Asma Rehman is a Licensed Professional Counselor and a Certified Grief Recovery Specialist. Most of her clinical experience has been in community settings, including Bo’s Place, Depression and Bipolar Support Alliance, and psychiatric hospitals. She also has experience in the private practice setting. She enjoys working with adults and families to navigate the challenges of life, whether they are personal, with family, or with peers. Areas of interest include grief and loss, depression, anxiety, trauma, stress management, relationship issues, and family communication.
Seasonal affective disorder is a type of depression that occurs in the winter months, when the days are shorter and colder. It’s typically experienced by adults aged 20 and up, and is more common in women, but anyone can experience seasonal affective disorder.
In the winter, the days are shorter (meaning it gets dark much earlier in the day than other times of the year) and colder. Both of these have tangible effects on our bodies!
Have you ever noticed you’re sleepier in the winter? That’s no coincidence! It’s easier for our bodies to drift off to sleep in colder temperatures, so when our environment cools down like it does in the winter, we often feel more tired than throughout the rest of the year. And the short dark days we experience in winter increase our brain’s production of melatonin, which is a sleep related hormone. Naturally, as we produce more melatonin, we experience more energy depletion and exhaustion associated with depression.
That’s why seasonal depression is so common in the winter–the weather is literally slowing you down and making you tired.
What are the symptoms of seasonal affective disorder?
Seasonal affective disorder has similar symptoms to chronic depression. This includes things such as:
Energy depletion
Lack of interest in activities you normally enjoy
Trouble sleeping or sleeping too much
Changes in appetite
Increased feelings of agitation
Mental fog or trouble concentrating
Decreased sex drive
Feelings of hopelessness
What can you do to manage it?
Get more sunlight
If possible, get outside each day while it’s sunny out. If you’re able to take a walk during lunch, this is a great way to do this. That way, you can guarantee at least a small amount of sun exposure each day, even if it’s dark out by the time you leave work. If you can’t get it naturally, try to supplement daily sunlight with a Happy Lamp, which mimics sunlight for light therapy.
Consider avoiding alcohol
Winter is often filled with holiday parties with cocktails, but alcohol is a natural depressant, which can make symptoms of seasonal affective disorder worse. Avoiding it or limiting your intake can help you better manage any symptoms you may already be experiencing.
Be more social
This one is hard, because when seasonal affective disorder hits us, we rarely want to do anything other than lay in bed. But prioritizing social time can help manage the symptoms of SAD–which, like chronic depression, would just get more severe with isolation. Pick a buddy you can confide in about SAD, and let them know you’ll need an extra push this winter to get engaged and active, but that it’s very important to you to keep trying.
Talk to your doctor
Regular therapy and medication are also some of the most effective ways to treat seasonal affective disorder. Talk to your doctor about intervention and treatment methods that can help you manage your symptoms so they don’t get on top of you this season.
DISCLAIMER of Asma Rehman and MH Sub I, LLC as hosting company dba TherapySites.
Asma Rehman and TherapySites expressly disclaim all warranties and responsibilities of any kind, whether express or implied, for the accuracy or reliability of the content of any information contained in this site, and for the suitability, results, effectiveness or fitness for any particular purpose of the content. You are solely responsible for your use or reliance on such information and any foreseeable or unforeseeable consequences arising out of such use or reliance. In no event will Asma Rehman or TherapySites be liable for any damages resulting from the use of or inability to use, the content, whether based on warranty, contract, tort or other legal theory, and whether or not Asma Rehman or TherapySites is advised of the possibility of such damages. In no event will Asma Rehman’s and TherapySites’s aggregate liability exceed U.S. $100.
No comments yet.