Don't Be SAD! My Top Recommendations for Fighting Seasonal Affective Disorder Review

I suffer from SAD. SAD is Seasonal Affective Disorder. This disorder often occurs in people who live in darker states with longer winters. I happen to live in New York where winters are long and incredibly dreary.

I never knew what was wrong with me in the winter. This strange, tired, BLAH feeling would hit around the middle or the end of September and get worse as the cold weather descended upon me. By November, I was sleeping all day, craving junk food and sweets, and feeling depressed. Christmas was a struggle. I was too tired to shop and wrap and enjoy the season. I rang in the new year fantasizing about sleeping all day the next day, after sleeping all day THAT day! I stopped exercising because I was just not into it and I gained weight. My work suffered because I couldn't focus and I took many naps. Life was dreary like the weather.

Then, May came along. I suddenly felt better. I started to look around and see everything I hadn't done all winter. I lost the winter weight, went back to exercising, and got my energy back. I caught up on my work and felt fine.

I thought I was bipolar. Seriously. But at last I was diagnosed with Seasonal Affective Disorder. I was offered antidepressants to take seasonally but I didn't want to go that route, at least not until every other avenue was pursued. I finally figured out how to fight this beast - without medication - after years of letting it beat me.

I am NOT a medical professional and my suggestions are just that. I am sharing with you what worked for me and what I researched extensively about. I am sharing with you what my doctor told me to do and what I learned from others who battle SAD. If you think you have this condition, first see your doctor. Rule out more serious things before trying to self diagnose.

If you have SAD or winter blahs (a less severe form of SAD), I would like to share with you my top things to do to live a happy, energetic life ALL year round, not just when the sun shines. I admit, my methods aren't foolproof and I still slow down every winter. But if I really am strict with my regiment, I can do anything I want without feeling like I am walking around in chest high wet cement.

My Top SAD Battlers:

Start to Fight EARLY
Don't wait until late October to put into place a strategy to to fight SAD. By then, it has its claws into you and you may not have the energy to do what needs doing. Start NOW. September is the time when you should be preparing for the onslaught.

Exercise
Blah. I know. You don't feel like it. Who does? But exercise is the first line of defense against SAD because it keeps your brain chemicals in check and keeps YOU in shape. Exercise gives you energy and it gives you an overall sense of well being. If you just do a simple walk workout with Leslie Sansone, one of my wintertime favorite instructors, you'll be doing yourself many favors. Try to get cardio in 3 - 4 times a week. Have fun. Dance, kick box, whatever you like to do. Force yourself if you have to but DO IT.

Sleep at Night
Sounds simple, huh? People with SAD often get all screwed up with their sleeping patterns because the sun doesn't stream in at 7 a.m. anymore. They tend to stay up later and wake up later. They tend to nap a LOT. That's me, Ms. Napper. In the winter, if I even so much as see a blanket, pillow, or my cat all balled up sleeping, I'm so ready for a nap. Try to go to bed at the same time at night and wake at the same time in the morning. I admit, I'm a night owl and I have issues with going to bed at 11 p.m. or even midnight. But I do try to awaken at a decent hour and not to allow myself to sleep until I feel like getting up because that could be 5 p.m. REALLY!

Consider a Dawn Simulator
A what? A dawn simulator lamp is one that either comes with an alarm clock or has a timer in it. You set it at night and it slowly turns on and brightens just as the sun does when it comes up. You will awake to a nice, bright room and feel like you're in a cabana in Hawaii rather than in your bedroom in Dreary Town, USA. A dawn simulator will help keep you on schedule too. Set it to brighten at the same time everyday. It's amazing how refreshing it is to wake up to light rather than a blaring, annoying alarm clock in a dark room. That's fodder for tossing the clock and staying under the covers. For hours. Dawn simulators are great for everyone in the winter or any time when natural sunlight doesn't stream through the windows (or if you don't have windows in the room). You'll wake up happier and ready to take on the day. I have one and it is VERY effective!

Eat Right, Eat Often
Yep, I said eat often. In the winter months, many SAD suffers experience cravings for carbs, sweets, and junk food. And they wind up lethargic, unhealthy, and 10-30 points heavier at the end of winter. I always used to gain 10-15 pounds from September to May and had no idea why. Well, looking back, it was obvious. I loved me some COOKIES! I didn't touch them at all in spring or summer but when the days were dark, I wanted cookies. Now, I know I have to eat well and eat often to stop the cravings. I don't eat a lot but I do try to eat small meals throughout the day. I look to high fiber and high protein snacks to fill me up and to keep my weight and sugar levels stable. I order Vitalicious Muffin Tops (100 calories, no fat, all natural, loads of fiber) to snack on. They satisfy my need for sweets in a healthy way.

Get OUT!
It's cold. It's often dreary. It's blahhhh. But you should bundle up and try to get outside as often as possible in the cooler months. The sun IS out there. You just have to sort of search for it. On those sunny days, suit up and GET OUT! I don't like winter sports because I'm cold all the time. Nothing keeps me warm, especially my feet. But I have some good boots and a ski jacket and, when I see the sun shining, I get outside even if it's just to walk up and down my street. I hate it. But I know the more real sunlight that I get, the better my state of mind. Plus fresh air is great for everyone. Remember sunscreen. Winter sunburns are sometimes worse than summer ones. You won't be getting a load of Vitamin D from the sun bundled up but you will be exposing your eyes to the sun and that is what keeps your spirits up. Your eyes funnel that light to your brain and your brain gets happy!

Take a Vitamin D Supplement Daily
My doctor discovered that I was so severely deficient in Vitamin D that he had never seen anyone with the level of deficiency I had. It scared him. Heck, it scared me! Vitamin D is vital to our bodies for so many reasons and every day a new reason pops up. Your bones need it, it wards of several kinds of cancer, and plays a huge role in your overall health. I take 4000 IU every day. That's an enormous amount for the masses but it's right on target for me. Many doctors underestimate Vitamin D's role. They suggest taking 400 IU daily. I would take 1000 IU at least. Naturally, I am not a doctor so please do speak to yours about this. If you don't get out in the sun, exposing your skin to it, you'll be hard pressed to get enough Vitamin D just in diet alone unless you eat fish by the pounds. Cover yourself. Take a supplement.

Replace the Bulbs in Your Lamps with Full Spectrum Lightbulbs
These bulbs aren't very expensive and they simply replace your usual bulbs. They give off clean, bright light that you desperately need in the darker months. They're not glaring nor are they therapeutic at the levels regular lamps take. They just very helpful in brightening up your world. Kids have been found to concentrate better when doing homework with a full spectrum light on rather than a regular one. That says something, doesn't it? This is a very inexpensive and simple thing to do that could help everyone in the house to feel better all winter. These bulbs sure don't hurt in the summer either. You can't even really tell the difference other than things are sharper and clearer because the light is white compared to yellow.

Invest in a Therapeutic Full Spectrum Light Box or Lamp
I remember when I got my first light box. It was huge and incredibly expensive. I was to sit in front of it for about 45 minutes in the morning and another 45 in early evening. You don't look straight at the light. You set it to the side of in front of you while you read or even work on the computer. The light filtrates through your eyes to your brain and hormones are released that lift your spirits and give you energy. I laughed when I was told that by my doctor. But I was desperate so I bought the light box.

Within a week, I felt the change. I was then working for World Championship Wrestling and had to travel constantly. I hauled that huge metal and glass light box from city to city, through airports and right on the planes with me in a protective case that I kept in the overhead compartment above me. No one at the airports ever questioned what it was. How times have changed, huh? The chances of me getting onto a plane with a metal and glass object are nil now. But at the time, it worked so well that I was afraid to go anywhere without it. I even used it in Florida! I could have walked outside but I dutifully sat in front of my light box in the morning and then headed out to the arenas and gyms and wherever I had to go to catch the wrestlers for interviews. I was able to go all day, stay for the shows at night, hang out after, and go to eat breakfast in the wee hours with the gang without feeling like I would die if I didn't take a nap. THAT, right there, is proof that light boxes work. At least for me.

Try to get a 10,000 LUX lamp if you can. You will only need to sit in front of it for about 20-30 minutes. If you get a smaller 5,000 LUX one, you'll have to sit there for an hour. I'm too restless to do that. I have a much more sophisticated light box now that works wonders. But if I don't use it for a few days, I start to sink and unravel. I have to dedicate myself to the light every year, every day from September to May. I already got the light box out this year. Last year I messed up and didn't use the light and BOY did I pay for it. This year, it's going to be used early and often!

Some people have SAD so severely that they literally can't function at all. If that is the case with you or someone you know, antidepressants may be the only answer. If you opt to take a medication, you should still adhere to good sleeping habits, good eating habits, exercise, and getting outside often. And full spectrum lighting is healthy for all. So the above suggestions work whether you take an antidepressant or not. I have been able to avoid taking medication for my SAD and hope that I can continue to do so. It takes vigilance, patience, and dedication to get through SAD without feeling cruddy but it CAN be done.

I have done it in the past and will do it this year. I fell off the wagon last year and all my bad habits crept back up. I was able to stop myself from gaining weight but naps were my friend and I barely looked out the door unless I had to let the dog out. I felt like a sickly old lady! I don't plan to let that happen again. Not even when I am one. (I am somewhat old and somewhat sickly but I'm not a sickly old lady just yet!)

I hope this helped you and, if you have any ideas or comments, please leave them for me. We CAN beat this! If you want more info, comment or private message me on my profile page. I have loads of resources that I use to get me through the rough, dark days.

Is it May yet? ;)

Patty