Winter depression rages on in January

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Although our life has been shifted from all definitions of normalcy for ten months, Covid-19 is not the only culprit for our bad mood - shorter days, skies of lead and weak sun are the ones that cause seasonal mood disorders in sensitive people, colloquially called winter depression. This seasonal disorder affects every tenth European and affects as many as 40 percent of the inhabitants of the Scandinavian peninsula. Winter depression is diagnosed in people who are depressed every day for at least two weeks and in whom the melancholic mood is repeated for two years in a row.

That transient melancholy of a seasonal character, which will be recognized by each of us, was marked by the psychiatrist Norman Rosenthal with the term winter depression, i.e. seasonal affective disorder. In his most famous work, "Winter Blues - Everything You Need to Know to Overcome Seasonal Affective Disorder," he explains that there are three triggers to continue this pain - serotonin neurotransmitter deficiency, eye hypersensitivity to reduced daylight, and circadian rhythm disorders, which cause early dusk. .

According to this psychiatrist, the main allies in the fight against the "winter blues" are outdoor physical activity, light therapy and going to warmer regions. Since winter depression is caused by a deficit of sunlight, people prone to melancholy should spend as much time in daylight and walking as possible. Physical activity raises the level of so-called. neurotransmitters of pleasure, and proper nutrition can be an ally in the treatment of seasonal depression - it is recommended to reduce carbohydrate intake and eat foods rich in protein and vitamins.

We need sunlight for life, but also for good mood.

Depressive than manic episodes are much more common in people with bipolar disorder in the winter, just as manic phases are much more common in these psychiatric patients in the spring and summer. The reason why even mentally healthy people suffer from winter melancholy is simple - the cold makes us less mobile. In winter, we move less, go for walks less, see friends less often, spend less time in the fresh air and because of that we feel worse overall. Even residents of the Scandinavian countries suffer from light deficits - which is why the rates of alcoholism, suicide, car accidents and domestic violence are high in these countries.

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