Poll: S.A.D

In talking with you guys about SAD, I learned something I didn't know. It seems that living south of where I do doesn't seem to eliminate the instances of SAD. I somehow thought people in California or other southern states didn't suffer from it. So maybe it's not some fixed amount or quantity of light or some particulars of weather that causes it, but simply living in any area where the winter months differ from the summer months in temperature and light quality.

Since it seems so many people suffer from S.A.D ... I just wanted to ask some questions.

1) Do you consider yourself as having S.A.D?

If so ...

2) What month is your worst month?

3) What month were you born in? (This seems to have some relevance in the instance of SAD.)

4) Have you seen your Doctor about S.A.D.? Did he/she understand, support you and help you treat it?

4) How do you treat your S.A.D.? Does your treatment help?

5) Do you have to fight against *treating* your S.A.D. in unhealthy ways?

1) My worst month is January, with February a close second.

2) I was born in December.

3) I have seen my Doc, and his best answer for me was antidepressants 6 months of the year. That was/is not an option for me except as a last resort, personal reasons.

4) This is the first year I have worked to treat my SAD. I treat in a variety of ways - exercise, eating better, getting more sleep, trying to engage in fun, and I use a light box 5 days a week. Obviously this combination does not fully treat my depression, but it does seem to help. I did notice that my symptoms were lesser this November than in years past, but ask me again in February.

5) I tend to go for chocolate when I'm down, which is bad for me for obvious reasons. Sometimes I do tend to drink too much, although that has not been so much of a problem since my diagnosis of Type II. I just can't do that to my body - alcohol has a bad reaction with my medication and I know my liver is a key player in managing my sugar levels. Probably the worst place for me is sinking into a vague pseudo-reality where I sleep a lot and avoid facing reality, and although that is rare, a few years ago it was pretty bad.


Anyone else want to talk about it?