Tips On How To Beat Seasonal Affective Disorder And The Winter Blues

The first day of winter is on Saturday, and you are not alone if the changing seasons and shorter days affect your mood.

A Pittsburgh psychiatrist who's a seasonal affective disorder expert is shining a light on what signs to look out for in yourself and loved ones and what people can do now to protect their mental health this winter.

The colder, darker months in the Pittsburgh area can make people feel gloomy and down.

"The feelings of sadness, decreased energy, decreased interest in things, sometimes people have too much sleep or despondency," said Dr. Alicia Kaplan, a psychiatrist at Allegheny Health Network who has been practicing for more than 20 years.

Those are some of the symptoms of seasonal affective disorder, a subtype of clinical depression that comes and goes in a seasonal pattern. The most common type is winter depression. 

"It is a real disorder, and people that are affected the most by the changes in light really suffer," Dr. Kaplan said.

Kaplan said the disorder can really interfere with daily functioning.

"They may worry about it a lot in advance knowing that they're not going to function as well, whether it's at work or their home responsibilities," she said.

She said the "winter blues" are also real. "Winter blues" (subsyndromal SAD) is just a less severe form of seasonal affective disorder. Sitting by bright windows or getting out of the house can brighten your day.

Dr. Kaplan said people who have seasonal affective disorder tend to hibernate, which can make symptoms worse. That's why she tells her patients it's important to plan activities ahead of time.

"That's why pre-planned activities can be helpful. Getting out with a friend, for example," she said.

Dr. Kaplan said you can also try to make yourself accountable because it can be hard to rely on motivation when you drop into winter depression.

"Sometimes it's engaging a family friend saying, 'Hey, you know, please get me out to a movie or a walk for 20 minutes,'" she said.

If seasonal affective disorder puts you in a freeze and impacts your functioning, it's time to seek out help. Talk with your physician. Treatments such as light therapy, medications or psychotherapy can be helpful.

"If someone notices they're just not themselves, they're not really interested in things, they're not participating in family and other social interactions or outings, not doing things they used to like to do," Dr. Kaplan said.

"If someone's really worried about somebody, then that is time to seek out help. I think it's important to rely on those that we care about and love and interact with because sometimes people can see changes within ourselves before other people do," she added.

Dr. Kaplan said people are typically diagnosed when they show SAD symptoms at least several seasons in a row and without episodes other times of the year.