Seasonal Affective Disorder. Do you get it? Before this year, I’d have said no, but this year was different. Our winter was brutal, and while I’m used to our winters being cold and miserable, this year was just worse–colder, windier, drier…even if the sun was out it was almost an angry sun, not a comforting one. I’m not usually a “talk about my mood/feelings kind of person”, so obviously I didn’t get any official diagnosis, but I’m pretty sure that I had SAD. I think/hope it’s starting to go away now, but I can’t wait until it starts to warm up again. I don’t even care if it’s sunny, in fact I’d prefer if it was rainy (we need rain so bad!!), I am just tired of cold and wind.
Anyone else get SAD over the winter? How do you deal with it? All I know is that I never want to be this tired, angry, sad, miserable, and unmotived to do anything or interact with anyone ever again.
Splinters & Stitches 
omg, yes! i wasted 3 months this winter feeling soooo bad, and a friend finally lent me his “happy light”. if you have SAD you need to get one!!! it changed everything for me and now i’m back in full on sewing mode! good luck and best wishes! cat
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I really hope this isn’t something that’s going to be an annual thing, but I am definitely going to look into the happy light–maybe we’d benefit even if it doesn’t get to the point I was at this year.
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Yes I suffer from SAD. I started feeling crappy in the winter when we lived in the far north of Canada (Yukon Territory, next to Alaska), 4 hour long days will do that to you. Even though we don’t live that far north anymore, I still feel less that thrilled with life in the winter. Where we live now, our winters tend to be cloudy and once the sun returns, so does my good mood and motivation.
How I cope is to not expect anything from myself at all, I lower my expectations. On the rare day that we have sunshine, I try to get outside or sit in a bright window or go for a drive. Anything for light.
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If I lowered my expectations any more than I did this year I’m not sure if I’d get out of bed. 😦 As it is, my household kind of fell apart…and I’m a housewife, so I felt especially guilty that my husband was not only being the primary source of income, but also a “single parent”, and the housekeeper.
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I don’t but my best friend used to fall into a hole every November, like clockwork. She manages it better now, partly with medication and partly with being on the West coast where winters are milder and she can be more active in the winter. I know quite a few people who find the sun lamps helpful—that’s probably where I’d start. 😦 I am so ready for spring!!!
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Our winters aren’t usually what I’d call mild (though I’m sure they are by Canadian standards!), but this year was significantly colder than usual. Well below freezing most days, with some below zero + significant windchill. I feel like I need a “I survived winter 2017-18” t-shirt. I am going to look into the sun lamp though, it may be helpful even when the winters aren’t as bad. And yes, SO EXCITED for Spring–I just hope we don’t skip over it in favor of summer. I HATE that! 😦
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Consider taking tumeric/curcumin for SAD. According to research (see pubmed.gov), it improves the functioning of the suprachiasmatic nucleus (“SCN,” near the hypothalamus), which controls responses to light. Effective dosages vary from person to person, but it works for me without additional light, though lights alone can be effective as well. Good luck, SAD is an experience we can all live without.
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