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Seasonal Affective Disorder - Seasonal Affective Disorder Symptom, Cause, Treatment
If you are depressed during the shorter days of winter but feel happier and more energetic in spring and summer, you may have seasonal affective disorder (SAD). If you have seasonal affective disorder, winter's short days and long nights may induce feelings of depression, lethargy, fatigue, cravings for sweets and starches, headaches, sleep problems and irritability. Seasonal affective disorder is also sometimes called winter depression, winter blues, or the hibernation reaction. Every year, people who suffer from SAD experience a predictable pattern: the downturn typically begins as daylight hours dwindle in the fall; symptoms become more severe in January or February, and then symptoms lift as the Vernal Equinox approaches. Another 10-20% of people may have a milder form of seasonal mood change.-- Seasonal affective disorder is more common in women than men. SAD is a type of depression that affects you at the same time each year, usually in the fall or winter. Persons of all ages can develop seasonal affective disorder. Although there's no cure for seasonal affective disorder, treatments can help you successfully manage the condition so that you can go through every season of the year in relative comfort.
Symptoms of Seasonal Affective Disorder
Some are common Symptoms of Seasonal Affective Disorder :
- Decreased interest in work or significant activities
- Increased appetite with weight gain
- Afternoon slumps with decreased energy and concentration
- Sleeping more than usual
- Heaviness of arms and legs
- Reduced interest in daily activities, especially social activities.
- Cravings for complex carbohydrates (such as pasta and bread).
- People with SAD may spend less time with friends, in social activities, or in extracurricular activities.
Causes of Seasonal Affective Disorder
The common Causes of Seasonal Affective Disorder :
- People with SAD may spend less time with friends, in social activities, or in extracurricular activities.
- Chemical changes in the brain caused by changes in the amount of sunlight are probably involved.
- This increased production of melatonin can cause a person to feel sleepy and lethargic.
- Researchers think SAD is caused by an excess of melatonin during the winter months.
- Researchers have found that bright light changes the chemicals in the brain.
- Other research shows that neurotransmitters, chemical messengers in the brain that help regulate sleep, mood, and appetite, may be disturbed in SAD.
Treatment of Seasonal Affective Disorder
- In light therapy, you sit a few feet from a special lamp that's 10 to 20 times brighter than are ordinary indoor lights for 30 or more minutes each day, usually in the morning.
- Your doctor may prescribe an antidepressant medication in combination with light therapy, or as an alternative, if light therapy isn't working.
- Set a timer on a light to go on early in the morning in the bedroom.
- Use a dawn simulator for a more naturalistic artificial dawn.
- Medications (fluoxetine, propranolol, d-fenfluramine, moclobemide, tranylcypromine, bupropion and others)
- Counseling (especially interpersonal psychotherapy and cognitive therapy)
- As with other types of depression, antidepressant medications and talk therapy can be effective.
- Light therapy using a special lamp to mimic the spectrum of light from the sun may also be helpful.
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