Winter Blues
Winter blues is the familiar name for a common medical condition known as Seasonal Affective Disorder, or sometimes Seasonally Affective Disorder, which is often shortened to S.A.D. or just SAD
Causes of S.A.D.
The reasons for seasonal affective disorder go right back to the very basics of human, and indeed animal, life.
We are all influenced by the changing seasons, humans and animals alike. In the Summer months, we are at our most bright and lively.
The weather is generally at its best, we have long hours of daylight, and we tend to spend much more of our time outdoors, attending to outside chores around the house, walking, playing sports, attending outdoor events, going on holiday, etc.
As the Autumn days shorten, our outdoor activities diminish, until in the winter, when daylight hours are at their shortest, and the weather at its worst, we tend to stay indoors as much as possible.
If we think of ourselves as another species of animal, we are very similar to our wilder relatives, who build their nests, etc, mate, bring up their young and often set up a store of food for the winter months, all during the longer days of Summer.
The Problem with SAD
Now, what does all this have to us, we don't migrate south to warmer climes during the winter, nor do we hibernate? Well, that just about sums it up, we stick around in the worst of the winter weather, stay indoors away from any sunlight there is, and often feel quite sorry for ourselves.
This, to a greater or lesser degree, is seasonally affective disorder, some of just feel a bit less inclined to do very much, but some people have a very hard time coping with the winter blues.
Good News about Winter Blues
It is great when stories have a happy ending, and many cases of SAD have a very happy ending, happy and smiling, in fact!
The good news is that for very many people, there is an easy and very effective treatment for S.A.D. There is no medication involved and these days you don't even need any special equipment.
What to do about SAD?
Happily, there is a lot we can do to help ourselves cope with Seasonal Affective Disorder.
NHS Direct suggest that even a brief lunchtime walk outside can be beneficial.
So, get out and about as much as possible, specially in the middle of the day when light is at its most intense, even in the depths of winter.
Exercise generally helps, particularly outdoor exercise, and there is certainly a link with diet, a good healthy diet, including fruit and vegetables seems to be very beneficial.
This will not be enough, usually, as many farmers and other outdoor workers can suffer from SAD.
The single most effective solution to Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) is to provide yourself with a source of bright light. This does not have to be daylight, it can be artifical light.
It is generally accepted that the amount of light has to be at least 2,500 lux. Now, ordinary light bulbs would be about 200 to 500 lux, so, unless you have lots of them (which, of course, is one way of doing it), you need to have a light box, which you can buy online from Boots
So, you get your light box, and you sit in front of it for the recommended time. You don't need to just there of course, you can have it in the kitchen while you perpare your favourite recipe, in the office while you are working, or you can be reading or watching television, it will still work.
This means you don't even have to disrupt your normal daily life very much, it is very easy to fit in some time with the light box. Having your breakfast would be an obvious time to set yourself up for the day.
Light therapy, or phototherapy, as it is sometimes known, helps an amazing 80% of S.A.D. sufferers, according to mental health charity MIND.
Winter Holidays
Winter holidays can be very beneficial to people who suffer from Seasonal Affective Disorder (S.A.D.), as they can to all of us.
There are two reasons winter holidays help SAD sufferers. The first is that exposure to the sunlight, if we take our holiday in warmer climes, will certainly help to top up our depleted supplies of winter light, and the resulting absorbtion of essential vitamins.
The second is not so obvious, but beneficial nevertheless. We always look forward to something good, and the anticipation of a nice warm vacation in the middle of a dark, dreary winter can lift our spirits more than we may realise.
So, a winter break to somewhere warm and sunny, in January or February will work wonders for our spirits and general well-being.
Then, when we have had our break, the worst of the winter is over, we are booking our Summer holidays, and we then have something else to look forward to.
We can do so much for ourselves, to improve our mood and general outlook on life, that we should take full advantage of it whenever we can.
Amazing Easy Method of beating SAD
Amazingly, there is one very simple method of beating seasonal affective disorder (SAD). We will share this tip with you.
All you have to do is to replace all your light bulbs with daylight bulbs (UK) daylight bulbs (US). These are easily available replacements for your normal household light bulbs, sometimes known as biobulbs, available in either standard bayonet contact (BC) or Edison screw (ES) fittings.
You can order them online from Amazon UK or Amazon USA and fit them yourself, just like changing a light bulb, which is just what you are doing.
BioBulbs are daylight replicating lightbulbs, which are a straight replacement for either ordinary traditional household incandescent light bulbs, or for energy saving bulbs.
The 100 watt equivalent BioBulb uses just 25 watts, so they are saving 75% in energy compared to traditional bulbs. However, it is not the energy efficiency or cost saving which is the great thing about BioBulbs, it is their ability to emulate the colour of daylight, an absolute delight for SAD sufferers.
This means it is possible to go about your normal activities in the home or office, and get similar benefits to sitting in front of a light box. This is such a major breakthrough.
The equivalent of sitting for an hour in front of a 3,000 lux light box is having two 100 watt equivalent BioBulbs in your office desklamp, or in your kitchen work area and spending the same amount of time going about your usual daily activities.
This is just great, it takes no time, and if you replace the ordinary bulbs with BioBulbs in several rooms or areas of the house or office, you will get the benefit as you move about during the day.
As they just look like ordinary energy saving light bulbs, but with a slightly more pleasing light, you don't have to explain anything to anyone, they are just lightbulbs.
Buy a couple of daylight bulbs (UK) daylight bulbs (US) today and see how you like them.