Are You Aware of Seasonal Depression?

Even if we are part of the category of those who believe that the rain laughs with tears of happiness, a week of humidity, cold and wind is enough to drown our ships. Or so it seems to us. And sadness can sometimes turn into a real depression if we don't know when to ask for help.

Melancholy, poor mood or morale on the ground, tell them how you want, if they appear since the gloomy days begin and stop only when the trees are budding, without any other cause (divorce, death, missed exams), are signs that announce the onset of seasonal depression.

The symptoms are those of a common depression: marked sadness, especially in the evening, loss of interest in any activity, nervousness, sleep problems, weight loss, or, conversely, weight gain. But what is specific to autumn depression is long sleep and bulimia, ie the tendency to eat constantly, especially sweets. But don't look in the fridge to solve your problems.

 Causes of seasonal depression

Scientists are still trying to elucidate the cause of this disease, which often prevents us from performing our duties or even maintaining our relationships.

However, the role played by the decrease in sunlight in the cold season, which seems to influence the amount of serotonin (the hormone of happiness) produced by the brain, is indisputable. Heredity is also blamed, those who had relatives who struggled with depression being, in turn, much more likely to see the empty side of the glass.

How we forget about sadness

The treatment of seasonal depression consists of psychotherapy, performed by a specialist, associated with antidepressant drugs if we fail to sleep or cry continuously from anything.

But perhaps the most effective treatment is phototherapy, which consists of exposure to light is specially designed offices. A few sessions, lasting between half an hour and an hour, are enough to turn the daily melancholy into a memory.

Before entering the vicious circle of sleeping pills and antidepressants, use the healing power of plants. A tea of ​​lime or shock, sweetened with honey, in the evening, at bedtime, and two pills of passionflower or valerian during the day interrupt the series of endless inconveniences.

The wind, with good and bad

Wind plays an important role in sudden temperature changes. Whether it comes from the west, laden with oceanic humidity, or from the south, when it brings the Saharan heat or brings the biting frost from Siberia in winter, the wind forces the body to react according to its ability to adapt.

Harder to bear is the hot, dry one, loaded with positive ions, which leads to an increase in the concentration of cortisol in the blood, a dangerous effect especially for heart patients who cause palpitations and severe headaches.

Little by little, little by little…

Rain is a blessing for people with allergies because, under the pressure of water droplets, plant pollen remains fixed on the ground and can no longer be inhaled. However, for patients with osteoarthritis or chronic rheumatism, humidity is a disaster because it activates the latent foci of infections.

The result: continuous pain, heavy movement, not to mention impossible. In addition, the humidity makes our lungs more sensitive to the attack of viruses, and bronchitis, sinusitis, or even pneumonia do not seem to end.

The solution is to harden the body

The simplest method of increasing the capacity to defend against diseases is to harden the body. How? Simple - doing sports regularly! And that regardless of age. Dress lightly, we start with short walks followed, at the end of the day, by showers with less and less hot water. But the shower that warms our body should never make us shiver.

In addition, 10 minutes of regular exercise (stretching, spinning, squatting, kneeling), in front of the open window, work wonders. In this way, we will be able to avoid excessive winter foliage, which makes it much harder for the body to adapt from the heat of the apartment to the cold outside.

75% of people affected by depression, with the arrival of autumn, are women and children are no strangers, the researchers found that 3–5% of them suffer from seasonal depression, starting at the age of 10 years.