Is S.A.D. a real disorder?

You could get a light box. I had one, but i never used it and now I don’t know where it is. S.A.D. is real, but I don’t think it ever gets very severe.

But the light box is around 70 euro, so it’s dear enough, it works by emitting a bright light and you sit beside it for like a half hour every day to compensate for the lack of sunlight during the winter.

Of course it is. Everyone in my bipolar group has a much harder time in the winter. I asked one person if she had a plan for this winter. She said she didn’t, but I forget what others suggested. Probably the usual. Exercise. Get outside as much as possible. Hang out with friends. Light boxes help, but according to my shrink, they need to be used for twenty to forty minutes early in the morning and also in the evening. My mornings are too hectic to make that possible.

It is real. Many studies have been done. I HATE when the skies are grey day after day. It definitely affects my mood. I lived in FL most of my adult years, and it changes your life. My first piece of advice is get your vitamin D checked. they estimate 25% of the population is dificient. I struggle to keep mine in normal range, even with mega prescription doses. I have never tried a light box, but I might. Also, a weeks vacation to the tropics early February is just in time to make it through the winter without freaking out.

It’s definitely real. I’ve dealt with depression year-round, but I use a light box in the mornings. There’s no way I can afford a week’s vacation to anywhere.

Keep active, spend time with friends, listen to music that makes you happy. Speak to your doctor to get some advice.

About as much as PMD [pre-menstrual distress] is. Noticeable, treatable distress in many, but a major psychological or physical illness, nyet.

conversely, I always find I’m in a better mood when springtime rolls around.

Here is an article on it and treatment for it from The Mayo Clinic.

Only if S.O.B.E.R. is.

Suddenly Out of Beer Empathetic Response