'Tis the Season to be SAD
The physiological changes going on during the transition from summertime to fall and on through wintertime can greatly impact a person's brain, causing some to temporarily feel blue. Seasonal Affective Disorder, or SAD, is defined by Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary as "depression that tends to recur as the days grow shorter during the fall or winter" and is a serious matter. Symptoms vary and, typically speaking, all impact quality of life much more than a short-lived case of the blues. They include insomnia and/or sleeping too much, feelings of hopelessness, anxiousness, appetite changes (eating too much and/or too little), addled thinking, nagging sicknesses and social detachment.
Important among the suggested treatments for Seasonal Affective Disorder - along with exercise, improving diet, amending your sleep cycle, looking for social support, and medicines such as antidepressants – is treatment using full-spectrum lighting. For example, going outside more during bright daylight, or "sitting close to sunshiny windows while at home or at work. But when you can not go outside as often as you need, your recourse is to use "light therapy," which requires sitting near a speciallly designed box or lamp fitted with light bulbs that "mimics" outdoor light and causes a biochemical alteration in your brain that elevates your mood. The florescent bulbs used in the light box give off a type and intensity of light that isn't found in standard home or office lighting.
Of course, just as there are many varying syptoms of Seasonal Affective Disorder among different people, no one treatment is going to work for everyone. Take depression seriously! See a doctor. One matter just about all experts seem to agree on is that spending time outside whenever you can during the day, even on the shortest days, can help to lift your spirits. So whenever possible take a walk. When you can't go outside, a light box may be just the replacement what the doctor ordered!
