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Seasonal affective disorder

Perturbatio affectiva temporalis · Sezónní afektivní porucha

What it is

Depression that returns each autumn and winter as the days shorten, linked to light, melatonin and the body clock.

Symptoms & signs

  • Low mood in autumn and winter
  • oversleeping and fatigue
  • craving carbohydrates, weight gain
  • withdrawal from others
  • lifts in spring

🚩 Get help if…

  • call 112 / 911 now Thoughts of suicide or self-harm
  • see a doctor soon Unable to work or care for yourself
  • see a doctor soon Sleeping little with racing thoughts in spring
  • see a doctor soon Low mood lasting into the summer

Where it strikes

Medical treatment

  • Bright light therapy (10 000 lux, 30 minutes each morning)
  • cognitive behavioural therapy
  • SSRIs or bupropion
  • start before symptoms in known cases

Natural & lifestyle

  • Morning outdoor light
  • exercise outdoors
  • regular sleep and wake times

Emerging & experimental

  • Dawn simulators
  • blue-enriched light devices

Alternative, off-label & anecdotal

Approaches used outside the guidelines, with what their supporters report and what testing has found so far.

  • Vitamin D — trials disagree mixed evidence
  • Negative air ionisers — small trials early / small studies
  • St John's wort — trials help mild depression; many drug interactions mixed evidence
  • Exercise outdoors — small studies early / small studies

ICD codes