Archive for Monday, January 14, 2008
Seasonal disorder depresses sufferers
January 14, 2008
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Light therapy can combat Seasonal Affective Disorder
It's been months since we've seen the sun before 7 a.m. or after 5:30 p.m., and the lack of light can lead to depression for some. Enlarge video
Becky Foerschler, Lawrence, who has seasonal affective disorder, reads by a SAD therapy light. Foerschler uses the light about 30 minutes a day. Light therapy mimics outdoor light and causes a biochemical change in the brain that lifts your mood, relieving symptoms of SAD.
Becky Foerschler used to consider wintertime a torment. For years, when the seasons shifted, so did her mood. Like clockwork, her three children shuttled back to school after Christmas break, fatigue settled in and she felt a tug toward a sedentary lifestyle.
A simple trudge down the street with Meg, her black lab-mix, was a daunting task.
"I remember days walking my dog and I'd think to myself, 'I could just lay down on the sidewalk and go to sleep,'" Foerschler said. "I felt like a bear that needed to go into hibernation. I just wanted to take a giant bag of carbohydrates, curl up into bed and sleep for three months."
Two years ago, a string of stresses - an ill mother and a move to a new neighborhood - tumbled into a messy tangle, causing Foerschler's mood to plummet even further. But when concerned friends and family approached her, Foerschler decided to pursue help.
Once connected with a psychologist, Foerschler discovered the culprit: seasonal affective disorder, or SAD.
"It's a form of a major depressive illness that follows a typical pattern of onset of symptoms in winter and a full remission later in spring or early summer," said Steve Ilardi, Kansas University associate professor of psychology. "It's identical to clinical depression in terms of the core diagnostic criteria, but it's a subtype characterized by a distinct seasonal onset pattern."
A slump in mood during winter is common. Nearly 500,000 Americans have SAD, according to the American Academy of Family Physicians.
With symptoms mirroring that of depression, SAD is characterized by a craving for carbohydrates, a pull toward sleep and tendency to gain weight, usually because of increased carbohydrate cravings. Fatigue, sadness, irritability and a disrupted sleep cycle are common.
Those afflicted struggle to climb out of bed and have difficulty staying awake once up.
Many jerk away from social involvement. Normally gregarious, Foerschler felt her desire to interact socially drop.
"I found myself withdrawing and not being involved in activities I usually found pleasure in," Foerschler said. "I just wanted to plop onto the sofa in front of the TV and veg out."
Causes
The biggest factor contributing to SAD is lack of exposure to sunlight, Ilardi said. During the winter, sometimes the most available light comes from a computer screen, lamp or fluorescent office lighting.
"Our internal body clock gets recalibrated every day based on exposure to sunlight," Ilardi said. "During the short, cold, cloudy days of winter, people get much less light exposure - a deficit that can disrupt the circadian rhythms that regulate sleep, energy and mood."
Sunlight triggers the production of a chemical called melatonin, which is a natural antidepressant and important mood-influencing hormone. Less light means less melatonin, which can lead to depression.
Treatment
Disinterested in medication, Foerschler searched for alternative treatments. She stumbled onto Therapeutic Lifestyle Changes - TLC - a KU program designed to alleviate symptoms of depression.
"I was reluctant to go to the doctor and get on a medication for who knows how long," Foerschler said. "I was really looking for other ways to deal with the depression."
TLC concentrates on six areas: exercise, sunlight, fish oil, sleep, social interaction and positive thinking.
The most frequently recommended treatment for SAD used in TLC is light therapy. On days when the sun is out, Foerschler takes walks. And on dreary days, Foerschler uses a 10,000-lux therapy light (lux is a measure of illumination). The light is designed to emulate light supplied by a sunny day. The light box sits on a stand Foerschler props onto a table, allowing the light to shine down onto her face as she thumbs through a newspaper for at least 30 minutes.
The light stimulates the retina and the brain, triggering the release of melatonin and elevating mood.
"Light boxes are very efficient at simulating the bright light of a sunny day outdoors," Ilardi said. "In clinical trials, they're at least as effective as antidepressants in treating SAD."
Ilardi also has found that increasing vitamin D levels can benefit patients.
"People with seasonal affective disorder are often dramatically deficient in vitamin D - a vitamin synthesized by our skin when exposed to the sun's ultraviolet rays," Ilardi said. "And vitamin D supplementation helps alleviate SAD symptoms."
Foerschler takes vitamin D supplements, as well as fish oil and a multivitamin. Getting more sleep, more social interaction and preventing negative thoughts also help.
Seeking help
Not seeking help when afflicted with SAD - as with any form of depression - can be dangerous, Ilardi said.
"Untreated depression can rob you of your energy, your concentration, your social life, your work - even your will to live," he said. "So I would advise anyone experiencing depression to seek the help of a mental health professional."
Foerschler also encourages people experiencing SAD symptoms to implement the TLC protocol into their daily routines.
"They're all pretty easy to incorporate into your lifestyle, and they seem to help a lot. Within three to four weeks, I was really feeling change," Foerschler said. "I no longer feel like I want to be like a bear in hibernation."
- Baker University intern Chansi Long can be reached at (785) 832-7261.
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14 January 2008
at 2:28 p.m.
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samsnewplace (Anonymous) says…
Who knew there was a name for it, I just thought it was the winter blahs. Nice to know i'm not alone!
14 January 2008
at 3:19 p.m.
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George_Braziller (Anonymous) says…
Nope. There are lots of us. One of the things that helps me is to put full-spectrum lightbulbs in all the lamps. I then turn them on and slightly close the blinds before it gets dark outside at which time I close them completely. It helps me to not notice as much the change in the quality of the light and seems to help extend the day.
14 January 2008
at 3:34 p.m.
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Informed (Anonymous) says…
Keep in mind that there is a difference between the winter blahs and SAD.
14 January 2008
at 4:03 p.m.
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Agnostick (Anonymous) says…
http://www.psych.ku.edu/tlc/
14 January 2008
at 4:56 p.m.
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George_Braziller (Anonymous) says…
Yes I am very aware of the difference.
14 January 2008
at 5:16 p.m.
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Valkyrie_of_Reason (Kathy Getto) says…
This is an excerpt form a conversation with retired U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor in which she echos the sentiment that electing judges is a bad idea. (questions are from USA Today, answers are from O'Connor):
Q: Do you think money has polluted the process in some states in which judges are elected?
A: In some states, very much. I came from Arizona, which provided for the election of all judges. I did not think that was a good system because when judges ran they had to spend money for advertising and campaigning to win the nomination and then the election. Where did that money come from? It came from lawyers. And what lawyers? The lawyers most likely to appear before them. I think that's a lousy system.
Q: Did you do anything to change that system?
A: I served in the Legislature, and I tried to get the Legislature to amend Arizona's constitution to put before the people a system of merit selection of judges. I could not get that out of the House of Representatives. I could get it out of the Senate. So I helped organize an initiative drive to get voters' signatures to put it on the ballot. We got enough signatures, we put it on the ballot, and I had decided that I was going to try to be a judge, and I ran for office as a trial judge in the same election the same year that that ballot went before the people. And it passed by a very narrow margin.
_____________________________
Personally, I don't want the same people who voted for Bush voting for the judges in my state.
14 January 2008
at 5:36 p.m.
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BABBOY (Anonymous) says…
Valkyrie_of_Reason:
While agree with your post, I would say the SAD got ya pretty bad this year.
Kidding.
14 January 2008
at 6:37 p.m.
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pip2006 (Anonymous) says…
Where would one get a 10,000 lux therapy light? What does this do to the electric bill?
14 January 2008
at 7:28 p.m.
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riverdrifter (Anonymous) says…
http://www.verilux.com/products/healt…
Not to shill for them, but Verilux is darn good so far as I'm concerned. I think Home Depot might even stock them. Ask.
Electric bill? Not much -nuthin' if SAD is what's bugging you.
14 January 2008
at 7:45 p.m.
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labmonkey (Anonymous) says…
You gotta be kidding me….they have a syndrome or disorder for everything now. Yes January is a depressing time for obvious reasons, but there is no need to name a disorder after it so quack doctors can earn more money. Just kick yourself in the ass and excercise…it may be a little tougher in the winter but you feel so much better about yourself after a nice run.
14 January 2008
at 9:21 p.m.
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Crossfire (Anonymous) says…
I was S.A.D. so I called the County Mental Health Department.
But I dialed it wrong.
When I told Achmed that I was felling suicidal he asked me, “…so can you drive a truck?”
botaoh
14 January 2008
at 9:31 p.m.
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Valkyrie_of_Reason (Kathy Getto) says…
babboy (Anonymous) says:
Valkyrie_of_Reason:
While agree with your post, I would say the SAD got ya pretty bad this year.
Kidding.
_______________________________
Wow! How did I do that? Well, back under the lamp for me!
15 January 2008
at 5:35 a.m.
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Made_in_China (Paul R. Getto) says…
SAD is real in some people, and a vestige of our evolutionary past when we emerged from Africa. SAD, in a way, created the major solstice festivals over fear of darkness and a hope spring would return. With a few modifications this eventually became what is now called “Christmas.”