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Seasonal Affective Disorder most often kicks in on gloomy winter days. But while less common, seasonal depression can also affect people on sunny spring and summer days — and, according to experts, it’s just as serious.
Symptoms of SAD include:
- Feeling depressed most of the day almost every day.
- Having low energy levels.
- Losing interest in activities you used to enjoy.
- Difficulty concentrating.
- Feeling hopeless or worthless.
- Agitation and restlessness
- Anxiety
- Insomnia
- Lack of appetite, resulting in weight loss
- Instances of violent behavior
Whether you’re struggling with summertime blues or clinically diagnosed summer-pattern depression, these strategies (along with expert treatment in some cases) can help you manage your symptoms.
- Identify Your Triggers and Make Room to Feel Your Feelings: Whether it’s the heat and humidity, financial stresses related to a need for more childcare or vacations, or body-image issues worsened by wearing warm-weather clothing that shows more skin. When you’re overwhelmed by your emotions, it can cause you to shut down. Make room to feel the feelings and remember that there is no shame is asking for help.Â
- Make Sleep a Priority: The long, sunny days and warm nights can make it hard to sleep. Our brain needs sleep to function; without it you’ll be less patient and focused, make poor decisions, and be more moody, irritable, and emotional.
- For Parents, Share Responsibilities With Other Parents: One of the biggest shifts that happens during the warmer months is summer vacation for school-aged children and young adults. Daily challenges can become more manageable when you and other parents tackle them together.
- Start a Yoga Practice: Yoga can boost your mental and physical fitness by improving sleep, busting stress, strengthening your heart, and more. It links movement with breath and because both of these factors can affect the body’s stress reactions, yoga can be a silver bullet in tough times.
- Build Self-Care Into Your Schedule: Self-care is not an indulgence. Allowing time for relaxation, social activities and other feel-good needs helps keep you healthy and helps you tackle your daily responsibilities more easily and effectively. Including elements in your day that help you recharge and replenish is restorative and preventive for your mental health. It may be easier to think of these activities as extremely important appointments with a VIP that should not be missed. That VIP is YOU.
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