If you are one of those claiming that climate change is nothing but a hoax, perhaps you need to take a closer look at the increase in the number of people suffering from SAD. Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) is a type of depression that comes and goes in a seasonal pattern.
SAD is sometimes known as “winter depression” because the symptoms are more apparent and tend to be more severe during the winter.
The symptoms often begin in the autumn as the days start getting shorter. They’re typically most severe during December, January and February.
SAD often improves and disappears in the spring and summer, although it may return each autumn and winter in a repetitive pattern.
Symptoms of SAD can include: persistent low mood, loss of pleasure or interest in normal everyday activities, irritability, feelings of despair, guilt and worthlessness, feeling lethargic (lacking in energy) and sleepy during the day, sleeping for longer than normal and finding it hard to get up in the morning, craving carbohydrates and gaining weight and even thought of death.
For some people, these symptoms can be severe and have a significant impact on their day-to-day activities. According to the National Institute for Mental Health, seasonal depression is four times more likely to occur in women, and younger adults are at higher risk as well.
According to most scientists, lack of sunlight is at the root of all seasonal depression. One study, published in the medical journal The Lancet in 2002, found that the brain produced less serotonin, the neurotransmitter thought to be responsible for our happiness and sense of wellbeing, in winter than in seasons when sunlight lasts longer.
Other studies suggest that it’s an imbalance in melatonin, not serotonin, that causes seasonal depression. Either way, the resulting symptoms are somewhat similar, since melatonin is the chemical responsible for regulating circadian rhythms, and its disruption in winter months could account for SAD sufferers’ feelings of lethargy and near-constant exhaustion. Serotonin is a hormone that affects your mood, appetite and sleep; a lack of sunlight may lead to lower serotonin levels, which is linked to feelings of depression.
SAD is treatable in a number of ways, including light therapy, medication, vitamin supplements, and talk therapy.
