Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD)

[Funky Nosejob]

Middle two weeks in November and last week in February to first week in March every year.

Only good things are that I know it’s coming and that it will pass. Doesn’t make it any easier for others to live with me, however.

SAD lamp and Lumie sunset/sunrise alarm clock are in use every morning during GMT. They help, but don’t alleviate it completely.

[Big Rider]

1 hour ago, NotThePars said:

 

It’s taken a lot of work for me over the last few years to try and get into the mindset of enjoying what are maybe the better parts of winter that you sort of allude to at the top of this post.

That’s not to say it’s just about changing your mindset cause that’s a lot of take personal responsibility nonsense but I do feel a lot better in the winter months than I used to.

I’m lucky as well in that I don’t have any problems with mobility or invisible illnesses that are exacerbated by the cold. I’ve known people with conditions like fibromyalgia and it’s brutal.

 

I’ve been trying the same as far as working at making the most of the season but this year particularly I’ve been feeling really flat. I suppose I’m missing the routine of a few nights out, work events, nipping into town to buy presents, going out to the football etc due to WFH and the lockdown.

I used to feel that if I got through that then I could get my head down to get through January & February. It’s a struggle now. Sympathies to all those with additional conditions to contend with.

[Inanimate Carbon Rod]

Winter is shite, i used to get very down, ive started taking vitamin d every day and now im down about everything else but winter doesnt bother me 

[mozam76]

Add me to the loathe winter camp. I suffer from depression and Crohns, and I find both are undoubtedly exacerbated during the dark months. 

[Granny Danger]

1 hour ago, 101 said:

Hate to tell you that come countries are colder and wetter than here.

Fortunately we get to choose.

[Genuine Hibs Fan]

1 minute ago, Granny Danger said:

Fortunately we get to choose.

My folks moved out to Spain a few years ago and I've lived away from cold winters for a few years myself (meaning the last two since coming back have been particularly hideous) and while it's still colder/darker we all agreed we didn't feel as bad through the winter

[jamamafegan]

Winter is probably my least favourite season but I don’t hate it. The nature lover in me tries to take the positives from every season and with winter there’s the potential for some nice snowy landscapes. Sunsets and sunrise are easier to watch because they’re not as early/late. The night sky is glorious on a crisp clear night (still hoping to see my first aurora this winter). As rizzo mentions, migrant birds such as geese make their way across the country. Then there’s skiing to be done if the snow is good.

 

I take Vitamin D as well, just because it makes sense. We live in a dull country as it is and we ain’t getting enough of that stuff in our food.

 

I work outside usually so it’s easy for me to tell people to try and enjoy winter a wee bit more. I remember working indoors with no windows 9-5 one winter and it was dreadful.

 

[Granny Danger]

1 minute ago, jamamafegan said:

Winter is probably my least favourite month but I don’t hate it. The nature lover in me tries to take the positives from every season and with winter there’s the potential for some nice snowy landscapes. Sunsets and sunrise are easier to watch because they’re not as early/late. The night sky is glorious on a crisp clear night (still hoping to see my first aurora this winter). As rizzo mentions, migrant birds such as geese make their way across the country. Then there’s skiing to be done if the snow is good.

I take Vitamin D as well, just because it makes sense. We live in a dull country as it is and we ain’t getting enough of that stuff in our food.

I work outside usually so it’s easy for me to tell people to try and enjoy winter a wee bit more. I remember working indoors with no windows 9-5 one winter and it was dreadful.

Winter isn’t a month.

HTH.

[Derry Alli]

8 minutes ago, jamamafegan said:

Winter is probably my least favourite month but I don’t hate it. 

My favourite colour is volkwagen. 

[NotThePars]

I think I’d prefer if it was actually snowy and dark in the winter as those are two things I can deal with and quite like. It’s the constant rain that makes me miserable.

[Sergeant Wilson]

6 hours ago, Granny Danger said:

I’ve still never received my fee for that consult btw.

When I retire we plan to move abroad, one of the benefits being

 

...You'll be far away.

[Lambie's Pigeon Feed]

Can't recommend the entry level Lumie alarm enough, well worth the money imo

[oldbitterandgrumpy]

12 hours ago, The Moonster said:

 

I also absolutely despise Christmas and pretty much everything that comes with it which I don't think helps. Especially in Scotland where you get fucking mutants talking about it from October.

Amen to that. It's a family thing. Just stick to the family. (For some of us it's literally only once a year and it means a lot).

[Raidernation]

I grew up in Caithness, Always dark in winter, always light in summer. Thankfully I don’t have SAD but I can understand how debilitating it can be.

 

ETA Always fucking windy as hell as well, makes me chuckle when folk call Chicago the “Windy City”

“That’s not real wind......”

[Theroadlesstravelled]

The Scottish weather is depressing.

4 months of constant pishing rain and freezing cold and then there’s the winter.

[DA Baracus]

Working from home yet again has a huge benefit over being stuck in an office, that being you can get a healthy dose of natural light in the winter.

If I were in the crappy office I would have nothing but artificial light all day, whereas at home I sit right next to the window. It's definitely had a huge benefit on me this year.

In addition, not having to get up at 07.00 has been huge for me too. I usually get up at about 08.15 and it's pretty much light by then. Even in the summer there was a huge benefit as I simply feel more rested as 08.15 seems to be a more natural time for me to wake up. I recall knowing that I'd slept in the few times I've done it on a work day when I woke up feeling refreshed. Getting up at 07.00 has always left me feeling tired on work days. Being pulled from a deep sleep by an alarm just isn't natural. It's odd but that extra hour makes such a difference, even if I get the same amount of sleep were I going to bed earlier and getting up at 07.00.

 

Sadly though we have to continue to live this unhealthy way because of capitalism. 

[dorlomin]

Lets clear something up. Seasonal Affected Disorder is a real medical condition. People trying to push pseudoscience about  it not being one have, so far as I can see, zero medical or scientific evidence to support their conjecture. You can find 10 000s of science papers on it and find it in medical text books

https://scholar.google.co.uk/scholar?q=seasonal+affective+disorder&hl=en&as_sdt=0&as_vis=1&oi=scholart

You are not "evolved" to live at this latitude. About 12000 years ago, Scotland was under a giant ice sheet. We have only lived at these kind of latitudes for a tiny fraction of time. Your body clock is designed for the tropics and sub tropics where the large majority of humans lived and did live for most of human history. 

People focussing on their current life styles may be losing a touch of perspective. You are not going to starve in spring because the harvest was poor, you are not going to have to fight of predators in the night. A degree of empathy here would suggest that when people are in a low mood they are far more vulnerable to dark thoughts and to place their current circumstances in the worst possible position. These are what are sometimes called "negative ruminations". 

 

Take your shoes off, place your bare feet on the ground. Place your hands on your desk. Take three slow breaths then think of your name, your location and the date today. These are called "grounding techniques", they can help break you out of getting too deep into negative thoughts. You are in the same place, at the same desk and in the same life circumstances as in summer when the sun is shinning, the world warm and everyone is wearing light airy clothes. 

If you do feel down over winter: Its a real condition, your emotions are valid, it is very likely is related to not producing hormones in the quantity needed. 

There are things you can do to try to mitigate this. Getting lots of natural light when ever possible, some find SAD lamps help, some find taking supplements to moderate lack of essential vitamins  and hormones. And exercise.  (people have made suggestions on this thread).

There are also techniques you can apply to prevent yourself getting lost in negative ruminations. 

https://www.healthline.com/health/how-to-stop-ruminating#bottom-line

 

11 days from now it starts getting lighter. Summer follows every winter. And next summer we have something to keep us busy. 

 

[101]

Good advice ^ 

Nothing to add other than this belter.

[BFTD]

A few years ago, I was feeling even more lethargic than usual, enough so that I went to the doctor, and it turned out that I had a Vitamin D deficiency marked at the 'severe' end of the scale. Tablets make a big difference, but you also need regular doses of sunlight, as the vitamin doesn't "activate" without it. That's how it was explained to me, anyway.

Apparently something like 70% of Scots are running at some level of Vitamin D deficiency due to the low levels of direct sunlight that we get. Last I looked, there was some debate as to their efficacy, but some folk recommend the purchase of a light box to help with that.

I can only relate my own experience, but Vitamin D tablets and a light box made a big difference for me. I've drifted away from using the box, mainly because I've rarely been home long enough to use it, but I really need to get back on it, as my batteries have slowly been running down over the past few months. Hopefully it still has the same effect.

[Funky Nosejob]

On 08/12/2020 at 11:58, Funky Nosejob said:

Middle two weeks in November and last week in February to first week in March every year.

Only good things are that I know it’s coming and that it will pass. Doesn’t make it any easier for others to live with me, however.

SAD lamp and Lumie sunset/sunrise alarm clock are in use every morning during GMT. They help, but don’t alleviate it completely.

Late change of the clocks, a bad cold disrupting my sleep and the generally shitty weather have resulted in early onset this year.

Family have been warned so they know what’s coming.