Fighting the Winter Blahs
Somewhere during the endless succession of gray, cold days, it hits you: Christmas and New Year's are just distant memories and spring isn't even a blip on the horizon. Football season has dwindled to a single game while hockey and basketball are mired in an endless slog toward their respective postseasons.
For those keeping score, it's 54 days, six hours and 45 minutes until the official arrival of spring on March 20.
Getting motivated, getting enthusiastic — heck, getting off the couch — is becoming more difficult with each passing cold front.
You've got a case of the winter blahs.
And you are not just imagining it, said Donna Korczyk, a Cranberry Township psychologist.
“What people call winter blues is often Seasonal Affective Disorder, and it usually starts around October and lasts until April,” said Korczyk. “People start to notice they get SAD at the same time every year.”
Korczyk said, “The symptoms of SAD are sadness, lack of energy, increased sleep, weight gain, carbohydrate craving, a heavy feeling in the arms and legs and the avoidance of social situations.”
She added Seasonal Affective Disorder is different from depression.
“Typically in depression people will not be able to sleep and they will lose their appetite,” said Korczyk, while SAD sufferers usually crave both more sleep and more food.
“It is more common in women than men and as many as half a million people in the United States may have SAD bad enough that it interferes with their daily functions,” Korczyk said.
The disorder stems from a lack of light, she said.
“The idea is when there is less light, the brain doesn't get rid of the melatonin, the hormone that kind of makes us sleep. That's one of the theories,” she said. “There's not enough early morning light to suppress the melatonin.”
“The theory is that our brains need light to dissipate the melatonin and when there's not enough light, the symptoms of Seasonal Affective Disorder occur,” she said.
But there is an antidote, she said.
“The treatment is bright light therapy. The light has to have a brightness of 10,000 lux which is about 40 times brighter than ordinary room light,” said Korczyk.
“The patient sits about a foot in front of the light box so the light hits the retina (of the eye). Don't gaze directly at the light, sit in front of it and read, for about 20 to 30 minutes a day in the morning,” she said. Using the light box later in the day may disturb your sleep patterns.Korczyk said, “If it is going to work for you, you will notice results in three to four days. Antidepressant drugs take two to four weeks to work.”“It is a physical effect. They postulate it turns off the production of melatonin in the brain,” said Korczyk.“I get a fair amount of people in my practice that notice they get more depressed in the winter,” she added. “They are fatigued and they want to oversleep. I've had good success with people getting the light box.”Korczyk said the light boxes are available for purchase online.“Just make sure that you get a bright enough light,” she said.She added the some insurers may reimburse policyholders for the purchase of a light box.Carole Boes, a licensed clinical social worker with Butler Health System which runs counseling programs for Butler Memorial Hospital employees and other employers, also blamed lack of light for this seasonal malaise.Boes said “Winter blues are very common right now. Our stats soar after the holidays. We have new clients call in every day.”“There is a lot of cabin fever. Everybody is indoors and more likely to get on each others' nerves. People just don't have the space anymore.”Boes said people with the winter blahs may be suffering a vitamin D deficiency because vitamin D is produced in the skin of humans during exposure to the sun. She said the lack of vitamin D has been linked to depression.She recommends people get outside even in the cold to increase exposure to sunlight. She added fish, eggs and milk also contain vitamin D.Korczyk said that while everyone may be downhearted or blue in the winter, it could be a sign of something more serious “when it starts to interfere with your daily life, when you start to avoid things, when you stop doing things that you used to enjoy, if you have a hard time focusing on your work or doing your work.”Korczyk said, “It is important to make sure it is not clinical depression. It is important to talk to somebody, to take an inventory of your symptoms.”Exercise instead of talking is recommended by Sandy Ihlenfeld, healthy living association director of the Butler YMCA. “Exercise is a good entry-level medication for depression.”She recommends cardiovascular exercise done at a moderate pace as the best way to shake loose the mental cobwebs.Jason Groves, associate executive director at the Y, said the Butler facility offers more than 70 classes ranging from aquatic and land exercises to yoga to low-impact classes for senior citizens.“People are more than welcome to stop by the membership desk and purchase a day pass,” said Groves, recommending it as the best way to sample some of the activities offered.A bonus is if you are at the Y or a gym, there are opportunities for social interaction.“Winter limits us, gives us too much quiet time,” said Ihlenfeld.“And you need to keep your mind active through crossword puzzles, word games, not mindless TV watching,” she added.Another way to stimulate your brain is through lively discussion of topics or interpreting a good book.Greg Sloan, director of development and community relations at the Butler Public Library, 218 N. McKean St., said, “There is an adult discussion group that meets from 6 to 8 p.m. Mondays. They talk politics, religion, science technology.”The discussion is moderated by Gary Kleeman, local businessman and musician.The library has several book clubs that meet at the library.“Just stop by the circulation desk and sign up,” said Sloan.Another way to stimulate the mind is to contemplate the new wrinkles added this year when it comes to preparing your income tax returns.The Affordable Care Act (or Obamacare as it is popularly known) will require additional documentation in some cases, said Dewain Gillott, owner and manager of Jackson Hewitt Tax Service, 324 S. Main St.“If they bought insurance under the ACA, they have to wait until they get a form 1095A in the mail,” before filing an income tax return, Gillott said.“If you get insurance through work it will be reflected on your W2,” he said.“They could face penalties this year, there could be all kinds of scenarios,” said Gillott. “It's going to be complicated this year.”Sounds like a whole different kind of blah.
