Posted on: November 9, 2007
The SAD Days of November
If you notice that your mood, energy level and motivation take a nosedive each November only to return to normal in April, you may have Seasonal Affective Disorder. Here’s how to keep your life on-track
By Anna T. Hirsh
CTW Features
As the fall and winter days get darker, many people experience holiday-related grumpiness, an urge to consume comfort foods or a desire to sleep in just a few more minutes to avoid the cold. Some people, however, who have a more serious reaction to the changing seasons may have Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), an atypical depression linked to a lack of sunlight. Symptoms of SAD include lethargy, fatigue, weight gain and other problems that can impair daily life.
Just as sunlight affects the seasonal activities of animals (think bears that snooze the SAD months away), seasonal light variation can affect some humans.
“It’s actually quite complex,” says Stephen Josephson, Ph.D., a clinical psychologist and Assistant Psychology Professor at both Cornell University and Columbia University, New York. A lack of sunlight, he says, means your body produces more melatonin during normal waking hours, causing fatigue. The consequence is SAD.
“In summary, the amount of sunlight a person experiences in a given day affects the amount of melatonin secreted by their pineal gland (a tiny endocrine gland situated at the center of the brain),” he says.
“Melatonin, a hormone, has a sedating effect, so the pineal gland slows production during daylight hours to keep you alert and increases production at night to make you sleepy.”
According to Karen L. Swartz, M.D., Director of Clinical Programs for the Johns Hopkins Mood Disorders Center, Baltimore, SAD most commonly affects energy levels, sleep-patterns, mood, weight and appetite. She says, however, that the symptoms can be mild to very severe. “Some people with SAD do experience suicidal thoughts,” Swartz says, “and if you’re bipolar or already experiencing a mood disorder, SAD can make it even worse.”
Josephson says that for people with bipolar disorder, SAD can cause “more mania, hypomania, impulsivity, acting out and an inability to sleep during the fall and winter.”
Pre-diagnosed manic depression aside, people who suffer from SAD usually live completely normal lives during the spring and summer seasons, and, according to Swartz, SAD is not normally a devastating type of depression. “Many people just put up with it,” she says, “and drag themselves through the winter.”
They do – but it doesn’t have to be that way.
There are a variety of steps people can take to control or even counteract their SAD symptoms. “It is crucial to be active,” Josephson says. “Exercise, preferably outdoors where you can get what little sunlight is available. Make an effort to be with people, engage in productive or pleasurable enterprises and learn strategies for focusing on positive thoughts. You can also reduce carbohydrate intake to reduce sleepiness.”
In addition, most mental health experts advocate the use of a 10,000-lux, full-spectrum light therapy box. These boxes, which can be purchased for the home, approximate the early morning sun, but are specially designed with filters to avoid headaches or damage to your eyesight. For this reason, you want to make sure you get one from a reputable company, and it is a good idea to consult with your doctor about proper usage.
Some professionals feel that the box can actually be helpful at night as well, however, the directions say to sit about two feet away from the front of the box for 30-60 minutes in the morning. The boxes are set up to be easy to use, so you can sit in front of it while you read the morning paper, have your coffee or work on a project. There are also versions that look like desk lamps for people who prefer to use it at work.
“Light can be very powerful as a treatment,” Josephson says. “It is often thought of as a fad, and yet it actually functions similarly to an anti-depressant but with few side effects.”
That said, the FDA has approved Wellbutrin and other anti-depressants for use in relation to more severe SAD symptoms, but Swartz notes that light can be just as affective and is totally natural.
“It isn’t clear that there are particular things which put certain people at more of a risk for SAD,” Swartz says. “But there does appear to be a geographic factor. Someone living in Florida or a tropical climate might not know that they are vulnerable – the climate can mask it. But if they move, that can change. So it’s good for everyone to understand what SAD is.”
As far as a miracle cure goes, she says, “Short of choosing to live at the equator most people with SAD simply have to learn how to manage their symptoms.”
If a trip to the equator isn’t in the cards but SAD symptoms are, maybe put the light therapy box on hold. Definitely consult a health professional.
