The Mental Emotional Health Blog

First of all, I want to say Happy Thanksgiving to all of my readers in the USA. And to all of my readers wherever you are, I am thankful each time you visit and write comments. This site is so much better because of all of you. I plan to someday add a wellness or positivity discussion board to allow MentalEmotionalHealth.com to become more interactive.

After my previous post on Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), someone asked me about the lights some people use to help get them through the Winter months and the shortened hours of sunlight. Use of these special lights is called “phototherapy”, which has been shown to have some effects in counteracting the depressive symptoms of SAD. For a brief summary of SAD, check out http://www.smhca.org/sad.aspx . My previous post on Seasonal Affective Disorder is here:  http://mentalemotionalhealth.com/2008/11/19/get-those-healthy-habits-down-now/ .

Take care, everyone!

It’s already starting to affect me this year. The last few years I have seemed to get a taste of the Winter Blues, also known as Seasonal Affective Disorder. It usually isn’t bad enough to really nail my functioning and mood, but I have noticed a change already. The form it takes for me includes: tiredness with occasional fatigue, short-term memory challenges, little spurts of irritability, a little more difficulty getting out of bed in the morning, and each day I seem to either have noticeably more or less appetite.

The bad news is I’m expecting this in varying degrees until probably February. The good news is it will end and I am used to it and know what to do, and any of you that suffer through the winter months hoping for longer days can fight back these symptoms too.

Here are some ideas, pretty standard for fighting depression:

• Practice good nutrition, with meals or healthy snacks every 3 hours or so
• Stay hydrated with water
• Go to bed 1 hour earlier than usual
• Exercise lightly or moderately each day (even if it is for 5-10 minutes)
• Every once in a while, change your routine slightly or try something new (such as driving or walking a different way to work than usual)
• Talk with your physician or physician’s assistant now if you haven’t already, and then follow up again if you feel worse as the weeks go on
• Keep paying attention to your personal hygiene and shower daily, it helps
• Travel somewhere sunny and warm if you can

The important thing to remember is to not give up. Symptoms may be happening to you, but they don’t have to define you. Also, improvement is gradual so don’t expect a benefit to your efforts for at least 2 weeks.

Here is my little cheat sheet on Seasonal Affective Disorder (or S.A.D., or Winter Blues), which I prepared from various sources for a media interview: 

• Seasonal Affective Disorder symptoms: increased sleep, lethargy (feeling sluggish or lazy), weight gain, irritability, typically occurs during the winter months        

• General symptoms in children: feeling down, crying, hopelessness, less interest in activities, more irritable or impatient than usual, anger, body complaints such as headaches or stomachaches, changes in sleeping or eating patterns
• Less sunlight may affect amounts of the neurotransmitters serotonin and melatonin, which in turn may contribute to depressive symptoms and affect sleep cycles. (This gives new meaning to the phrase, “Soak up the sun”!)
• How you think and how you feel about yourself have an impact on your functioning.  Pay attention to the messages you give yourself throughout the day, and keep them positive and realistic. This is very important!
•  Set reasonable expectations in terms of schedule, behavior, and rest. 
• Stick to the basics – healthy eating habits, good daily hygiene, drink enough water to stay hydrated, stay active
• Some people have only mild symptoms, but if they seem severe seek help from a health care professional 
• Good news: It’s already February, and as the days continue to lengthen the Seasonal Affective symptoms should decrease
• Start preparing for next Winter this Summer around August

 

As stated above, check with a health care professional (physician, therapist, psychiatrist, counselor, etc.) if the symptoms are severe, or if the symptoms or feelings affect your work, school, or relationship functioning. 

 

 

Light therapy (ask your health provider) has been used to assist some people with the shortage of daylight according to some studies, but tanning beds have not been shown to work in any research to date. 

 

 

As with other forms of depression there are always options, even if it doesn’t feel like there are or you can’t seem to see any.