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Although Christmastime depression certainly can be associated with personal losses, a less frequently considered source of the condition is seasonal affective disorder, also known as SAD.
Medical science does not have a good theory about the causes of seasonal affective disorder. Researchers have identified a part of the brain, the suprachiasmatic nucleus at the front of the hypothalamus, that acts as a kind of pacemaker to make sure that people are more active during the day and less active during the night. This inner pacemaker is not perfect. It tends to let you sleep longer and longer unless light falls on your retinas early in the morning to “reset” it. If you do not see the morning's first light, or if you live in an arctic region where the winter sun rises late in the morning or not at all, then you feel sleepier and sleepier for longer and longer each day. If you have to get up to go about your daily activities anyway, then your mind and body simply rebel. People who get SAD are unusually affected.
Although science does not explain why some people suffer SAD and others do not, doctors usually are successful in treating it. Antidepressant medication often is not necessary. Instead, a totally natural approach usually works best. Getting 20 minutes of sunlight, either outdoors or in a solarium, before 9 o'clock in the morning, seems to reset the brain to a normal schedule of feeling aroused and feeling drowsy.
It's important to get enough light. If you have to rely on artificial light to treat SAD, then the minimum intensity should be 1500 lux. The packaging of your lamp will disclose the number of lux the lamp produces. If you want to start feeling better in just two or three days, however, then you need at least 10,000 lux for 30 minutes each morning. After your brain has reset to a normal rhythm, then 1500 lux every morning will keep you feeling alert during the day and ready to get rest at night.
The medication that works best for SAD is agomelatine. Over the counter melatonin, however, can also help restore normal sleep. The most important thing to remember about melatonin is that you should only take it at night, about an hour before your bedtime. Melatonin taken during the day induces sleepiness when you are already feeling an energy slump.
Although science does not explain why some people suffer SAD and others do not, doctors usually are successful in treating it. Antidepressant medication often is not necessary. Instead, a totally natural approach usually works best. Getting 20 minutes of sunlight, either outdoors or in a solarium, before 9 o'clock in the morning, seems to reset the brain to a normal schedule of feeling aroused and feeling drowsy.
It's important to get enough light. If you have to rely on artificial light to treat SAD, then the minimum intensity should be 1500 lux. The packaging of your lamp will disclose the number of lux the lamp produces. If you want to start feeling better in just two or three days, however, then you need at least 10,000 lux for 30 minutes each morning. After your brain has reset to a normal rhythm, then 1500 lux every morning will keep you feeling alert during the day and ready to get rest at night.
The medication that works best for SAD is agomelatine. Over the counter melatonin, however, can also help restore normal sleep. The most important thing to remember about melatonin is that you should only take it at night, about an hour before your bedtime. Melatonin taken during the day induces sleepiness when you are already feeling an energy slump.
Continue reading after recommendations
- Smith, E. and Beyond Blue: The National Depression Initiative. Treating depression: the Beyond Blue guidelines for treating depression in primary care. “Not so much what you do but that you keep doing it.” Med J Aust 2002,20:176(suppl):s77–8