Mastering seasonal sadness (seasonal affective disorder) is challenging, but completely possible with the right tools. I have suffered from seasonal sadness for many years, but now I have the tools to recognize it and turn it around. When the snow flies, from November to the middle of April, I know I have to be on guard against it. It starts as a sinking feeling in my chest, and if I’m not careful it will take over. Here are some of the things I do to master seasonal sadness.
What is Seasonal Affective Disorder?
According to the American Psychiatric Association, “SAD is more than just “winter blues.” The symptoms can be distressing and overwhelming and can interfere with daily functioning. However, it can be treated. About 5 percent of adults in the U.S. experience SAD and it typically lasts about 40 percent of the year. It is more common among women than men.” Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD)
The article continues, “common symptoms of SAD include fatigue, even with too much sleep, and weight gain associated with overeating and carbohydrate cravings. SAD symptoms can vary from mild to severe and can include many symptoms similar to major depression, such as:
- Feeling sad or having a depressed mood
- Loss of interest or pleasure in activities once enjoyed
- Changes in appetite; usually eating more, craving carbohydrates
- Change in sleep; usually sleeping too much
- Loss of energy or increased fatigue despite increased sleep hours
- Increase in purposeless physical activity (e.g., inability to sit still, pacing, handwringing) or slowed movements or speech (these actions must be severe enough to be observable to others)
- Feeling worthless or guilty
- Difficulty thinking, concentrating, or making decisions
- Thoughts of death or suicide”
Mastering Seasonal Sadness.
Mastering seasonal sadness begins with mastering your mind. How do you master your mind? You do that by recognizing what you are thinking and why. Once you intentionally start thinking about what you are thinking you can change your thoughts, your outlook on life, and your whole day. What do I mean when I say intentionally think about what you are thinking? When you start feeling down. Stop yourself and ask why am I feeling this way? What thoughts are going through my head right now? What was I watching, reading, or listening to that made me feel this way. Once you have established what you are thinking and the cause, you can take action. Firstly, you can choose to think a different more helpful thought. For example:
- Feeling – sad
- Thought – My life sucks, I never get to do fun things.
- What did you watch/read/listen to – Scrolled social media seeing post after post of people on the beach.
Ok, now we know what led to you feeling sad. You inundated your mind with images of other people having fun in exotic locations while you are at home working. What your mind isn’t taking into account is that the vast majority of social media posts are highly photoshopped and enhanced. Your mind doesn’t take into account that they probably saved scrupulously every month in order to afford that one week vacation. They will soon be back home, working diligently (just like you) in order to catch up from the expenses they just incurred.
Is that thought really true?
The next thing to ask yourself is whether your thought, “My life sucks, I never get to do fun things”, is really true. Now is the time to write out a list of at least 10 gratitudes. Do you have a roof over your head, groceries in the kitchen, and money in the bank? Then you are living in the top 20% of people in the world! You may not be on a beach in Hawaii, but your life doesn’t suck and you do get to do fun things.
After you’ve accepted that your life doesn’t suck, start making a list of fun things you like to do. Maybe being on a beach in Hawaii isn’t what you’d consider fun. Making the list will raise your natural dopamine levels, as you dream of all the fun things you would like to do. Let your imagination run wild, and write everything you can think of. Once your list is completed you can sort them into things that are affordable for right now, and those that may need some time, planning, and saving to accomplish. Having something to look forward to goes a long way in making your everyday tasks more enjoyable. Planning your trip or activity can be just as fun as doing it!
Mastering seasonal sadness with gratitude!
Being grateful for what you have greatly improves your mood and blasts seasonal sadness into the stratosphere! Since you already have a list of 10 things you’re grateful for, set a timer for 15 minutes and come up with as many as you can. Believe me, once you start it’ll be hard to stop! When you see your list of things you’re grateful for, the world will become a much happier place. Take that list and print it out on fancy paper, or create a document in your phone or computer that you can read from time to time.
Having that list available when you are feeling down will help immensely in your turn around time. Writing out 3 gratitudes every night before bed and first thing in the morning will also help you start the day off right. Don’t reach for your phone, reach for your journal or pad of paper and write out what you are grateful for. If you’re driving or can’t write them down, count them out on your fingers. Once you get to 10 things you’re grateful for, you will have rewired your brain away from your negative thoughts and onto a positive track. You will then be able to start pursuing the fun tasks you want to do!
Change is always possible.
Do you know you can change change your life by changing your thoughts? It’s called reframing your thoughts, and the best thing is it’s free and easy to do! When you recognize your thought is negative and untrue, you reframe it to something helpful.
Thought: My life sucks, and I don’t get to do fun things.
Reframe: My life is really good, and I can do fun things whenever I want!
I’m in the top 20% of people on earth, and I have the opportunity to be whoever I want to be!
Thought: Nobody likes me.
Reframe: There are lots of people who like me, and I’m ok if someone doesn’t.
I know that thought isn’t true, and as long I like me that’s all that matters.
Once you have reframed your negative thought into a powerful one, you are on your way to a better day!
Even if you wake up feeling stuck in a life you hadn’t planned, you can always change it. That’s the great thing about being human, we have minds capable of helping us create the lives of our dreams! Remember the childhood question, “What do you want to be when you grow up?” Until we are resting in our graves, we are still growing up! If you aren’t happy with your career, change it. Your house, change it. Your city, change it! Get that second job to help earn the money you need to go back to school, or move. There are so many online options for education right now, it’s crazy!!! We are very privileged to live in this time in history where knowledge is just a key stroke away. If there was ever a time in history when you could be anything you wanted to be, now is that time; so take advantage of it!
Knowing your worth.
Do you know your worth? I’m not talking about what’s in your bank account or the plaque on your office door. I’m talking about your worth as a child of God. Whether you believe in God or not, He still believes in you. He couldn’t imagine the world without you, so He started putting things in motion so that your grandparents, and parents would meet. It doesn’t matter what the evolutionary theories may say, you being born is no accident. God created you for a great purpose, and that is for you to discover. Once you have, embrace your passion and go for it! Create the life of your dreams knowing you are worthy because God says so, and He never lies. You are good enough just as you are. There will always be something new to learn, and just like you learned to walk, you can learn whatever you need to know.
Embracing my worth as a child of God was the turning point for me. When I realized that my saying I wasn’t worthy was calling God a liar, I knew something had to change. My journey out of depression began when I decided that I was going to believe God and embrace my worth in Him. He led me by the hand and we left my depression in the rear view mirror. Do I still have down days? Of course I do, but I also know that God is on my side, and I am committed to Him, my husband, my kids, and helping those around me.
That’s what keeps me moving forward on the down days, doing the little things I need to do to fulfill God’s purpose for me. If you don’t have a personal relationship with Jesus yet, and I highly recommend you do, you can still find inspiration to move forward. You can find your inspiration in the goals you want to achieve, or your close family and friends. Just know that the world would not be the same without you, and you’re being here matters!
Mastering seasonal sadness with sunshine.
One of the reasons seasonal sadness or SAD is so prevalent in Northern climates is the lack of sunshine. Sunshine is very important for our health. Sunshine on your skin helps create vitamin D stores in the body. Vitamin D helps create melatonin which is required for a good nights rest. Melatonin is what makes us tired so we fall asleep. Without melatonin, you toss and turn and don’t get 8 hours of sleep. Without sleep, your body does not function optimally leaving you grumpy, tired, and more prone to sadness.
This means you need to get outside as much as possible during the winter months. If you can’t get outside due to extreme cold or slippery conditions, a day light therapy lamp is a really great option. There are tons of models out there, and they each give detailed instructions on how long you need to be in front of them. I really love my Carex Day-Light Classic Plus Bright Light 10,000 LUX Therapy Lamp.
The power of exercise.
Do not underestimate the power of exercise. Getting out into the sunshine goes hand in hand with moving your body which is the whole purpose of exercise. It doesn’t matter what you do, just do something to get your body active. So find an activity you enjoy like: swimming, walking, running, skating, skiiing, snow boarding, surfing, rollerblading, cycling, rowing, stretching, yoga, weight lifting, basketball, volleyball, soccer, hockey football, Tai Chi, martial arts, dancing,…the list is endless. Find what makes you happy and as Nike said, “Just Do It!”
Exercise increases your dopamine levels which as I mentioned before makes you feel happier. So even though you don’t feel like leaving your bed or couch, do it anyway. That’s a phrase that will really help you master seasonal sadness; Do It Anyway! We live in a culture where feelings reign supreme, which is proving to be very counter productive. We simply can’t base our actions on feelings.
I’m sure you’d agree that most mornings you don’t feel like going to work. What would happen if you gave into those feelings? You’d get fired. Soon you would not be able to pay for food, gas, or rent. So what do you do? You do it anyway, and that’s how we need to deal with our seasonal sadness. No matter how we feel, we exercise in some form, get some sunshine on our skin, change our thoughts, and DO IT ANYWAY! Once you start it will get easier, and soon the task will be done. Your endorphins will be pumping as well as the pride you will feel in yourself for your accomplishments!
Know your triggers.
Knowing what sets you spiralling into depression is just as important as knowing your worth. Once you know your triggers, you can avoid them. Scrolling social media, watching sad movies, listening to sad music, reading about politics in newspaper or magazine articles, are all possible triggers. Reading about true life tragedies is bound to bring most people down. If that person is you, don’t fall for that trigger. It doesn’t mean you can’t ever watch a movie, read, or listen to music again, it means don’t do it late at night or first thing in the morning. You can also limit the amount you engage in the activity at one time, or make sure you have friends or family around that you can debrief with afterwards.
If you find that any of these things really brings you down, simply remove them for awhile and see if you feel better. For me social media, true life stories, politics, and world events really bring me down. I avoid social media as much as possible, and don’t allow myself to scroll for more than 5 minutes. I try to stay up to date with world events by reading the headline only. My Political Science and Media professor said that the headline usually tells you all you need to know anyway. When I start to feel frustration rising, I stop reading. I also change the tv show, or movie I’m watching if I feel my emotions getting the better of me. Another thing I do is watch something really funny, if the movie I’ve just watched is too intense.
Know when to get help.
If you fit the criteria for having seasonal affective disorder, and want help mastering it, there is help. There is no shame in asking for help no matter what your status is in society. Seek a therapist or a health coach that can help you stay on track. I would be happy to help you master your seasonal sadness, as I have first hand experience with it. You can have your life back, it’s only a phone call away.
One-on-one coaching is a great way to start building your confidence, and improve your health! I offer confidence coaching, health & lifestyle coaching, and exercise coaching. Click here for an application form and I would be happy to help you in your journey. You can also contact me at acgamero16@gmail.com or check out my website: www.nopainallgain.ca
