S.A.D.

Here's a new one to me... Seasonal Affected Disorder. It's a medical condition, a form of depression affecting people in one season only, usually in the darker, drearier winter months from October to February.

I hate to self diagnose... but I think this may say a lot about my current mood over the winter for the past few years... LOL

"Seasonal affective disorder, or SAD, also known as winter depression is an affective, or mood, disorder. Most SAD sufferers experience normal mental health throughout most of the year, but experience depressive symptoms in the winter or summer. SAD is rare, if existent at all, in the tropics, but is measurably present at latitudes north of 30°N, or south of 30°S."

"Seasonal mood variations are believed to be related mostly to daylight, not temperature. For this reason, SAD is prevalent even in mid-latitude places with mild winters, such as Seattle and Vancouver. People who live in the Arctic region are especially susceptible due to the effects of polar nights. Prolonged periods of overcast weather can also exacerbate SAD.

SAD is a serious disorder and may require hospitalization. The symptoms of SAD mimic those of dysthymia or clinical depression. At times, patients may not feel depressed, but rather lack energy to get out of bed and do things. Norman Rosenthal, MD, pioneer in SAD research and author of Winter Blues: Everything You Need to Know to Beat Seasonal Affective Disorder, has described SAD as “an energy crisis.”[1] He has estimated that the prevalence of SAD in the adult US population is between 1.4 percent (in Florida) and 9.7 percent (in New Hampshire)."

"Treatments using light are the most common, and of these bright light therapies tend to be the treatment of choice.[1] The use of a therapuetic light box is the most effective, leading to an approximately 85 percent success rate[10]. A specially designed light, many times brighter than normal office lighting, is placed near the sufferer. It should provide a dose of 10,000 lux. Many use it for 30-60 minutes daily. The sufferer should remain within sight of the light-box, with their eyes open and unshielded, only occassionaly glancing at the light box. The best time to administer light therapy is still a matter of debate, though use in the morning has been suggested to mimic the effects of normal dawn on the patient.[11]In fact, some studies have shown dawn simulation to be more effective than bright lights in treating SAD.[12] Light therapy may take several weeks to take full effect though some improvement should be noted within a week. It should be continued until natural daily light exposure becomes sufficient, usually during spring.[citation needed]"

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seasonal_affective_disorder

Other Sources for Info
http://www.sada.org.uk/
http://www.cmha.ca/bins/content_page.asp?cid=3-86-93

Where to get Light Boxes online:
- http://www.sunshinesales.ca/?ref=gg_sad
- http://www.fullspectrumsolutions.com/?sc_cid=150&s_kwcid=seasonal%20affective%20disorder%20light%20therapy373686976&gclid=CLLlmaX47YgCFSXLYAodaTOdiw