SAD and You: Beating the Winter Time Blues

There’s something about old man winter and how he always seems to get people down. Maybe it’s the cold, maybe it’s the long dark nights. Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) is a recognized malady, but it doesn’t have to put a crimper in your life. There are some very effective ways to combat the winter blues. There are a couple of things that you should know about why winter puts such a damper on your mood.

First, the cold encourages you to stay inside and stay bundled up to stay warm. Secondly, the shorter days means decreased sunlight, which interferes with your body’s normal methods of fighting off that depressed phase.

Stay Active

One of the best ways to fight off any sort of depression is to get up and move. Moderate exercise has a short term benefit that helps combat SAD. Actively moving boosts your circulation and triggers your body to release chemicals and neurotransmitters that naturally improve your mood. If you’re not into high-impact exercises like running, take a look at other options. Things like qigong training can get you moving and restore vitality and life to your heart and mind. When you use this Eastern methodology, you learn how to breathe and move in combinations that enhance your well-being.

Exercise has both a long term effect on depression as well.  When you are more fit from the exercise, your self-image improves, making you more able to mentally withstand the effects of depressive episodes. Additionally, according to a research article by the National Institute of Health, exercise as a cognitive-behavioral therapy can alleviate the symptoms of depression. Essentially, depressed people tend to become more sedentary, which causes them to get out of shape. This, in turn, causes a range of maladies that cause an afflicted person to become more glum about their situation, turning into a vicious cycle.

Don’t Forget About the Sun

One theory about why winter affects people the way it does is because of the reduced amount of sunlight that a person gets. Sunlight is important for mood because it causes the production of serotonin to rise. That’s why standing in the warm sun can raise your mood. Sunlight also plays an important part in the production of Vitamin D. This essential vitamin is part of your body’s defense against depression. It’s not fully understood how it helps regulate mood, but multiple studies have shown its efficacy.

You might think it’s difficult to get bright sun on a winter’s day, but you don’t have to go out in the cold. Stand near a non-UV treated window during a bright day and you’ll gain many of the same effects. If you’re really struggling, consider a lamp that produces a full spectrum of light. These lamps are made to replicate sunlight and can be an effective means of therapy during the dark days of winter for SAD.

Winter may seem like a glum time when the cold saps away your mood and the long dark nights match your mood. But it doesn’t have to be that bad. With a little bit of get-up and go on your part and a willingness to stand in the odd patch of sunshine, you can beat back the winter blues and start smiling again. You might never grow to completely love winter, but at the very least, you won’t be letting it control your mood ever again.