What Is Seasonal Affective Disorder?
Seasonal affective disorder is known to occur in a climate where there is low sunlight during certain times of the year. Seasonal affective disorder (SAD) is one type of depression that is known to begin and end during the same period every year.
What Are the Causes?
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Climate: In human beings, the exact cause of seasonal affective disorder is not completely known. However, insufficient sunlight during the fall and winter months can lead to changes in the production of certain brain chemicals, such as serotonin and melatonin. The reduced exposure to natural light is thought to disrupt the body's internal clock (circadian rhythm) and affect mood-regulating neurotransmitters. In a few people, the symptoms of seasonal affective disorder may occur in the spring or summer season as well. There is a usual tendency towards low mood during the winter months.
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Lack of Serotonin: The mood swings are probably caused due to the lack of serotonin. Serotonin has to be converted to N-acetylserotonin by the enzyme serotonin N-acetyltransferase. If it does not get converted, the symptoms of depression occur due to inadequate enzymes.
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Lack of Melatonin: The change in season can disrupt the balance of the body's level of melatonin, which plays a role in sleep patterns and mood.
What Are the Symptoms?
Many patients with seasonal affective disorder might experience the symptoms only during winter. The symptoms may be less severe in summer and spring. Some people with the opposite type have symptoms that might begin in summer and spring. In both cases, symptoms may begin very mildly and become severe as the season progresses.
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Poor energy.
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Sleeping problems.
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Losing interest in all activities.
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Experiencing depression most of the day.
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Feeling hopeless, worthless, or does not have any trust.
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Altered appetite. This might include a tendency to overreact.
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Altered weight.
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Feeling agitated.
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Anxiety.
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Negative thoughts of death or suicide.
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Difficulty in concentration.
What Is the Relationship Between Bipolar Disorder and Seasonal Affective Disorder?
Many people with seasonal affective disorder might experience a major depressive disorder. Some of the seasonal affective disorder patients may have bipolar disorder. Gender plays an important role in exhibiting characteristics associated with seasonal patterns. Men are known to have depressive episodes. Women are known to have rapid cycling and eating disorders.
What Is the Relationship Between Personality Disorder and Seasonal Affective Disorder?
Personality disorders are the describing factors of a person’s identity and character. They are clusters A, B, and C.
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Cluster A: Paranoid (obsessively anxious), schizoid (avoiding social activities and interactions), and schizotypal (discomfort with social interaction and relationships).
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Cluster B: Antisocial, Borderline, Narcissism (talking highly of one own self), and histrionic (affected thinking and the way one perceives).
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Cluster C: Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (repetitive behaviors due to excessive thoughts), Codependency (dependency on a relationship in an unhealthy way), and avoidance attachment types.
Of all these types, schizotypal, histrionic, narcissistic, and obsessive-compulsive personality types were known to experience more traits of seasonal affective disorder. The seasonal affective disorder is more commonly known to be associated with patients with anxiety and depression.
Who Is More Prone to Seasonal Affective Disorder?
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Gender: Women are more likely to get affected by seasonal affective disorder than men. Women usually have instability in emotions. This may be due to the hormonal changes they experience during menstruation (menstrual cycle or period). This change in emotion contributes more to the varying conditions of mood and energy.
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Relationship Status: Seasonal affective disorder is more common in single people. People who are in committed and secure relationships are less likely to experience seasonal affective disorder.
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Financial Status: People with a poor financial background tend to have a generally insufficient feel.
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Educational Status: People who do not have good educational knowledge might be unaware to keep their mental state healthy. This is the reason for such a community to experience more seasonal affective disorder.
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Age: Age plays an important role in seasonal affective disorder. Young patients are known to be affected more by seasonal affective disorder.
What Are the Types of Seasonal Affective Disorder?
There are two types of seasonal affective disorder. They are winter depression and summer depression. The symptoms vary in each face.
Symptoms of Winter Depression or Seasonal Affective Disorder:
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Altered Appetite. There will be an enhanced carving for carbohydrate-containing foods.
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Gaining weight.
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Sleeping too much.
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Low energy and fatigue.
Symptoms of Summer Depression or Seasonal Affective Disorder:
How Can Seasonal Affective Disorder Be Diagnosed?
Many experts considered this condition skeptical, now it is diagnosed by the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM-5). A psychological evaluation is done to see the signs of depression and anxiety. A person may be asked to fill out a questionnaire to help answer these questions.
In addition, the GSS or Global Seasonality Score, a screening questionnaire, is used as a tool to measure different seasonal changes in sleeping length, social activity and well-being, mood variation, weight, appetite, and energy level of people due to weather and climate changes.
How Is Seasonal Affective Disorder Treated?
1. Medications: Selective Serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) are used for the treatment of seasonal affective disorder. There are few side effects for selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors. So, it is advisable to be taken in an appropriate dosage according to the doctor’s instructions. Bupropion is another type of antidepressant used for the treatment of seasonal affective disorder.
2. Light Therapy: It is the oldest treatment of choice. The idea behind light therapy is to replace natural sunshine. This replacement can be obtained by sitting in front of a light box in the morning. This should be done daily. The light boxes are known to filter out the ultraviolet rays. This might require 20 to 60 minutes of exposure to white fluorescent light. This is estimated to be 20 times greater than ordinary indoor lighting.
Tips to Use Light Therapy:
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Confirm whether the lightbox is 10,000 lux (luminous flux per unit area).
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The light box should provide the complete spectrum of bright white light. It should also block ultraviolet rays.
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Place the box at eye level or higher.
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Position the light box about 2 feet away from the eyes.
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Keep the light box at a particular angle to the left or right. It can be two o'clock or ten o'clock.
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Use the light box in the morning hours for 20 to 60 minutes, depending on one’s needs.
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Consistency is important in light therapy.
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Do not use light therapy if one is under highly photosensitive medications.
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Monitor the mood changes to see the progress.
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A combination of cognitive-behavioral therapy and light therapy is more advantageous.
3. Psychotherapy Treatment: Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) is a psychotherapy treatment that is very effective for seasonal affective disorder. Traditional methods of cognitive-behavioral therapy have been adapted for seasonal affective disorder. Behavioral activation seeks to help the person identify and change their activities that are engaging and very pleasurable. It can engage in many coping strategies.
4. Vitamin D Supplementation: Vitamin D supplementation by itself is not regarded as an effective seasonal affective disorder. The reason behind its use is that low blood levels of vitamin D were found in people with seasonal affective disorder. The low levels of vitamin D are usually due to insufficient dietary intake or poor exposure to sunshine.
5. Lifestyle Changes: In addition to other treatment methods, a person can indulge in various lifestyle activities to combat seasonal affective disorder, such as
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Get enough sunlight during winter.
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Regular exercising during the day in the outdoors.
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Eating a balanced and healthy diet.
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Avoid stressful situations.
Conclusion:
Therefore, to conclude, seasonal affective disorder (SAD) is a type of depression that usually occurs in a certain season, mainly winter or fall. However, there is no specific known reason behind this disorder, but it is thought to occur due to some chemical changes in the brain associated with shorter days and less sunlight in the winter season of the year. Therefore, a person who experiences changes in mood or any similar symptoms during this time must consult the doctor for assistance.
