Dec. 14, 2006
The shortest day of the year is only a few short days away.
Late nights at work — a 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. shift, for example — can mean spending no time in the sun for weeks. Christmas cocktail parties, boisterous nights out in the snow and cozy fireplaces can only do so much in temporarily warding off the gloom.
Many people suffer from a wintery form of depression known as Seasonal Affective Disorder, or SAD. In the psychiatric bible, the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, SAD is a specifier, because it indicates a affective behavior disorder with a seasonal pattern specifier.
“As with so many psychiatric diagnosis, the symptoms are things most people have some of the time: depression, anxiety, lack of energy, sleeping a lot, weight gain, difficulty concentrating,” said Grace Jessen, a clinical social worker and psychotherapist at Aurora Health Care in Germantown. “When it comes to making a psychiatric diagnosis, you look at how many symptoms there are and how often they occur.”
“The first think to look at is if these symptoms be explained by other things. The second is, is it a depressive phase? In april, do you have start feeling better? Has this happened in at least two or three consecutive years and are these symptoms happening most days?” Jessen said.
It is estimated as much as 10 to 20 percent of the U.S. population suffers from some degree of SAD. It mainly afflicts people in their 20’s and 30’s, and women are four times more likely to suffer from SAD.
“It would be kind of a pattern that you notice over the years,” said Carolyn Mangan-Casey, a therapist who runs Washington County’s outpatient mental health counseling. “You really have to do a thorough history, and look for patterns and when it happens to subside.”
Scientists have speculated as to the contributing causes of SAD. The shortened hours of daylight might disrupt the 24-hour physiological cycle known as the circadian rhythm. Less light can also set the body’s levels of the neurotransmitter serotonin and the hormone melatonin askew.
Outside pressures, such as seasonal unemployment, the pressure of the holidays and the crunch of studying for finals compound SAD at the end of the year, Magnan-Casey said.
“It’s not like a clean cut like an apple; it’s more like onions, with layers and layers of hurt and pain,” Mangan-Casey said.
Sufferers often spend time in front of full-spectrum lights — bulbs 10 to 12 times brighter than normal which project the full range of colors in the spectrum. These lights can stimulate the body to react as it does to sunlight, by producing certain vitamins and triggering other neurotransmitters.
Time spent in the sun is always a plus, but the cold weather can also inhibit physical activity and exercise levels, which are linked to humans’ moods.
“Walking is the most common thing recommeded for anyone facing any kind of depression,” Jessen said.
Jessen said this factors are evident during blizzard conditions. Although people complain during a snowstorm, their moods are often noticeably elevated because of the extra light being reflected off the snow, as well as the physical activity of shoveling and snow blowing.
Psychotherapy becomes on option as well, because as Jessen puts it, “once you start feeling bad you start telling yourself reasons you’re feeling bad.”
A doctor might also prescribe antidepressants, or recommend an adjustment if the patient is already medicated for a broader depression.
Mangan-Casey said it was important to maintain a balance during the holidays by knowing seasonal events and activities are not obligations. Maintaining activity during the winter doldrums was essential, she said.
“There’s a lot of people who don’t want to go out and play in the snow, they don’t want to go skiing and snowboarding,” Magnan-Casey said. “I think it really takes so energy to cultivate interest in things after the holidays.”