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Seasonal Depression

FDG

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Online for about 150 bucks you can buy a little lamp that you sit in front of and read for half an hour a day. It helps regulate this a little better.

Along the line of this advice, I think that if you really feel bad then artificial tanning provides a similar type of feeling to your body (similar to being under the sun for hours).

But yeah, I can see the problem that some people may have with this. I am in Scandinavia for 5 months with the university now, and that's not enough time to feel bad, but since I'm used to call the last week of february "spring", expecting 10-12 °C(whereas here we're still deeply in winter), I'm a bit :(
 

Nadir

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I don't intend to invalidate your experience, but consider that if you think your depression surges up during the end of winter, then it probably does and will. New age, quantum thought? No, not at all. But when was the last time you forgot something by concentrating on it?
 

Anja

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I've had SAD for nearly all my life but it was only diagnosed in my thirties. It doesn't help to live in MN and be of Northern European descent. We certainly aren't alone in this. I think half of all Minnesotans are down in the dumps this time of year. It even has a cultural moniker - "cabin fever."

This winter it has been particularly bothersome. I use light therapy for thirty minutes every morning. It seems to have a cummulative effect so I've discovered it is important to be both regular and consistent with it. I try to stay to an early morning schedule.

I go outside every day whether I want/need to or not. A couple of spots I've found that help lighten my mood are spending some time at The Humane Society playing with the kittens. And going to our larger greenhouse to stroll around in the tropical atmosphere. "Oh lookit! Here comes that depressed lady again." :cheese:

And I watch my diet. I have a tendency to crave sugar and carbs when the days get shorter. Caffeine, alcohol and sugar have that rebound effect which can worsen the depressed mood.

When it gets particularly grim I go to Mexico. Tickets on my desk as we speak. Now I only have to wait a couple of weeks to use them. That's my last desperate act as I wait to say "bye-bye" to Winter. ;) But just setting up something to look forward to every month or so also seems to help.

(It's supposed to be forty degrees tomorrow! Hang in. We're almost done now. . .)
 

JocktheMotie

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Just go to a tanning salon. You'll feel better and look great. Although I love the snow, the winter does put a damper on me because I exercise less and don't go running.
 

cascadeco

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I don't intend to invalidate your experience, but consider that if you think your depression surges up during the end of winter, then it probably does and will. New age, quantum thought? No, not at all. But when was the last time you forgot something by concentrating on it?

This is actually along the lines of why I realized I didn't really have SAD. The mind can be a powerful thing. Self-fulfilling and all of that.

Several years ago, one of my lowest points, emotionally, was smack in the middle of June. I was sitting outside, in the lovely summer, sun beating down upon me, and I was depressed. I remember a light bulb going off - just the realization that I was at my lowest in GOOD weather. ;-)

Just that awareness - that it wasn't really the weather that was to blame for the majority of my mentality - and lo and behold, subsequent winters were quite a lot easier for me. I was much more able to just roll with it and accept it.

But back to what I originally wrote - just as exercising gets those endorphins out into your body, and is biologically good for your mental/emotional health, staying active and trying to resist the lethargy and irritability and depression of being stuck inside all winter can help combat as well. And being more proactive about getting yourself out and about. And biologically, to mimic sunlight and its effects, yes, the lamps might help, and the tanning booths are probably a good suggestion - although they're kinda bad for other reasons. ;-) It's a tossup. It's possible a lot of it is psychosomatic anyway.
(If you think it will help, it probably will.)

And yeah - again, it's human. Like I said, pretty much everyone in MN and those sorts of climates run into the same issues. That says something.
 

alicia91

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Just go to a tanning salon. You'll feel better and look great

Please dont. When I was a teen/early 20's I was a regular client at tanning salons and even worked at one part-time when I was in college. It's really done a number on my skin , and I have a TON of sun-damage. A few years ago I also developed some Pre-Melanomas and now must have complete body checks (for Melanoma) every 6 months. Don't do it - buy one of the light-boxes that we've discussed. They don't cause all this damage.
 

MrME

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Thanks for the replies.

Tanning is not for me. I go straight from pale blue to blistered. :D Besides, I'm not sure it's a lack of sunlight or activity. I actually walk for about 40 minutes every day -- rain, snow, or shine. It's part of my commute to work. (In the summer I ride a bicycle.)

This week I'm doing just fine. After some deliberation, I think it's just a mix of the cold, and the effect of living with two Extraverted Sensors who are depressed because they can't go outside and run around town like a pair of social maniacs. :)
 

Anja

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I think a depressed mood can be "contagious." A doctor acquaintance of mine told me once, "Whenever I see a patient who says they're depressed, I always ask them who else in your house is depressed."

But then he might just be drumming up biz.:devil:

Glad you're feeling better.
 

FDG

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Please dont. When I was a teen/early 20's I was a regular client at tanning salons and even worked at one part-time when I was in college. It's really done a number on my skin , and I have a TON of sun-damage. A few years ago I also developed some Pre-Melanomas and now must have complete body checks (for Melanoma) every 6 months. Don't do it - buy one of the light-boxes that we've discussed. They don't cause all this damage.

If you just go once in a while, let's say 3-4 times each winter, it's no big deal. If you're regular, then yes it's not good.
 

BerberElla

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I have the same issue. In my case it just manifests itself as lack of motivation and general irritability. I did a little research on light-boxes and decided to buy this model. It really helps. Though last year the winter was sunny enough that I didn't need it as long as I walked my dogs daily. This winter I thought I was going to be OK also, but I think I'm going to get started.

Light therapy seasonal affective disorder SAD lightbox

I bought a new one on Ebay.

I was going to suggest something like this too, apparantly they are supposed to help. I have a friend who owns one and she says it makes a difference.

I enjoy winter for awhile, but about a month before spring is when it starts to get to me because I am just waiting for the blossoms to burst free.
 

NewEra

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This time of the year, near the end of Winter, I start to feel a little down on myself. Does anybody else experience this, and if so, what do you to combat it? I have all kinds of full-spectrum lightbulbs at home, but they're not helping any more.

I tend to get overly critical of myself and others. Unfortunately, this manifests itself online as well as off, so if I say something asshole-ish, please point it out. I don't mean to be this way.

This behavior leads to "worry loops." I'll say something mean-spirited or just plain thoughtless and get a negative reaction. Then I'll obsessively guilt myself over it until I become mentally incapacitated.

*sigh* Hate this. :unsure:

Actually yeah I get this too. Like right now, I feel pretty down, and this happened last year too. I'm more anxious, antsy, angry, moody, and hungry from the period right after New Year's to the beginning of spring. But I love snow, so go figure. My two favorite seasons are summer and winter. Also, during the summer, I am happy. They have a disorder like that, it's called Season Affective Disorder: What is Seasonal Depression?
 

Oom

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To the OP:

My dad has seasonal depression as do most of my immediate family members. (Runs in the family) During the winter to spring transition he turns on a full spectrum light box (that has been discussed in this thread) to illuminate his bedroom in the early hours of the morning. It seems to help him in waking up, of course starting your day off on a good note is all it takes sometimes.

I noticed you said you have full spectrum lights around your house and it sucks that they don't help, but another piece of information is to do something you enjoy when the depression strikes you, before you lose your initiative. My dad likes to go outside and trim our rose and raspberry bushes, it seems very meditative and therapeutic for him, a person who was diagnosed before the age of 10.
 

EJCC

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I think I have mild S.A.D., and have for a while. Not so much with depression, but with lack of energy. If I come home from work and it's dark out, I'm pretty much ready for bed, even if it's 6:30pm, and I have a REALLY hard time getting up when it's dark out. Used to phrase it as, "the shorter daylight hours really get to me", before I learned that that pretty much means S.A.D., and before I learned that my mom has it too.

I think a lot of it is simply cabin fever, to be honest. Feeling stuck and trapped indoors, because with good reason you don't feel like leaving the house once you get home. I think forcing yourself out, even though you don't feel like it, would help a lot. Getting a gym membership, maybe - or any other avenue/outlet that would get you out at least a couple of times a week. It can be incredibly hard to force yourself out in the winter, but...mentally/emotionally it can work wonders.
To combat this depressive morose feeling, I usually just look to do things I haven't done in a long time, go certain places I haven't been in a while, listen to new music, watch movies, or just anything out of the ordinary to change the setting of air.
I go outside every day whether I want/need to or not. A couple of spots I've found that help lighten my mood are spending some time at The Humane Society playing with the kittens. And going to our larger greenhouse to stroll around in the tropical atmosphere. "Oh lookit! Here comes that depressed lady again." :cheese:

And I watch my diet. I have a tendency to crave sugar and carbs when the days get shorter. Caffeine, alcohol and sugar have that rebound effect which can worsen the depressed mood.
These are great suggestions.

Other things that have helped me this season, so far:

- Painting the walls of my living room a light blue, when they were olive green last year -- makes a HUGE difference in lightening the place up

- Draping decorative strand lights on my fireplace mantle, and keeping them turned on 24/7 (this idea was inspired by advice [MENTION=17945]Nixie[/MENTION] gave me a while back)

- Little things, like always having flowers in vases, and lighting scented candles regularly

I'm thinking that in a month or so, I'll start taking a walk every afternoon -- getting outside and soaking up some sun. There's a walking trail by my work and it's lovely, so I might as well take advantage of it.
 

Arctic Hysteria

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Makes me think of the time living in Sweden.
The sun goes up at 10:30 am and goes down at 2pm during the harshest time in the winter. The winter in Sweden lasts up to 5 months a year.
I felt depressed, so depressed, more than I ever had before.
 

gromit

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I think the afternoon walk is a great idea.

One thing I got from my Danish friends, is cozy candles in the winter months, a feeling of hunkering down together with laughter and drinks to make the long nights more bearable.

hygge
 

EJCC

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I think the afternoon walk is a great idea.

One thing I got from my Danish friends, is cozy candles in the winter months, a feeling of hunkering down together with laughter and drinks to make the long nights more bearable.

hygge
I love this. :heart:
 

ceecee

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I think the afternoon walk is a great idea.

One thing I got from my Danish friends, is cozy candles in the winter months, a feeling of hunkering down together with laughter and drinks to make the long nights more bearable.

hygge

I love this - it's what I spend the hot summer looking forward to. Hygge is a much better word for it, I agree.
 
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