What Is Birthday Depression? Why Some People Feel Sad On Their Birthdays Birthday depression, or the birthday blues, refers to feeling sad, apathetic, or disinterested in celebrating or thinking about your birthday. In addition to experiencing sadness, birthday depression can also include a sense of low energy or focusing on the past, including everything that you may or may not have accomplished so far. These feelings may arise in the days leading up to a person’s birthday, on the actual day, and for some time after as well. There could be several reasons why somebody may experience birthday depression. Other potential causes as to why someone may feel down around their birthday may include: Depression, Anxiety, Fear of getting old, History of family drama on birthdays during childhood “All of these and many other reasons can contribute to feeling sad during a birthday,” says Dr. Lira de la Rosa, who notes that all of these reasons are normal and valid as well.