Seasonal Affective Disorder, Winter Blues Depression for SAD Phototherapy, Light Therapy Treatment

Seasonal affective disorder, SAD for short, is considered a form of depression. Sometimes referred to as the winter blues, the condition is seasonally cyclic. This means it comes and goes at the same time every year.

For most suffering with this depression, seasonal affective disorder symptoms come on during the annual shortening of daylight and subside as daylight grows longer.

However, some get depressed during the reversed light pattern. And for those who work long daytime hours inside a poorly lit building, winter blues may be experience all year round.

The exact cause of seasonal affective disorder remains a mystery. But this depression causing health condition appears linked to your biorhythms, neurotransmitters and hormones. These three factors likely play an important role in causing your SAD depression:

All three are affected by reduced sunlight hours and are involved in the sleep (down) and awake (up) cycle. Essentially, less light makes for more down time. And those with seasonal affective disorder symptoms go down too far.

As expected, the incidence of winter blues is greater in areas farthest from the equator. And SAD is more common in women.

There is a broad range of symptoms tied to seasonal affective disorder, such as:

  • overeating
  • depression
  • weight gain
  • body aches
  • crying spells
  • loss of sex drive
  • irritability, anxiety
  • activity level decrease
  • insomnia, oversleeping
  • lack of interest, hopelessness
  • tiredness, fatigue, loss of energy
  • craving foods high in carbohydrates
  • trouble concentrating, processing information

SAD symptoms are more intense over the darkest time.

Some winter blues symptoms mimic other forms of depression or health conditions, like:

So SAD can be misdiagnosed.

If you suffer the “winter blues” there are treatments and things you can do to help with your SAD funk. Light therapy, aka phototherapy, is a proven effective therapy. It works by increasing your light exposure. And this exposure doesn’t need to be sunlight, but it does need to be many times brighter than normal lighting.

Light therapy used to combat winter blues is accomplished by facing a special fluorescent lamp for 30 to 90 minutes per day. For best results, this SAD treatment should be used both morning and evening. Phototherapy often alleviates symptoms within a matter of days.

Phototherapy can be done at home with the use of a light box or light visor. If light therapy offers SAD relief, don’t discontinue it too soon because symptoms can return. And never use a tanning beds to treat your seasonal affective disorder.

Additional relief beyond phototherapy, is taking antidepressants. The class of antidepressants that have been found to be highly effective are serotonin selective reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs). This type of SAD treatment may take several weeks for the full benefits. And you may have to try several different types before discovering the best one for you with the fewest drug side effects.

There are some measures you can take on your own to assist with your winter blues, like:

  • get some morning outdoor light
  • position yourself near sunny windows
  • go outside and soak up some sun whenever possible, even on cloudy days
  • consume more omega-3 fatty acids because it works against depression symptoms
  • brighten your living space by opening blinds, adding skylights, trimming sun blocking tree branches

And exercise regularly because it reduces stress and anxiety, and lifts your SAD mood.

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