… Is it the ‘winter blues’ or Seasonal Affective Disorder?
As we approach winter and the winter solstice, people may experience the “winter blues”. This expression generally describes a sense of lower activity levels and a mild disorientation about the time of day and feeling as if the day is very short due to the longer periods of darkness. It can be accompanied with mild difficulty getting up from bed or mild difficulty leaving the home to go to work and to engage in pleasurable activities.
The encouraging thing about the winter blues is that it is a normal experience. The shorter days impact the biological clock as well as the psychological notion that one has of time. Most people adjust to the shorter days and cooler temperatures to eventually regain their motivation. As human beings, we tend to be able to cope with things if we know that they are temporary. Many people, perhaps, look forward by counting down the days to the winter solstice in order to gain the motivation to lift up their spirits.
… but what happens when the “winter blues” persist?
Emotions, moods and feelings are characterized by two qualities: duration and intensity. When the duration and intensity of certain emotions become unusually long in duration and unusually high in intensity, they can be reliable signals that perhaps, we may be experiencing something a little bit more serious than the “winter blues” or sadness. Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) affects between 2-3% of the population in Canada while the commonly referred to “winter blues” impacts around 15% of the population, according to the Canadian Mental Health Association.
Seasonal Affective Disorder is when the feelings of sadness, low energy, disengagement from enjoyable activities and feelings of hopelessness set in and feel persistent. It feels much like depression and tends to go away as the fall and winter months come to an end.
There are many different coping mechanisms that people experiencing Seasonal Affective Disorder may use in order to alleviate it. It is encouraged that people make a concrete plan to engage in outdoor activities, engaging in regular exercise, getting as much natural light as is possible (i.e., waking up when the sun rises to maximize exposure to natural light) and if despite all of the above attempts to alleviate SAD, it does not go away, psychotherapy with a trained clinician is recommended. Light therapy or medication has received effective results for some people in order to alleviate SAD.
The encouraging part of SAD is that MOST people do not experience SAD and if you happen to be in the small percentage of the population that does experience SAD, it is treatable and temporary. Keeping these two points in mind can help build motivation to receive help in order to construct a plan and gain insights to mollify SAD.
By: Agustina Jorquera