We’re so pleased to be able to bring you today another guest blog post from our contributer Emily! In this post Emily talks candidly about her experiences with Seasonal Affective Disorder and some of the ways she has learnt to cope in the winter.
It’s that time of year again in the northern hemisphere when it’s dark when you wake up, sunny while you're at work, and dark again by the time you get home. For the lucky few, this is something they don’t even think about, but if you're anything like me it can have a massive toll on your mental health. This is because of something called Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), also known as winter depression.
SAD is a form of depression that follows a seasonal trend, usually feeling good in summer and worse in winter. It is believed that the cause of SAD is linked to the lack of sunlight we are exposed to during the winter months, resulting in the part of our brain called the hypothalamus not working correctly and affecting things such as sleep, mood and appetite.
This is something I struggled with for a while without even realising, but after having a really positive summer a few years ago and finally feeling like I was back to my old self, I was really confused and disappointed when I suddenly started to fall back into my old ways as the winter hit. I felt tired all the time no matter how much sleep or rest I had, I lost friends because I would constantly cancel plans, I started showing up late to college because I couldn’t force myself to get up in the morning, and I was extremely irritable with very low self-esteem. However, after learning about SAD I was able to take action to help myself feel better during the winter months.
If you are like me and struggle during the winter months, there are a lot of simple ways to help:
Get as much sunlight as possible - instead of eating your lunch at the desk, try sitting outside or going for a walk.
Make your work and home environments as light as possible - try sitting by a window or even outside
Get regular outdoor exercise
Eat a healthy, balanced diet
Try light therapy (Check with your GP if this is a good option for you), purchasing a sunrise/sunset lamp can help with waking up in the mornings and feeling less tired
Visit a GP if SAD is starting to negatively impact your quality of life
After making some of these lifestyle changes and purchasing a sunrise lamp, I found my dramatic declines in mood during the winter began to slowly get easier to cope with and less intense. Although I will never feel as positive in winter as I do in summer, I now feel like my life is not controlled by the winter blues.
For more information about treatments for SAD see https://www.nhs.uk/mental-health/conditions/seasonal-affective-disorder-sad/treatment/
(Here’s a sunrise/set lamp we recommend https://bit.ly/Sun-Lamp - this is not an affiliate link!)