by Jan Cadieux, M.Ed.
Do you dread the long dark days of winter and the lethargy they bring? Do you crave bread or desserts, over eat and gain weight? Do you yearn for a winter holiday in the sun, and feel energized if you get closer to the equator?
You may be one of a growing number of people who realize they suffer from the lack of light in northern winters. For those whose symptoms are mild, you may find relief from sitting by a bright reading light for an hour at dawn and dusk. If the light helps a little, but you still feel yourself sinking into a feeling of just wanting to sleep until spring, you may have what is called Seasonal Affect Disorder (SAD), a seasonal form of depression.
Lack of sunlight in some people translates into an overproduction of melatonin and symptoms resembling hibernation. Severe symptoms can include chronic migraine and a tendency to bruise. People living in the arctic often suffer a few days of "winter madness" or annual arctic psychosis which includes symptoms of hallucinations and paranoia.
Remember learning that bears eat tremendous quantities of food in the fall, and then find a cave to sleep in for most of the winter? Similarly, a people with SAD will usually have an almost insatiable craving for carbohydrates - bread, cookies, chocolate... and will put on extra pounds. They feel constantly tired; not just in the morning when the alarm goes off. Throughout the day they feel like they need toothpicks to prop their eyelids open, despite drinking copious amounts of coffee, and look forward to going to bed as soon as possible.
Whereas, a sleepy head (or teenager) may be like this all the time or
sporadically; a person with SAD will start to feel highly energized each spring
and throughout the summer. Some people become almost hyperactive or manic and
work tirelessly from dawn until dusk during the spring and summer. For some
people SAD starts with the blooming of
fall crocuses and ends with the blooming of spring crocuses.
Along with this feeling of not being able to get enough sleep may also come unusual sluggishness, slowed mental ability, forgetfulness and irritability in a person who is normally capable and easy going. Some of my clients have complained of not being able to add up their milk bill, forgetting their friend's phone numbers and names, reversing letters while writing and taking twice as long as usual with simple projects. Often people suffering from SAD will not be alert enough to see this happening to themselves except in hindsight. They may only realize that they don't feel sociable. Life can slip into a pattern of just sleeping, eating, going to work and sleeping. And if they're not able to work, they're reduced to just eating and sleeping.
If you find yourself thinking, "All that eating and sleeping sounds great!", you don't have SAD. It may be that for some people with mild winter lethargy this change is okay. They may even welcome slowing down their schedule and having time for contemplation. But for those who are severely affected, life with constant fatigue means an agonizing torture to whip themselves out of bed, to try to cope at work, to fake that they are okay and find excuses for avoiding social situations. With a lack of interest in sex, an inability to enjoy usual interests or hobbies or the company of friends, life in winter can become intolerable. One of my clients describes winter as "a black hole of despair where no amount of positive affirmations work."
Many people find themselves in a double bind caused by our society's belief that willpower is all that's needed to get ourselves out of these states. Clients often say, "I've got nothing to be depressed about!;" or "If I could just pull up my socks and get on with life." So most people will try to do this and not tell anyone the internal agony they're suffering. This cuts them off from possible support of friends and new medical research results.
Perhaps if more people were aware that many highly respected and accomplished people have suffered depression and manic periods, similar to SAD, the stigma would fade. Many famous and creative people such as Isaac Newton, Beethoven, Theodore Roosevelt and Earnest Hemingway have suffered from depression. Abraham Lincoln was not only plagued by severe bouts of depression, with headaches and fatigue, but he also missed his wedding ceremony the first time and friends instituted a suicide watch over him.
Sir Winston Churchill, who as well as being prime minister of England also received a Nobel prize in literature, described his depression as his "black dog always waiting to bare it's teeth." Handel composed the Messiah we enjoy at Christmas time during a manic period of his manic/depression and Charles Schultz, the author of the comic strip Peanuts, suffered from depression that he felt was like always getting up on the morning of a funeral.
So
take heart all you SAD sufferers! At least you are in good creative company and
your pattern of high productivity at other times of the year is strong enough to
convince the world that your winter blues is a true phenomena, rather than
something you made up as an excuse to goof-off.
There are hopeful looking advances in the latest medical research. In the past, those who suffered severe seasonal affect disorder, were "indisposed" for most of December through February, unless they could afford to go south for the winter. Since spring sunlight is five to ten times brighter than usual indoor lights, the first light therapy meant spending six hours a day under banks of bright lights! You can imagine the eyestrain.
Research has now shown that diffuse light from special parabolic reflecting units can be used for as little as half an hour at dawn or dusk for some people. Whether they need to be full spectrum rather than incandescent or U.V. blocked is still being debated, and we're waiting to hear about the efficiency of the visors and 50 percent rose-gradient glasses.
Testing for SAD can be done in a Seasonal Affect Disorder Clinic which your doctor can refer you to. The good news is that you may notice an improvement under a light source for just half an hour before dawn. (A small light costs about $200; larger and more expensive lights are also available). If lights alone don't produce all the results desired a more comprehensive approach may be necessary.
Boosting
the health of the body with proper nutrition, rest, fresh air and appropriate
exercise is also essential. In the beginning, many people with SAD are too
fatigued to be able to organize their own program, and this is where family,
good friends and a counsellor can help.
If you think you might be suffering from Winter Blues send me a short e-mail note briefly describing how you are feeling. I may be able to help with on-line counselling.
Copyright 1999 Jan Cadieux M. Ed. Counselling Psychology
If you are taking St. John's Wort as a natural remedy for depression, be careful not to get too much sunshine or bright light. Apparently there's a connection with cataracts. For the entire article see the New Scientist website.