S.A.D.

I am convinced I suffer from this, honestly I get soooo down in the Winter.

I get up and it's baltic and pitch black outside, I go to work and by the time 4pm hits it's dark again. And it's absolutely freezing. It just totally depresses me.

This probably doesn't apply to those of you in permenantly sunny/warmer climates lol but for those of you who do have cold and dark winters do you find you're the same? How do you cope?

It's hard isn't it. I find I come home and I'm reluctant to go out again because it's so cold, all I want to do is cosy up in front of the TV!

There is just something about the sunshine that makes you feel happy. I'm just trying to keep positive and thinking about booking a holiday to somewhere hot in January!

"I feel much more attractive and sexy in the Summer"

I so agree, feel so much healthier too. I've had a bad case of the flu this past week so I've not only felt terrible I look it too!

I defo want to live abroad during the winter months somewhere hot would totally suit me.

I've spent a small fortune so far this month on flu capsules, lemsips, throat sweets and so on. And then there's all the extra skin and hair care I've had to invest in because it's so cold.

Same here PP our winters last from the end of October all the way through to the end of February - that's 4 months of cold, dark and damp days. 😢

I wonder if there are any natural remedies you can take to combat the effects of winter?

I'm gonna have to do some research on this I think.....cos the only thing I can think of is a trip to the bahamas! 😛

Chicago gets very windy doesn't it?

Fantastic PP I'm checking it out now thanks!

I have started back at the gym past few weeks and it does help with the low motivation but I'm going to see what else I can do.

The going for a walk during the day when it's light is sort of out the question because I'm at work all day! I could go for a walk at lunchtime but where I work is on a campus out in the middle of nowhere so there's nowhere really to go.

I'm going to try some of the dietary suggestions given though see if that helps.

I used to hate winter cause I get fat 😢 But I think I am teh most productive in winter & strangely enough lately I have found that I work harder & wake up earlier in winter!

My mother always used to say that she got the "blues" in the winter, I didn't realize it was a condition that many people suffer from.

Sorry to hear that you guys feel bad, and depressed 😢

Thanks for the tip Bling will check it out.

I quite fancy the idea of being a squirrell and just hiding in a tree for the next few months.

lol I was gonna say just hide in a tree with a couple of nuts for a few months but I just KNEW you guys would take that all the wrong way. 😛

add a vitamin D supplement to your daily routine Tetis. it may help.

I will Tamara thanks! 🙂

seeing as the problem is a result of lack of sunshine, another trip to Spain would be lovely 🙂

...however, the radiant sunshine of a certain "leo" male will also be a great remedy 😉

Hi Thetis,

Did some happen in the past dring this time of year to make you feel sad during winter? Maybe there's a link?

Outcast I'd happily swap!

Yes Tamara a trip to Spain does indeed sound fab, add in a rather handsome Leo and it's double the sunshine as you say lol. 😉

Cappysweetie yes something bad did happen few years back, up until then I always loved Xmas and now I sort of dread it. Perhaps that has an effect on how I feel too, but still I do believe it's the cold/dark days and nights.

Okay, it makes since now. I always dread the month of July 19 because its the day my daddy died, so I understand. Its gotten better but it took seven years. I didn't really cry until 2004 and he passed in 1999.

awww sweetie you'll never stop missing him 😢

hopefully you smile more now though when you think of him.

I was diagnosed with a severe case of S.A.D. (seasonal adjustment disorder) over 15 years ago by a doctor that advised me to MOVE to a warm climate.Seriously. So I did. And it truly was the cure. (To think I needed a prescription to tell me that!) If you truly are miserable.........you should move. Vacations are only a band-aid for the suffering you go thru year after year waiting for the seasons to change. Move where you can be happy ALL the time. Even the bad stuff that comes up in life is better to deal with when you live somewhere where you are truly happy. Being warm for me is being happy.

Yes, I missed my friends when I first moved but I made new friends and then.....my old friends, from back home, come to the warm climate in the winter to visit. So their happy about that. They have an inexpensive place to vacation!!

"I usually end up getting colds and such. A couple of years back I would be crying for no reason"

That definitely doesn't help CappyWench, I am FOREVER coming down with the flu in the winter months, although this year I've started taking better multivitamins so I'm hopeful that will help. Still I was chocked all last week though. I find I get very emotional too, which pretty much sucks.

Temple that's exactly what I am planning on doing, although it won't be until next year (work commitments) but I am soooo much happier when I'm in a sunnier climate.

i look forward to winter every year...which sucks because we don't get much of a winter where i live...it's mid november and the weather is JUST NOW starting to cool down...last week it was almost 80 degrees...i swear arkansas weather is the worse...i'd trade the weather here for the weather where you live ANY TIME lol...

this is the best advice i can give you lol...i hope you get something helpful from it...

although, i'm sure my willingness to exchange weather with you (which is something only a fish would waste brain power on)...probably doesn't help you feel any better, and i'm sorry about that...i believe that our enviornment can generate negative feelings and emotions, especially when you are constantly surrounded by coldness and darkness...our surroundings affect us more than people realize...most of the time, people associate "bright and sunny" with good, happy and positive feelings while "cold and dark" often represents sad, lonely or depressing feelings...the best thing to do, i would think, is just accept that you don't have any control over how the weather is...or how long it's going to be cold and shitty outside...you do, however, have control of how you feel...tell yourself that it's just a season, it comes every year regardless of whether we like it or not...try not to focus on how much it sucks or how much you hate it...that will make it worse lol...but most importantly, remember that it's only temporary...and it will probably be over before you know it....

-jack

I lived in Colorado when i was 4-16 and i remember being depressed a lot. I moved to Florida after that, although there were things that added to how i felt, i lost 20lbs after i moved and definitely felt as if i were happier...and healthier. I feel better when I have a tan...maybe try that...it could help get your motivation up to go work out. When you feel better you are more positive and want to make those changes for yourself.