Why Do I Feel Empty? What It Means If You Feel Empty Inside

But underneath the humor, what's actually going on?

That impact on your daily life is what mental health professionals are concerned about. Although it's common to feel empty from time to time, it is not a pleasant experience and can negatively affect how you live your life. There may be cause for concern if this feeling of emptiness, paired with a lack of motivation or enthusiasm for life, is persistent across many or all parts of your life.

There are a few possible root causes for feelings of emptiness:

Studies have shown that trauma can be stored in your body, so feeling physically empty might be your body's way of telling you that it needs protection.

Coping mechanisms like numbing and disconnection can be used to survive through negative life experiences like loss, trauma, or other highly distressing events. Sometimes, it's easier in the moment to emotionally detach yourself from an experience rather than emotionally engaging with the situation.

Burnout can happen in many areas of life. Researchers describe burnout2 as being characterized by:

Whether it's related to a personal relationship, caretaking, or professional work, burnout can affect anyone. The feelings of emptiness can be a result of elevated negative emotions for a prolonged period of time.

Without the proper tools to navigate complex emotions, it's common for people to push their emotions aside. If you are having trouble identifying sadness from anger or frustration from anxiety, you may become apathetic as a way to deal with your emotions later.

This is why self-care through sleep, especially during times of distress, is crucial to well-being. When our bodies are depleted, they cannot help sustain us through navigating our lives.

If you're ruminating on just how unhappy you are, you might be driving yourself to feel empty. (Here are signs you may be unhappy, if you're not sure.) Unhappiness can cause you to feel unmotivated to care for yourself physically, mentally, or emotionally.

Feelings of emptiness can impact how you move through your days. Emptiness is oftentimes paired with other negative experiences and emotions like:

Since everyone's experience with emptiness is different, it's worth noticing your specific experience by asking:

Once you have an idea of where and how your emptiness shows up, you might be able to identify with one of the following scenarios:

Your needs might not be met in more than one area of your life, including work, your marriage, your friendships, or your relationship with yourself.

Feelings of numbness can result from overwhelm or trauma. It could be your body's defense mechanism to protect you against feeling tough emotions and feelings you might not be ready for. Tuazon adds, "​​Numb is a dulling of emotions. While we don't need every sensation or emotion to be polarizing as something good or bad, feeling numb is a form of apathy and strong disinterest in things we typically have interest or care in."

If you're holding on to negative thoughts or situations and repeating them in your mind, you may be exhausting yourself. Just as our bodies need a physical refresh with sleep, your mind and emotional body may need to refresh with a spark of joy or happiness.

Due to pleasurable highs and postcoital lows, some people may have feelings of emptiness to cope with the extremes in emotion. There may also be underlying relationship issues, or past experiences of trauma, that are surfacing in response to the heightened intimacy experienced during sex.

Crying is an emotional outlet. Letting yourself cry can be cathartic and a healing experience. After a period of feeling emotional, you may experience a wave of nothing. "Crying takes a lot of energy, and for many of us, while it is a release, it can leave us feeling even more depleted initially," says Tuazon.

Feeling empty at the end of the day or when you wake up could be a sign of prolonged emotional processing and your body being depleted. Since feelings of emptiness are oftentimes paired with other negative feelings, it could also mean that you are experiencing a mental health issue that should be explored with a licensed professional.

If you suspect you may be dealing with depression, consider finding a therapist who can support you in managing your symptoms. If you are considering harming yourself or someone else, call 9-8-8 (in the U.S.) to be connected with confidential support from the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline or text HOME to 741741 to get connected to Crisis Text Line.

"Examine what things you can add to your life to bring more positivity and love," Quimson-Guevarra recommends. "Do you need more connection? Then try reaching out to loved ones or making new connections. Are you feeling like all you do is work? Try to add more time for rest and meaningful hobbies or activities. Work on adding more moments of joy in your life."

But the more familiar you can get with your emotions, the more accurately you can identify what is causing your feelings of emptiness. For example, getting really specific about how anxiety shows up in your body: This can feel like churning in your stomach followed by shortness of breath, which leads to feelings of overwhelm, then emptiness. Knowing these signals can help you have a deeper understanding of your emotions.

Once you know how to describe your experience and emotions, keeping a journal can help you express and track what's going on in your life. Not only is it cathartic to get thoughts and emotions on paper, but you can also look back to try to find patterns and root causes for your feelings.

Tran suggests doing things that created happiness in the past, such as:

Reminding yourself of what has worked in the past can help spark some inspiration to get into action. Getting your body, mind, and emotions moving forward is key to getting away from feeling empty.

"Accountability in this sense means being intentional about creating this structure daily versus based only on feeling or convenience," she explains.

"One thing I would try to avoid is consumption without any mindfulness," Tuazon says. "For example, while watching a TV series may bring a sense of joy initially, spending hours without being intentional can often lead to feeling worse." Choosing an activity that you can engage with mindfully and with intention will help alleviate feeling empty.

Springing into action may feel like a big jump while feeling empty. So be kind to yourself. "Practicing and feeling joy may be challenging, so please give yourself grace in this and know that this feeling empty is not permanent," Tuazon says.

The good news is that you don't have to keep moving forward alone. Resources are available. Reaching out to a licensed professional can help get you past chronic feelings of emptiness. A therapist can serve as your guide to get you unstuck and moving forward.

Feeling empty is a common experience for most of us, which is why the phrase "dead inside" feels so relevant. However, there are certain contexts where this feeling may point to more serious problems than just feeling empty. It may be connected to life dissatisfaction, trauma, depression, or a combination of things. Depending on the severity of the feeling, you may want to take time with a licensed professional to tease out possible root causes and solutions to alleviate your feelings of emptiness.