Winter Blues vs Seasonal Depression

 Before I get into our topic today, I want to apologize for the wait. I was sick for a good two weeks. People kept thinking it was covid but every test I took came back negative.

We also had a lady from our church pass away. I'm still in shock. I'm from a small church and we're all affected by this death. It was so unexpected that it's made me really think about priorities and some changes that I need to make.

BUT... today we're going to talk about winter blues vs seasonal depression (or Seasonal Affective Disorder). 

Now I admit, I hate winter. I hate the cold, the snow, the darkness... pretty much anything about it. I wouldn't say I have winter blues or seasonal depression but I want to make sure that people not only know that there is a difference but what the difference is. 

WINTER BLUES

Winter Blues happens during the colder months of the year. It brings about feelings of sadness and fatigue. Since the sun isn't out as long, some people get down and out. You may feel unmotivated and struggle getting up in the mornings. But overall, you can still function. You can do what's necessary. 

Some things that can help with winter blues is first, seeking out the sun. The sun is a mood booster. It gives us our Vitamin D. With my job, I'm literally working all of the daylight hours during the winter so I would take extra Vitamin D supplements. 

Other things is exercise and eating right. When we want to hibernate, so to speak, we want comfort foods like sweets and carbohydrates. While those feel good in the moment, they really make us more tired and lethargic. 

SEASONAL DEPRESSION

Now let's talk about seasonal depression (also called Seasonal Affective Disorder). 

First, it's good to define depression because it is one of the main differences. 

Depression is not just sadness

Depression negatively affects how you feel, think and act. You have loss of interest causing significant impairment to daily life. 

Seasonal depression is distressing and overwhelming feelings of sadness that interfere with daily functioning WITH a seasonal pattern. It is severe and can be debilitating. It does not have to happen only in winter. It can happen with any change of seasons but it happens at the same season every year. I have a friend that it happens in the fall. There's others that struggle in summer or spring. With the darkness and colder weather, it does happen most frequently in winter. 

If you feel you fit this description, please seek help. Go to a doctor and tell them how you're feeling. They should be able to determine if antidepressants will help or if you should just take more Vitamin D.

I hope this has helped because there is a very real difference. People that struggle with Seasonal Depression struggle more when people just call in winter blues because it is so much more. But I want to emphasize that winter blues is a very real thing so please do something to help.

I don't feel like I deal with either of these personally but I have people around me that do. I just plain don't like winter. lol. 

The next topics will be about my journey and why mental health is so important to me. I had written some posts a couple years ago. Feel free to go back and read them. But I'll write again to go along with my YouTube videos.

My email is mannas.musings@gmail.com.

YouTube link is https://youtu.be/GwaAPdDy7hk