My Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) is coming back...???

Post Reply New Topic

Recently, I have been having suicidal thoughts and just feel like crying a lot. I was wondering why I felt like this since I am beginning to start college, and finally out of my hellhole of a school so I should be happy.

But then I remembered how yesterday evening got darker a lot quicker, so then I realised it is because winter is coming and at winter I get a dose of SAD because i just feel like an absolute mess when the winter comes. Last winter, I never did my homework because the house was so cold and I felt so drained and tired, I felt depressed all the time, all i wanted to do was eat, so that did not help and also i gained weight. I came across more weird than usually to my classmates and friends, which ended up with people dropping me and avoiding me.

I just need to know what can I do this winter to avoid being depressed from the weather? I just really do not want to come across as some mentally ill person at college, because this is my last shot to come across as a normal person to people, if that is how you want me to put it.

Any advice would be appreciated, thank you.

I have it too and all it is literally is a vitamin d deficiency. Get some Vitamin D from your grocery store/pharmacy and start taking 2000 IU a day and keep upping it until you feel like it were a warm bright summer day. That or get a sun lamp.

Definitely get a full spectrum/UV light. I usually get a project to do, like an afghan or something, and work on my project each day as I sit under my lamp. I'm a little late starting this year, but I've been getting some quality outdoor time. I'm going to be starting tomorrow. I hope it helps you. I also take an anti-depressant year-round, but I know of some people who just take one during this time of year and stay on it until spring.

My guess is to try and replicate summer sunshine in order to avoid SAD symptoms. As other mentioned a sun light can be helpful. Taking vitamin D3, aiming for a testing level of around 50ng/ml - your doctor can help - would be good. Maybe even going to a tanning bad, avoid being burnt, that uses both UVA and UVB lights will help. (Most tanning places only use UVA lights. You want to avoid those places from what I've read.)

Dr. Cannell has written some about the positive psychological effects sunlight can have on a person.

"Positive Psychological Effects of Sunlight"

http://www.ehow.com/info_8198393_positi ... light.html

I know a person who has seasonal depression. For them, light therapy is very effective. It basically entails getting up really early, and sitting in front of bright lights for an hour or so. It is easy to make a light box, or buy one. They say that it does not have the side effects of medications.

Winter is coming.