Seasonal Affective Disorder

male dression silhouette

Light, Exercise, and Diet Help Combat Seasonal Affective Disorder

Transitioning to the long, dark days of winter usually takes a little time. It’s hard reacclimatising to waking up in the dark and returning home from work in the dark. For most people, adjusting to the change of season once again as everyday activities move indoors is just business as usual. However, according to American Family Physician, as much as 6 percent of the population suffers from a form of seasonal affective disorder (SAD), which is also known as winter depression.
Fatigue, an unhealthy craving for carbohydrates, and a persistently bad mood are common symptoms of SAD. In the more severe cases, work productivity may suffer and individuals might avoid going outside altogether. Feelings of hopelessness and low motivation often ensue. When SAD impairs your ability to function normally, it’s time to adopt self-help strategies that can help get you reenergised.
Light
Research has shown that a lack of exposure to natural light is a leading cause of seasonal affective disorder. It creates a hormonal imbalance that has a direct effect on mood and motivation. House lamps aren’t strong enough and often use the wrong kind of light (white light is necessary). A light box, one that generates at least 10,000 lux (100 times stronger than a lightbulb), is usually prescribed in such cases. They’re made specifically for the treatment of seasonal affective disorder, and they’re safe because they filter out ultraviolet light. In fact, some people keep a light box at work so they’re exposed to light throughout the day. It’s also important to get as much exposure to natural light as possible. If you can, make a point of taking a walk on your lunch hour or walk (or ride a bicycle) to the store instead of driving.

Balanced Diet
People who struggle with SAD tend to overeat comfort foods that are heavy in carbohydrates, which causes weight gain. Overeating becomes a form of unhealthy emotional compensation, so it’s important to stick with a balanced diet that includes plenty of vegetables, fruit, whole grains, and protein. Emphasise foods rich in vitamin D, a byproduct of sunlight which is in short supply late in the year. Salmon, eggs, mushrooms, and foods rich in omega 3 are especially beneficial late in the year.
Find Ways to Stay Active
Exercise is a good way to improve your mental outlook. It activates feel-good hormones in the brain that encourage you to continue exercising. Physical activity gets your blood flowing and heart pumping, a self-invigorating form of care that can help you overcome the effects of fatigue and lethargy. Research has shown that even one hour of exercise a week can mitigate the effects of depression.
Social Interaction
Getting out and about may be the last thing an individual plagued by seasonal affective disorder feels like doing, but it’s important for combatting poor moods and feelings of isolation. Simple acts like going for a walk outdoors with a neighbor or relative can improve your sense of well-being. Or, make a point of having coffee with a friend once a week at your favourite shop. Sometimes, just sharing happy memories with people you care about can have an uplifting effect on your spirits.
Meditate and Contemplate
Sometimes, engaging in contemplative disciplines like meditation and journaling can help you achieve a new perspective, one that helps you overcome depression and keep problems in their proper perspective. Meditation is a good way to strengthen the mind-body connection, whereas keeping a journal helps you make sense of your thoughts and feelings in a way that nothing else can.
Gut Health
It’s very difficult to feel good about things when your digestive health is suffering. Maintaining a balance between good and bad gut bacteria is essential for good digestion and your overall physical well-being.
Caring for your mental and physical needs can help stave off the emotionally debilitating effects of seasonal affective disorder. So, remember to stay physically active and set aside some time to process your thoughts, both of which are important strategies when the long days and lack of sunlight weigh down on you.
With special thanks to guest blogger Kimberly Hayes

If you would like more information about how our service can help with SAD or any other form of generalised anxiety disorder then click here for a FREE exploratory consultation.

Wishing you a peaceful day,
David Faratian





Colour spinning

Colour Spinning – Keeping your emotions under control

One of the most paralysing and worrying emotions people face throughout their careers is that of fear borne out of self doubt about a particular situation and its potential outcome. What NLP teaches us is that often this ‘fear’ is nothing more than an illusion, a construct of our own imaginations, and since this is the case, there is no better ally in dealing with this type of emotion than the imagination itself. The self talk that constantly unsettles and deceives us before we have even faced a particular situation can be damaging and unnecessary but herein lies the beauty of NLP in its simplicity to change perspective and quickly neutralise these negative feelings.

With the following technique you must first establish mentally what the problem you might be facing is. Then with your eyes closed try to imagine experiencing that situation as clearly as your imagination will allow. Try to ‘see’ ‘hear’ and ‘feel’ and bring as much clarity to the imagined situation as you can. Where do you experience this feeling most? Usually people will identify the anxiety of a perceived challenge as starting somewhere below their solar plexus. Now, can you identify which way that feeling moves? In other words, it is rare that when you feel anxiety that it will simply habituate in one place, and it is far more likely that the feeling will rotate somehow and usually that feeling will be like a churning upward feeling. If this is the case try to imagine this ‘churning’ feeling as a colour. The colour itself could be any colour you wish, although contrast will be important for this exercise so try to choose a colour you associate with ‘negative’. Now with your eyes closed and using the breathing techniques which are explained in this book, imagine pulling this churning , rotating colour ring out of your stomach, flipping it over and giving it another more ‘positive’ colour. As you do this, make sure you spin the new colour ring in the opposite direction so that instead of it churning upwards and round it will instead be perceived as spinning in the opposite direction. Finally bring the new rotating ring back inside your chest and breathe more calmly.

If you have done this as explained then you should notice a dramatic reduction in anxiety. Of course reading about the process and doing the exercise are very different so make sure you actually give the exercise a go. At cumbria hypnosis we show you how to use similar stratgies to self empower and negate unnecessary paralyzing emotion.