be sign of a long bout of depression to cause that habit.

2. Laughing
This is more of a behavior but someone who is laughing too much or too little can both be signs of depression. A person that's laughing (nervously laughing) when nothing funny is said, is anxious and trying to gain acceptance. Laughing too much or too hard at a joke can also be a sign of something wrong. On the other hand, not laughing at all is also a signal of depression because it shows detachment from the conversation and possibly apathy.

3. Lack of Eye contact
People with low self esteem have difficulty keeping eye contact. They tend to look down or away from the person. Remember that this type of eye contact is different from being distracted. A person who suffers from a lack of confidence is paying attention to the conversation. However, they’ll only look you in the eye for a second then dart away. Someone who's just distracted will look distant and more bothered.

4. Being Small
If a person is standing, look at the stance of their feet. An average person will stand at about shoulder width apart. If you imagine a superhero like Superman, he shows extreme confidence by having an extra wide stance beyond his shoulders. A depressed person will take up as little space as possible and stand with their feet close together. Hunching shoulders together is another body language tactic to be smaller and take up less space.

5. Mumbling
Not speaking clearly (if there is no physical problem) is often a coping mechanism for people not listening. If a person is use to being ignored, they will mumble something in order to get the other person’s attention and then say it clearly a second time. Parents use this technique with their kids that don’t listen. The parent calls out at a regular volume, and then immediately says the child’s name louder. The parent has become use to being ignored, so they say the name twice out of habit. Mumbling is the result of a combination of being misunderstood and a lack of confidence.

More body language cues in ~ Part Two ~