If you're feeling summertime sadness, gloomy weather won't help
With seasonal affective disorder, a depressive episode can coincide with change to a new season — any season.
Simon Sherry, a clinical psychologist and a professor of psychology and neuroscience at Dalhousie University, has warned about the side-effects of summer.
The change in season, which means a change in our exposure to sunlight, can cause insomnia, reduced appetite and weight loss. This is a mirror of the effects winter weather can have.
"There are underlying changes that can happen in our brain," Sherry said. "Our body runs on a circadian rhythm, which is an internal 24-hour clock. And if that cycle, which has a lot to do with sleeping and waking, can get disrupted, then mood problems follow."
He points to the daylight savings one-hour time change, which can affect mood.
WATCH | How to tell if you're feeling summertime sadness:
Michael Mak, a psychiatrist and sleep medicine specialist at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health in Toronto, said the time when we're taking in sunlight changes by season, which causes the disruption.
Taking in sunlight later in the day can make it tougher for people to sleep, which in turn affects mood.
"What we want is less light exposure close to bedtime, more light when we wake up in the morning," said Mak, who is also the clinical vice-president of the Canadian Sleep Society.
He said 10 to 15 per cent of Canadians can experience a mild form of seasonal affective disorder, and three to five per cent can have a "terribly disabling" degree of symptoms.
Mak also said the weather can affect people in similar ways. Consistent rain, which New Brunswick saw over consecutive weekends this spring, can cause symptoms.
New Brunswick hasn't seen a precipitation-free weekend since spring started. The capital, Fredericton, saw its first weekend of sun on June 14 and 15.
"Having that on a consistent basis means that people are going to be exposed to less natural sunlight and bright light, which stabilizes our internal body clock, makes our sleep better and makes our mood better," said Mak.
He said "more rainy days on average" means mood and sleep just get worse.
"It just means that you're not able to enjoy the things you usually like. You don't have the opportunity to go out and exercise, which we know is good for mood and good for sleep."
For people affected by the season, Mak suggests trying to exercise indoors and consider sunlight exposure therapy.
LISTEN | Simons Sherry explains how to spot seasonal affective disorder:
An easy exercise is turning on all the lights in your house. There are also special lights that are designed to treat seasonal affective disorder which are available in retail stores.
Exposing yourself to light early in the morning can also help with seasonal affective disorder and depression.
Sherry said to also consider cognitive behavioural therapy to help change behaviour.
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