Sad, Blue, or Unmotivated: What Neurotransmitters Cause Depression

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Sad, Blue, or Unmotivated:
What Neurotransmitters Cause Depression

Illustrated human head profile showing glowing brain with neural connections and neurotransmitter pathways in teal and golden yellow, representing the connection between brain chemistry and mood regulation

Understanding what neurotransmitters cause depression is essential for recognizing how they affect your mental health.

Ever wonder why some days you feel like conquering the world, while others you can barely drag yourself out of bed? Or why anxiety seems to hit out of nowhere? The answer might be hiding in your brain chemistry—specifically, in tiny chemical messengers called neurotransmitters.

Think of neurotransmitters as your brain’s internal communication system. They’re constantly sending signals that influence how you feel, think, and function. And here’s the thing: when they’re out of balance, your mood takes the hit.

Split-brain illustration showing circadian rhythm effects on neurotransmitters with golden yellow left hemisphere representing daytime energy and sun symbols, and teal cyan right hemisphere representing nighttime calm with moon and stars, demonstrating how brain chemistry changes throughout the day and night cycle

What Neurotransmitters Cause Depression:

Here’s something that might surprise you: depression doesn’t look the same for everyone, and that’s because it can stem from different neurotransmitter imbalances.

Serotonin-based depression tends to show up as that classic “blues” feeling—weepy, sad, melancholic. You might find yourself crying at commercials or feeling an overwhelming sense of sadness you can’t quite shake.

Dopamine/norepinephrine-based depression looks completely different. This is the “I can’t get off the couch” kind. You’re exhausted, foggy-brained, unmotivated, and everything feels like it takes monumental effort.

Understanding which type you’re dealing with? That’s a game-changer for finding the right approach, because what neurotransmitters cause depression depends on the specific symptom presentation.

 

How Neurotransmitters Affect Mood

Your neurotransmitters basically fall into two camps. You’ve got your “uppers”—the ones that lift your mood, spark motivation, and get you moving, a.k.a. “excitatory neurotransmitters”. Then there are the “downers” (and no, that’s not a bad thing!)—these are the calming, relaxing chemicals that help you chill out and unwind, a.k.a “inhibitory neurotransmitters”.

When these two teams are working in harmony? You feel balanced, stable, and like yourself. When they’re not? That’s when mood issues can creep in.

Infographic showing what neurotransmitters cause depression: serotonin-based depression shown with sad, weepy symbols including raindrops and tears in teal, versus dopamine and norepinephrine -based depression shown with exhausted, foggy symbols including depleted battery and heavy clouds in golden yellow
Depression isn't one-size-fits-all. What neurotransmitters cause depression depends no the symptoms. Serotonin-based depression feels weepy, sad, and melancholic. Dopamine-based depression feels exhausted, foggy, and unmotivated. Understanding which type you're experiencing is key to finding the right support.

Neurotransmitter balance and anxiety:

Now, on to what neurotransmitters cause anxiety.  If you struggle with anxiety, your neurotransmitters could be telling a few different stories:

  • Low serotonin can leave you feeling anxious and on edge
  • Too much epinephrine and norepinephrine (your fight-or-flight chemicals) can keep you stuck in overdrive
  • Not enough GABA means your brain’s natural “calm down” signal isn’t coming through loud enough

Beyond Depression and Anxiety

Conditions like bipolar disorder, ADHD, PMDD, OCD, and PTSD can also be addressed by balancing neurotransmitters. The exciting part? Holistic psychiatry offers ways to bring your mood back into balance—often without relying on pharmaceuticals.

Image showing the biological stress-brain connection with a human body silhouette featuring glowing golden yellow adrenal glands sending cortisol hormone signals upward to a teal brain with disrupted neural pathways, surrounded by DNA helixes and hormone molecules, illustrating that stress management is a biological necessity not just a lifestyle choice
Stress management isn't optional. It's biological. Chronic stress floods your body with cortisol from the adrenal glands, which directly disrupts your brain's ability to produce mood-stabilizing neurotransmitters. That "stressed out" feeling? It's literally changing your brain chemistry. Self-care isn't selfish—it's science.

What Causes Neurotransmitter Imbalance

Your gut is a serotonin factory. More than 90% of your serotonin is actually made in your gut. That means your mood health is deeply tied to your digestive health and microbiome. (Suddenly “gut feeling” makes a lot more sense, right?)

Stress hormones and neurotransmitters are besties. Cortisol—your main stress hormone—needs to be at optimal levels for your body to properly produce certain neurotransmitters. Translation: chronic stress doesn’t just feel bad, it literally disrupts your brain chemistry.

Addiction has a neurotransmitter connection. People don’t become addicted to substances randomly. Often, there’s an underlying neurotransmitter imbalance, and the drug temporarily “fixes” it—which is why it feels so good and why the cycle is so hard to break. Addressing the root imbalance can be a powerful piece of recovery.

Neurotransmitter issues don’t happen in a vacuum. They can also result from:

  • Genetics (thanks, Mom and Dad) & Epigenetics (thanks, Life)
  • Nutrient Deficiencies
  • Immune and Inflammatory factors
  • and many more

The good news? These imbalances can be tested and addressed individually. You don’t have to guess.

Infographic illustrating the gut-brain connection with a human silhouette showing a teal glowing brain connected to a golden yellow gut through flowing neural pathways and serotonin signals, demonstrating how digestive health affects mood and mental wellness
More than 90% of your serotonin is made in your gut—not your brain. That means your mood health depends heavily on your digestive health and microbiome. Heal the gut, help your mood.

How to fix neurotransmitter imbalance:

Ready to Understand Your Brain Chemistry?  If you’re tired of feeling like your mood is running the show—or you’re curious whether your brain chemistry might be out of balance—knowledge is power.

Grab the free 7-day mini-course and get a breakdown of how neurotransmitters affect your mood, what might be throwing yours off, and what you can actually do about it. You’ll learn which labs can help identify imbalances, plus discover other biological factors that could be playing a role.

Or, if you’re ready to see the whole picture how to treat the root causes of depression and anxiety biologically, check out the Holistic Mood Assessment.  Because understanding your brain? That’s the first step to feeling like yourself again.

Your mood isn’t a mystery—it’s chemistry. And chemistry can be changed.

Graphic featuring a glowing teal brain inside a human head profile surrounded by golden yellow neurotransmitter molecules and neural pathway constellations, representing how neurotransmitters affect mood
Your mood isn't a mystery. It's chemistry. And chemistry can be changed. Once you understand how neurotransmitters affect mood, you can finally do something about how you feel. Knowledge is power—especially when it comes to your brain.