†∆†;9048592 said:I'm skeptical as to whether SAD is a real disorder or the creation of hypochondriacs who want to label a normal experience as an illness
†∆†;9048592 said:I'm skeptical as to whether SAD is a real disorder or the creation of hypochondriacs who want to label a normal experience as an illness
What medications have you tried in the past? What other disorder is your SAD related to and what medications are you taking for that?
I think it's a very real disorder and since i live in the north i certainly notice a change in my moods after the time goes back. There is not much daylight as it's only bright here now really from about 7AM to 4:30PM, the weather here in winter time does not inspire you to actually get out and do anything and for awile after the time goes back 6PM feels more like 11PM to me. Me and a few aquintences where complaining about this shortly after the time went back actually and how we felt fucking old because we where ready to call it a night at 10PM
If your the type that doesent get up early your not going to see much sun at all so you kinda sleep the sunlight away. I have bipolar disorder and i definetely notice a change in my moods when winter comes. I feel way more sluggish then normal, i oversleep alot (sometimes 12 hours a day or more if im really bad), i tend to slip into major depression and i just feel like shit really
I try and combat this with getting up early not long after daybreak, taking vitamin D because your not going to get any naturally from the sun here in winter and get out for atleast a few minutes a day if i can. Also i take wellbutrin now for the depression side of my bipolar and i find that this helps me alot with various symptoms of SAD. It helps the fatigue and overall sluggishness, the mental cloudiness that comes with depression, i don't find waking up to be so hard, i don't oversleep as much and it makes me more outgoing instead of just having me lye in bed waiting for may to come
So yeah it would be fair to say that wellbutrin makes MY winters abit easier atleast and that it's the best drug for treating SAD for ME. But everyone reacts differently to every drug and what may work well for me may do fuck all for another person or even make them worse.
I would say maybe try light therapy if you can before taking any medications as i have heard that it does help alot of people. If for some reason you can't try it or if it does not work then i would suggest going to see your doctor.
Ironically, I have a vitamin D deficiency despite living in one of the sunniest places on earth so it might be a good idea to get your vitamin D level checked and address that issue if you're deficient.
It's not listed in the DSM-IV as a disorder in its own right. It's a symptom which describes the pattern of an Axis I disorder - major depressive episodes but sometimes bipolar disorder. Not all SAD occurs in winter either - it occurs in summer in some people.
It's pretty well established that exposure to light influences a lot of body rhythms - what's a lot less clear is why most people can compensate as the amount of natural light changes by a few minutes each day but some cannot. Light therapy usually works well for those people.
It's not listed in the DSM-IV as a disorder in its own right. It's a symptom which describes the pattern of an Axis I disorder - major depressive episodes but sometimes bipolar disorder. Not all SAD occurs in winter either - it occurs in summer in some people.
It's pretty well established that exposure to light influences a lot of body rhythms - what's a lot less clear is why most people can compensate as the amount of natural light changes by a few minutes each day but some cannot. Light therapy usually works well for those people.
Thats weird your body just must not be able to absorb vitamin D through the skin. Do you take suppliments? I take 1000IU of vitamin D3 a day so i doubt i am deficent in it or atleast i hope not. They don't test for vitamin D deficency here too often i don't think but they do test for iron and vitamin B-12 levels.
I know people in Australia who say they get SAD and this kinda boggles my mind. A friend of mine was once complaining that it was 18C out and that she was freezing and i was like that's june here :D . But i guess it all depends on what your used to really.
It's the first time a Vitamin D deficiency has shown up on my blood tests so I'n pretty sure it's just because I was spending almost no time outdoors. 15 minutes a day is supposed to be enough exposure to sunlight to provide your vitamin D but most of my outdoor time is spent behind shadecloth.
My doctor said she's seeing it more often as people now apply sunscreen literally every time they venture outside no matter what the season - which is what is recommended to prevent skin cancer.
I take supplements on and off. I need to take a calcium supplement anyway and most of those have vit D in them, but I get slack about taking them when money is tight.
I would certainly recommend Wellbutrin, particularly if you've never taken an antidepressant before. It worked wonders on my depression years ago when I first started taking antidepressants. Of course, it's only a temporary fix. If you can take it on a temporary basis just to get yourself out of the funk, that's the best course of action.
IME (which is somewhat limited) wellbutrin has helped me a lot with SAD in the past...
Hi laCster-
My name is Paul and I've been thru a lot of anxiety and still getting better, I've also been a counselor lol, so if you'd like to talk just drop me a line, thanks