Seasonal Affective Disorder is a mental illness that affects many individuals during the winter months.  Those that suffer from this disease suffer due to lack of sunlight and serotonin exposure in their lives.  They usually benefit by supplementing artificial light in their life.  They can do this with the help of a SAD therapy lamp.

It’s Been A Few Days

Many people want to know if their SAD lamp is working.  Are you one of these people?  Doctors and light therapy companies will tell you that these lamps will help reverse your symptoms in as little as a week.  However, you as the SAD sufferer might have difficulty noticing a difference.  Here are some ideas to help you recognize how your SAD lamp is helping you.

Ideas To Help

First, keep a journal to document to your symptoms everyday.  This way you will you will see your progress in written form.  Secondly, make sure that you are consistently using the lamp.  Those that take advantage of this lamp will benefit the most from it.  If you are not consistent, you will not see as many benefits from it.  Lastly, if you are not seeing the results you want, consider increasing your dosage.  You might need a little bit more light everyday.

As people get older, they sometimes deal with depression. Their friends and family members might not be around as much, and they can find themselves alone a lot more often. Some enjoy this, but most get lonely. This can be especially bad during the long, dark, chilly winter months when the days are short and there is often less sunlight.

Does Age Matter?

Anyone can suffer from SAD, even young children. Still, though, more older people seem to have depression problems. If they don’t have them all year but only struggle in the winter, they may be dealing with SAD. It’s possible that they had it all their lives and it’s more obvious to them when they’re more alone, or they may have developed it as they got older.

Sunny Climates And Retirement

A lot of older people seem to escape SAD because they retire to sunny climates where there’s less chance of feeling bad in the winter. With the bright sunshine even during most of the winter months, it’s quite possible that someone who might otherwise have SAD would avoid it because of the climate.

Help For Older People With SAD

If you think you might be dealing with SAD, see your doctor. It’s more common than you think, no matter what age group you fall into. Older people are more commonly at their doctors for other ailments, so that’s a good time to talk over any mental health issues that could be a concern.

Getting help for SAD is not that difficult, but taking that first step and reaching out for help often is. Make sure you take that step, so you can get back on the road toward feeling better.

When you deal with SAD, you find that you aren’t enjoying things like you used to. Everything seems dull and depressing, and you don’t have much energy for work, fun, or family. If you have SAD and not clinical depression, your symptoms will lift when spring arrives and the days get longer, but they’ll come back when fall and winter returns.

Using Sunlamps To Help You

One of the things you can do in order to alleviate the symptoms of SAD is use a sunlamp. Your doctor can suggest some that will be helpful to you, but you can also do research online to see what’s out there and available. They range in size, intensity, and cost, but they’re all designed to help your body think that the days are longer.

What About Medications?

If sunlamps don’t work for you or they aren’t enough, it’s also possible for you to take medications for SAD, just like you would for clinical forms of depression that last all year round. It’s a good idea to be sure that medication is what you need, though, because they can have side effects. Don’t take it if you don’t really need it. Your doctor can help you make that decision.

Spring Will Come Back

Even if you can’t totally get rid of all of your SAD symptoms, just alleviating some of them or lessening their severity can help you remember that spring is coming. You won’t feel as bad during the winter, and you’ll be able to look forward more easily to the changing of the seasons.

By working with your doctor, you’ll be better able to find the treatments that work best for you. You’ll eliminate some of the trial and error, and you’ll be happier for a longer period of time during the year.

When people have SAD they generally feel better when it’s sunnier. They can handle a cloudy day here and there, but they don’t do well in the wintertime, when the days are shorter and there just isn’t much sun at all. Getting extra sunlight is important, but there are other ways to feel better.

Medications For SAD

If you’re struggling with SAD, you may find that sunlamps don’t help you or you don’t have the time to sit near them for long enough. You may also not be able to afford them. With that in mind, you can see about getting medications to treat SAD that don’t require sunlight. Some of these work well for people, but nothing works for everyone.

What About A Pet? 

Pets can help people with SAD because they force people to interact and get moving. If they have to play with their cat or walk their dog, they’re less apt to take to their bed or couch and not do anything, even if they still feel depressed.

A Positive Attitude Is Important

It’s hard to think positively when you’re upset, depressed, and dealing with SAD, but making an effort to remain upbeat and happy is important. Don’t let the SAD that you’re dealing with get the best of you. There are still many things to be appreciative of and thankful for.

If you find that you’re not feeling better despite the things that you’re trying, make sure that you see your doctor. There are always other treatments that you can try, and they may be able to help you feel better, even in the winter months.