‘Do you have depression — or Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD)?
February 25th, 2008 Posted in Climate / Human habitat, Mental and emotional healthThe world’s most popular blogging anesthesiologist and healthy cat owner Dr. Joseph Stirt of Charlottesville, Virginia, posted the question today: Do you have depression — or Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD)?
I’d have to agree that it is an important question and an important distinction. The major point of the entry made at bookofjoe.com is no one with SAD has to wait for spring and summer to feel better. Bright light in the early morning is a powerful, fast and effective treatment for seasonal depression. The effects of light therapy are fast, usually four to seven days, compared with antidepressants, which can take four to six weeks to work. This great news was first published by Dr. Richard A. Friedman on December 18, 2007 in the New York Times article about seasonal depression.
Differential diagnosis and an active, appropriate therapy seem to be the best way to combat the debilitating effects that lack of light can bring… if you can’t take a sunny, tropical vacation, that is.
P.s. I hope that John Denver youtube video also shed some light on the subject!
Tags: depression, light therapy, mental health, morning, night, seasonal affective disorder, sunshine, winter
