SAD<\/a>, as the depressive condition is known, reliably spikes in the cold weather months, when sunlight exposure plummets. But this year has been notably worse than usual, Aldad said.<\/p>\n\u201cNot only are we seeing a spike in SAD in patients, we\u2019re actually seeing clinicians presenting with some changes in mood,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
SAD often manifests as negative mood changes, feelings of emptiness, hopelessness and decreased energy. It can also look like people \u201closing their ability to tolerate the winter,\u201d as many currently are, said Aldad. \u201cEveryone’s patience is wearing thin.\u201d<\/p>\n
The silver lining, though, is that the worst is nearly over: Late February and early March are generally the apex of winter blues. \u201cWe\u2019re at the peak now,\u201d said Aldad.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn the beginning of November, December, people have a very high tolerance\u201d for the cold and lack of sun, he continued. \u201cFebruary really is when we see people completely burnt out.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cClinically, SAD typically peaks in mid to late winter,\u201d said Manhattan-based therapist Heather Sutter. \u201cPractically and emotionally, many people say March feels the hardest.\u201d<\/p>\n
The end of March is when folks can expect the sun to organically restore their vitamin D levels and mood, said Sutter, who is also the clinic director of the online therapy company Octave.<\/p>\n
The go-to treatments for SAD are phototherapy (so-called SAD lamps) and vitamin D supplements, and the same type of mental health support proven to be useful in any weather.<\/p>\n
\u201cWinter doesn’t cause depression alone, but it creates conditions for mood dips,\u201d Sutter said.<\/p>\n
And though SAD symptoms have spiked this year, Aldad noted he has not observed an increase in 911 calls, hospitalizations or suicidality.<\/p>\n
As for the effect of snow on New Yorkers\u2019 mental health, it depends.<\/p>\n
\u201cAre you enjoying it by a fireplace, in a chalet? Or are you out there shoveling and wondering when the experience is gonna be over?\u201d said Aldad. Depending on the answer, the experience can build resentment or bring pleasure.<\/p>\n
\u201cSnow disrupts routines,\u201d said Heather, and \u201cthe loss of structure can worsen the mood.\u201d<\/p>\n
Then again, for some \u2013 perhaps those seeking a slower pace or a reason to relax \u2013 it can be a good thing.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The last storm\u2019s snow had barely melted when Sunday and Monday brought a fresh heaping of soon-to-be slush…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":300202,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[35],"tags":[134,554,555,111,139,69],"class_list":["post-300201","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-mental-health","tag-health","tag-mental-health","tag-mentalhealth","tag-new-zealand","tag-newzealand","tag-nz"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/300201","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=300201"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/300201\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/300202"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=300201"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=300201"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=300201"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}