Seasonal Affective Disorder and Daylight Savings Time

As we head into fall time and the days are becoming shorter, many individuals find themselves struggling with new or worsening depression symptoms. These symptoms may be due to Seasonal Affective Disorder, which is a type of Major Depressive Disorder that affects millions of adults (National Institute of Mental Health). Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) causes serious mood and behavioral changes that can affect your day-to-day life, and it is important to get help if you find yourself struggling this time of year. For some individuals, depression symptoms can actually worsen during the warmer months and will get better as the weather gets cooler, although in most cases, individuals tend to struggle most in the colder months.

Symptoms of Major Depressive Disorder and/or SAD can include the following:

• Feeling depressed most of the day, nearly every day
• Losing interest in activities you once enjoyed
• Experiencing changes in appetite or weight
• Having problems with sleep
• Feeling sluggish or agitated
• Having low energy
• Feeling hopeless or worthless
• Having difficulty concentrating
• Having frequent thoughts of death or suicide

Many individuals with ‘winter-pattern SAD ’ (depression that worsens in the wintertime and gets better in the spring and summer), can also experience hypersomnia, increased appetite and overeating, weight gain, and social isolation (National Institute of Mental Health).

SAD is often treated with a combination of medication, psychotherapy, vitamin D, and/or light therapy (National Institute of Mental Health). See below for a few tips for things you can do at home as well to improve your mood during the cold months:

1. {Make it bright}- Open the curtains, turn on an extra lamp or two, throw a new, brighter coat of paint on the walls. Make your space as light and comfortable as possible.
2. {Make it a space you like}- put a new picture or decoration up, light a candle, rearrange the furniture, put a nice, bright blanket on the couch- make it a space that’s pleasant and enjoyable to be in.
3. {Get a light box}- Light boxes may help as well to reduce depressive symptoms; these provide a very bright light that you can sit in front of for about 30-45 minutes per day, in an effort to replace some of the lost daytime light during the fall and winter. Light box therapy was first studied in the 1980’s and research conducted since that time has shown light therapy to be helpful for some individuals (Campbell et al, 2017).
4. {Connect}- It can feel very tempting to isolate or “hibernate” in the winter, but this can increase depression and feelings of sadness. It’s important to try to reach out to someone, even just over a quick text or email, as a way to feel connected during the colder months.
5. {Practice self-care}- Don’t forget to take care of yourself. Changing out of PJ’s and taking a shower, even if you aren’t leaving the house, can do wonders for your mood.
6. {Find a hobby or something to do}- watch a funny movie, find a crafting activity to do, color, do yoga or some kind of movement, read a book, journal, whatever you like!

With depression often comes loss of interest, fatigue, and low motivation, all which can make it hard to motivate yourself to do the above-mentioned things. If you find that you are struggling, don’t be afraid to ASK FOR HELP! Call a friend, talk to someone you trust, or call your doctor or therapist! Talking with someone and getting support can help set you on a path toward feeling better and more like yourself during the winter months.

For more information regarding Seasonal Affective Disorder, including please visit the following website:

https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/publications/seasonal-affective-disorder/index.shtmlb.

Katie Jones, LIMHP, NCC, CPC

Omni Eating Disorder Clinic Director

References:

Campbell, P. D., Miller, A. M., & Woesner, M. E. (2017). Bright Light Therapy: Seasonal Affective Disorder and    

      Beyond. The Einstein journal of biology and medicine : EJBM, 32, E13–E25.

National Institute of Mental Health, T. N. (n.d.). Seasonal Affective Disorder. Retrieved from

      https://www.nimh.nih.giv/health/publications/seasonal-affective-disorder/index.shtml

Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday. I love the smell of the various foods cooking on a cold day, from the savory smell of the turkey to the smell of homemade yeast rolls and pumpkin pie. I remember my mother getting up early on Thanksgiving morning and starting the turkey, the smell of the onions and celery cooking on the stove for her stuffing was delightful. A traditional thanksgiving to me would consist of Roast turkey with dressing and gravy, mashed potatoes, maybe sweet potatoes, homemade yeast rolls with butter, green bean casserole, cranberry sauce, and pumpkin pie. There are many family traditions incorporated into the thanksgiving meal, for example, I am accustomed to a traditional bread dressing, whereas when I lived in the south a cornbread dressing was traditional.

Below are some tips for preparing and cooking a turkey:

1. Thaw your turkey in the refrigerator. As a rule of thumb, for every 5# of turkey, it will take one day to thaw in the refrigerator. Thawing in the refrigerator is the preferred method, however a turkey may be thawed in cool continuously running tap water if time is an issue.
2. It is not recommended that a turkey be washed in the sink. It is safe to place in the roasting pan without washing. Cooking to appropriate temperature will destroy salmonella.
3. Salt your turkey well before roasting, unless you are on a sodium restricted diet.
4. Use a food thermometer when cooking a turkey. Poultry should be cooked to internal temperature of 165 degrees, but it is safe to pull out the turkey from the oven when the thickest part of the turkey breast is at 160, as the temperature will raise when the turkey rests before carving.
5. Rest your turkey about 30 minutes before you carve it. The meat will carve better when rested.
6. Do not stuff your turkey. Cook your dressing separately. There are differing opinions on this, but because the turkey and dressing need to cook for different times, your turkey may be overcooked if you use this process, or dressing may be in the “food danger zone” for too long.
7. Do not discard the juices from the cooking of the turkey. They contain wonderful flavor to use in a gravy.
8. Some recommend cooking the turkey at a high temperature for the first 45 minutes to an hour of cooking time, (425degrees), some recommend the “low and slow” method, that is cooking the turkey at 325 degrees for 13 to 16 minutes per pound, which will take about 3 hours give or take for a 12 pound turkey. I recommend tenting your turkey initially with foil, so the top does not get too brown, and removing the foil for about the last 1 hour of cooking.
9. Before cooking your turkey, remove the neck and “giblets” from the turkey. The giblets include the heart, liver, and gizzard of the turkey. Giblets are generally found in a little bag in the turkey cavity. The giblets may be used to make a broth by using water and boiling them stovetop. Celery, carrots, and diced onions may be used to boil for the broth. After the giblets are cooked, they may be finely diced and added to the gravy. Neck meat is difficult to pull from the bone, it is “stringy”, be patient when removing from the bone. Giblet gravy is a personal preference, some individuals prefer gravy without giblets, so I would recommend making some gravy with giblets and some without.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING TO ALL FROM OMNI'S EATING DISORDER CLINIC!

Margaret Hodges, RD, LMNT

Omni Eating Disorder Clinic