Cure the November blues
Don’t let depression, fatigue and cravings get the better of you!
Every autumn, you feel your spirits drop along with the temperature and the leaves. It’s hard to get out of bed in the mornings, and during the day, you have sugar cravings. Recognize yourself? Then you’re probably suffering from seasonal depression, also known as winter blues or seasonal affective disorder (SAD).
Let’s shed some light on this type of depression
Affecting women more often (in 75% of cases), SAD is mainly caused by insufficient exposure to daylight. The lack of sunlight reduces the amount of light entering the eye. As a result, neurotransmitter levels are disturbed, leading to an imbalance in hormones such as serotonin (the “happy hormone”), melatonin (responsible for wakefulness and sleep cycles) and dopamine (essential for normal brain activity).
If you are affected by SAD or think you may be, the LeBlanc+Savaria clinic invites you to consult your physician, who may recommend or prescribe :
- daily light therapy sessions lasting 30 minutes, during which you are exposed to artificial light providing 10,000 lux.
- a vitamin D supplement to play a regulatory role, since it acts directly on neurotransmitters. Artificial light from light therapy does not produce vitamin D.
- move around, get outdoors,exercise, to expose yourself to as much daylight as possible, but also to increase natural serotonin production.
Taking antidepressants can help reduce the symptoms of SAD, if they are severe and interfere with your daily life.
