depression Tag

How to beat the winter blues

Fall can be beautiful. But it means that shorter days and longer evenings are upon us. And, every year, when daylight saving time ends, we have even one less hour of sunlight in the afternoon and darkness falls quite early. The long, cold and often wet evenings may affect some people's mood. Some people start to feel down as early as in the second half of August, when the days start to get noticeably shorter. The reason is the decreasing number of sunlight hours per day. So as fall rolls in, and the clock is turned back, you, or someone you know, may feel more and more depressed. People who experience a depressive episode this time of year may have what has been termed Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD). Others, who don't have a fully blown depressive disorder may just feel down, low energy or have little motivation. The good news, however, is that whether or not you have SAD, you can take a few small steps that may help you get through the challenges of the season.