Seasonal Depression: What Is It and How To Manage It

Seasonal Depression, or as the DSM V refers to it, Major Depressive Disorder with seasonal patterns, is a mental illness in which a person experiences depression only during certain seasons of the year. Most people with this diagnosis typically experience depressive symptoms during the winter months. When it becomes dark out early and cold these people tend to start feeling sad, less motivated, and may spend more time in bed. But then the days become longer again, and the weather becomes nicer and the symptoms of Seasonal Depression begin to disappear.

What does Seasonal Depression look like?

It looks like Major Depressive Disorder with occurrences of symptoms during certain seasons.

Symptoms can include but are not limited to:

• Depressed mood for most days
• Crying Spells
• Lack of motivation
• Spending all day in bed
• Change in appetite
• Change in sleeping patterns (ex: Insomnia)
• Loss of energy/fatigue
• Intense feelings of worthlessness
• Thoughts of death/suicidal ideation

What can I do to prevent it?

Well, there is no way to prevent Seasonal Depression. Just like other mental illnesses, it just kind of happens with no exact cause to it. But I can say the best way you can try to prevent a recurrence of Seasonal Depression symptoms is to see a therapist who can teach you the skills in order to identify symptoms and then use coping strategies to manage the symptoms.

What can I do to manage the symptoms?

There are several things you can do to manage the symptoms:

• Supplement with Vitamin D
  • Of course, please collaborate with your Primary Care Provider to make sure that this is safe for you. But a Vitamin D deficiency can sometimes lead to depression. And since during the winter, we tend to get less sunlight, we start to see a decrease in the amount of Vitamin D in our bodies.
• Exercise
  • Exercising is a great way to keep your endorphins coursing through your body. And like Elle said in Legally Blonde “Endorphins make you happy”. It also just keeps you physically healthy in general which is always a plus.
• Diet
  • And with exercise comes diet as well. You are what you eat. Yes, I know that seasonal depression usually hits during the Holiday season, but you can watch what you eat in between the holidays.
• Social Support
  • Having people in your support system can be so impactful in the management of your mental health. Having people who you love and trust be there for you to help you manage your symptoms is what we therapists call a protective factor or an aspect of your life that can have positive results for your mental health.
• Mindfulness
  • Mindfulness is an important part of therapy. It is when you purposefully bring your attention to your thoughts and your body. This exercise helps you control and adjust what you are thinking and to be aware of how you are feeling in order to be able to change it. Some mindfulness exercises include but are not limited to
    • Meditation
    • Journaling
    • Deep breathing

• Therapy
  • Of course, it’s always a good idea to seek professional help. Nowadays, it’s become acceptable to seek out therapy. Thankfully therapy is becoming more accessible, especially with the growing availability of telehealth therapy.

Again, I can’t stress enough the importance of going to see your Primary Care Provider and/or a therapist in order to get a professional opinion on what you might be experiencing.

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