Depression can be overwhelming, affecting every part of a person’s life. It feels heavy, dark, and isolating, often compared to carrying a mountain or being trapped in endless darkness. People with depression describe their emotions as cold, distant, and painful. It’s like an internal storm that never ends. Anxiety adds another layer, making everything feel tense and restless. I share 30 similes that explain what depression and anxiety feel like.
List Of 30 Similes For Depression
- As heavy as a mountain of lead
- As dark as a moonless night
- As empty as a hollow shell
- As isolating as a desert
- As endless as a tunnel with no light
- As cold as a winter wind
- As crushing as a collapsing building
- As suffocating as being underwater
- As bleak as a barren wasteland
- As deep as an abyss
- As tiring as carrying a boulder uphill
- As hollow as a lifeless tree
- As numb as a frozen hand
- As silent as a graveyard
- As overwhelming as a tidal wave
- As distant as a fading star
- As gray as a stormy sky
- As fragile as a thin sheet of glass
- As endless as an ocean of sorrow
- As heavy as a tombstone
- As painful as a festering wound
- As hopeless as a broken clock
- As relentless as a hailstorm
- As consuming as wildfire
- As weighty as an anchor
- As silent as a distant thunderstorm
- As jittery as a rabbit in a trap
- As restless as a river in a storm
- As tense as a drawn bowstring
- As fragile as a glass butterfly
Similes for Depression
As heavy as a mountain of lead
Meaning: Depression feels overwhelming and immovable.
Example: “Her sadness weighed on her, as heavy as a mountain of lead.”
As dark as a moonless night
Meaning: Depression can make everything seem hopeless and dim.
Example: “His thoughts were as dark as a moonless night, filled with despair.”
As empty as a hollow shell
Meaning: Depression can make a person feel emotionally drained.
Example: “She felt as empty as a hollow shell, with nothing left inside.”
As isolating as a desert
Meaning: Depression can leave one feeling completely alone.
Example: “His depression was as isolating as a desert, with no one to turn to.”
As endless as a tunnel with no light
Meaning: Depression often feels like there is no end in sight.
Example: “Living with depression felt as endless as a tunnel with no light.”
As cold as a winter wind
Meaning: Depression can feel emotionally numbing.
Example: “Her emotions were as cold as a winter wind, frozen and unfeeling.”
As crushing as a collapsing building
Meaning: Depression can feel unbearable and suffocating.
Example: “The weight of his depression was as crushing as a collapsing building.”
As suffocating as being underwater
Meaning: Depression can feel like drowning with no way to breathe.
Example: “Each day felt as suffocating as being underwater, gasping for air.”
As bleak as a barren wasteland
Meaning: Depression can strip life of color and hope.
Example: “Her future seemed as bleak as a barren wasteland.”
As deep as an abyss
Meaning: Depression can feel like a bottomless pit of despair.
Example: “He was lost in a depression as deep as an abyss.”
As tiring as carrying a boulder uphill
Meaning: Depression can make even simple tasks feel exhausting.
Example: “Each day felt as tiring as carrying a boulder uphill.”
As hollow as a lifeless tree
Meaning: Depression can make one feel lifeless inside.
Example: “She stood there, as hollow as a lifeless tree, drained of all joy.”
As numb as a frozen hand
Meaning: Depression can leave one emotionally disconnected.
Example: “His heart was as numb as a frozen hand, unable to feel.”
As silent as a graveyard
Meaning: Depression can make everything around feel eerily quiet and still.
Example: “Her mind was as silent as a graveyard, void of any joy.”
As overwhelming as a tidal wave
Meaning: Depression can engulf someone like a wave of despair.
Example: “His sadness hit him as overwhelming as a tidal wave.”
As distant as a fading star
Meaning: Depression can make someone feel detached and far from reality.
Example: “She felt as distant as a fading star, lost in her own thoughts.”
As gray as a stormy sky
Meaning: Depression often makes the world seem colorless and dull.
Example: “Her mood was as gray as a stormy sky.”
As fragile as a thin sheet of glass
Meaning: Depression can make someone feel emotionally fragile.
Example: “He felt as fragile as a thin sheet of glass, ready to shatter.”
As endless as an ocean of sorrow
Meaning: Depression can feel vast and never-ending.
Example: “She was lost in an endless ocean of sorrow, unable to find the shore.”
As heavy as a tombstone
Meaning: Depression can weigh someone down, feeling like a burden they carry.
Example: “His depression was as heavy as a tombstone, impossible to shake.”
As painful as a festering wound
Meaning: Depression can cause deep, ongoing emotional pain.
Example: “The hurt inside her was as painful as a festering wound.”
As hopeless as a broken clock
Meaning: Depression can make someone feel stuck, as if time has stopped.
Example: “His life felt as hopeless as a broken clock, ticking nowhere.”
As relentless as a hailstorm
Meaning: Depression can come in waves, each one harder to bear.
Example: “His depression was as relentless as a hailstorm, hitting him again and again.”
As consuming as wildfire
Meaning: Depression can spread quickly, engulfing every aspect of life.
Example: “Her sadness spread as consuming as wildfire, destroying everything in its path.”
As weighty as an anchor
Meaning: Depression can drag someone down, feeling immovable and inescapable.
Example: “His sadness was as weighty as an anchor, pulling him under.”
As silent as a distant thunderstorm
Meaning: Depression can feel like an internal storm, unnoticed by others.
Example: “Her depression was as silent as a distant thunderstorm, raging quietly.”
Similes for Depression and Anxiety
As jittery as a rabbit in a trap
Meaning: Anxiety and depression together can make someone feel trapped and scared.
Example: “He felt as jittery as a rabbit in a trap, unable to escape his fears.”
As restless as a river in a storm
Meaning: Anxiety with depression can cause an internal turmoil that is hard to control.
Example: “Her mind was as restless as a river in a storm, constantly churning.”
As tense as a drawn bowstring
Meaning: Depression mixed with anxiety can cause constant emotional tension.
Example: “He felt as tense as a drawn bowstring, always on the verge of breaking.”
As fragile as a glass butterfly
Meaning: Anxiety and depression together can make someone feel incredibly delicate and vulnerable.
Example: “Her emotions were as fragile as a glass butterfly, one wrong move and she’d shatter.”
I express mental health challenges through similes.