Counseling Center helps SAD victims
Being stuck in your dorm room because there is a mountain of snow outside and it is 39 degrees below zero may be affecting more than just your social life. Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) is a type of depression that affects many people during the winter months, when decreased daylight is common.
According to Concordia’s Counseling Center, SAD is caused by a lack of sunlight. The sun provides many benefits to the human body, including large amounts of melatonin, serotonin, and Vitamin D, chemicals that help regulate the mood.
Symptoms of SAD include apathy, irritability, fatigue, boredom, overeating, tearfulness, and a loss of interest. Although this may sound like a simple case of the “winter blues,” these symptoms are serious and often extremely exaggerated.
Carol Sandgren, a counselor at Concordia’s Counseling Center, explained that SAD is treatable. First, she said it is important to get light. Cobbers can snatch some winter light by using a light box by contacting the health center. A light box contains a florescent light that emits full spectrum light, minus UV rays, which can help return some of the lost benefits of sunlight. For about 30 to 45 minutes each day, the user sits facing the light box, eyes open, soaking in the light; with time and regular use, light boxes have shown to be an effective treatment of SAD.
Also, the Counseling Center is fully equipped to offer their services as counselors to students who need additional therapy.
Finally, Sandgren said that the Counseling Center may recommend that students have a medical evaluation. If the depression is severe enough, medication may be needed.
There are several ways to deter the winter blues. It is important to be exposed to sunlight, sleep and exercise regularly, and maintain social activities.
Registered dietitian Cindy Hogenson said that there are also several ways that good nutrition can help deal with seasonal depression. She explained that foods high in carbohydrates boost serotonin and are believed to have a calming effect on the body. She also stressed the importance of eating a well-balanced, energy filled diet.
Some foods contain the chemicals the body is lacking. Canned tuna, eggs, fortified orange juice, milk, and some cereals contain vitamin D and can be used to replace some lost sunlight. Omega-3 fatty acids have shown to relieve some symptoms of depression in some studies, said Hogenson. Walnuts, salmon, tofu, and squash are all rich in this healthy fat.
Sunlight, salmon, friends, and talking it out with a counselor may be able to save your social life, even before the snow melts. Altogether, Seasonal Affective Disorder, while serious, is very treatable.
