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Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) is a common occurrence during the darker winter months. As many as 20 percent of people may experience some degree of low mood in the winter, with 2-10 percent of people experiencing significant depression.
Winter months are a challenging time for many people. Recovering from the stresses of the winter holiday season can prove surprisingly challenging, especially as we experience fewer hours of sunlight and cold dreary weather. Unexplained feelings of worry, sadness, frustration, tension, or apathy are common signs that brain chemistry is not in optimal balance. For many, these feelings are short lived, and resolve once the stress or dark weather pass. For others these feelings are frequent companions and they begin affecting daily functioning. Mood issues that are more serious outlast the situation that may have caused them and are often accompanied by changes in sleep and eating patterns, as well as motivation to participate in daily life. As with any persistent health issue, if struggles with mood are persistent it is a good idea to enlist the help of a health care provider.
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