Coping with and beating Seasonal Affective Disorder (winter depression)
Fall has nearly gone and winter is here in eastern Pennsylvania. That means that the sun rise is usually barely seen due to the grey color over the sky, the leaves have all fallen and the sun sets around 4.30 every afternoon. It’s also cold, wet and windy. All the right symptoms to give just about anyone Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), a condition
in which people who have normal mental health throughout most of the year experience depressive symptoms in the winter
Photo by: Hendricks Photos
I’ve never really been affected by it, this year it seems to hitting me though. My thoughts as to why it’s starting is partly due to commuting via bicycle for the last half of summer and first portion of fall. I was outside daily, enjoying it, the sun and everything that comes along with it, except the rude drivers on the rode. Now I drive to work when the sun is low in the sky, only peaking through clouds after showing itself for maybe an hour or so, work in a windowless office and then drive home in the dark. I won’t make attempt at being a new-age hippie in looking for solutions, but I did poke around and find some pretty creative answers and some that I don’t really agree with on how to tackle this problem. I’ve grabbed the best from what I could find and compiled them here, hoping to not only prevent myself from sinking in a hole but also hoping they will help others out as well.
The Daily Mind has most of your obvious suggestions, the main one is to get outside more. This time of year it’s just too cold for me to be outside for any period of time, the older I get the less fond I am of winter.
Photo by: jenny downing
Super-Ways offers some zen lifestyle changes with the emphasis on yoga, I can’t say that any seem to apply directly to SAD, but they do suggest giving yourself time off, which is a great idea. Sometimes putting off a load of laundry or a sink full of dishes for an hour or three to roach on the couch is needed. Just don’t make it an all day affair, all the time.
Photo by: nattu
Get Fit Slowly has probably the best list of the sites I found, giving out 10 great suggestions. Number 3 on J.D.’s list is to try light therapy, which is a full spectrum light used to replicate the color and tone emitted by sunlight. For $260, this light better do more than just cure my winter time blues, but J.D. said it did help. If you’re on a budget (like me) I see nothing wrong with swapping out standard light bulbs for GE Reveal‘s which are full spectrum and only a few bucks.
Photo by: micsalac
These three sites along with nearly every other I could find almost all contained the same mantra though; eat healthy, exercise, get lots of rest. Personally, I’ve changed my diet months ago to loose weight, so much so that it’s just how I live now and not really a change. I do find comfort in fresh fruit, as suggested on one of the above sites, even though it is at a serious premium right now. Additionally, I’m doing my best to avoid winter style comfort foods which tend to be high in fat and carbohydrates.
One thing I’m considering doing is bring smoothies back into my diet, since I really enjoyed them in the summer and I generally associate them with the warmer weather. Also in consideration is bringing out my grill, I don’t care what electric device you have in your kitchen, BBQ chicken doesn’t taste the same unless it’s cooked outside on a grill, gas or coal.
Since I’m no longer riding my bicycle outside due to the cold, crappy weather, I’m at the gym 4-5 days a week and also picked up bicycle trainer at the local swap meet this fall, allowing me to ride my road bicycle indoors. Look them up on YouTube, you’ll laugh your ass off watching people eat shit on them. The downside to both is that they are again, done inside, and I can’t wake myself up early enough to go before work so I’m stuck driving to the gym in the dark. For me, I’ve almost always used the winter as an excuse to eat what I want and hide it under a sweatshirt, this year will be different. I’m using this winter to train for the spring and the beach, this is my motivation.
Lastly, sleep is mentioned in nearly all the articles. This is a non-issue for me. Since starting a training / dieting / lifestyle change 4 months ago, I sleep better than I have in 10+ years. Proper diet + exercise, for me, equals a great night of rest.
The only thing I didn’t see mentioned in the nearly dozen sites I was trolling was to go on a vacation. I haven’t myself, but I’m thinking that a change of scenery would do a world of good this time of year, even if only a 3-day long weekend that is in driving range.
Are you affected by SAD? If so, how do you cope with and beat it?
Similar articles that might also interest you:
- Ask the readers – What podcasts do you subscribe to?
- 7 surefire money saving green tips via reduction and maintenance
- California law against teens on cell phones while driving
- Professional blogging
- My list of happiness is getting happier
Comments
Ross
I have this one – it’s a bit cheaper and it comes highly recommended (by me and folks I’ve spoken to about SAD). Exercise, diet, sleep etc are all important, but the SAD/sun lamp/light is probably at the top of the list.
Swan
The change of season never seems to upset me. It could be because I was born in January, or it could be because I’ve always been entirely way too happy about everything else, that when it gets cold, I’m just mildly happy.
In my opinion, just do what makes you feel comfortable, but if you want to adjust and want to get out more this time of year, maybe you need someone to help you out with it. You can’t tackle every emotion alone, let alone slip into a depression. Find someone who loves this weather, someone you can have fun with, it’ll take your focus off of being cold (that’s the goal anyway). Or option two, take something you absolutely love doing and can’t live without i.e. photography and
apply it. Come up with a reason to be outside. I’m not saying pack your bags and go camping, but start with something little.
(Sounds terrible but..) The few times I need to walk through the city when it’s windy and cold, and air seems to creep its way into every opening in my coat, I will admit, I wish I were at home in bed. People say stop look and listen, no need to stop, just a glance over to the right is a woman fumbling with her inside-out umbrella, or the man on the left trying to catch his fly-away papers is enough for me to giggle, forget that I’m freezing, and suddenly enjoy the weather.