The Winter Blues

Anybody else get kind of down this time of year? Through the week I'm generally stuck in an office all day, and during the Spring/Summer enjoy coming home and working outside. With the short days and sometimes miserable weather, usually all I can do is look out my window and think of all the things that need to be done. I try to remind myself that even though it doesn't look like it outside, that God is still working and Spring will come again. Anybody have any tips, favorite things to do during the cold winter months?

 

Absolutely!

My solution, though I don't work in an office so you might not can apply all of it, has several parts:

1) Windows open during the brightest part of the day, closed BEFORE twilight. That means close them before the sun takes on a lower light cast. Around here right not that time is between 3:30 and 4 pm.

2) Bright lights on! These new florescent bulbs are a Godsend. I can keep the lights bright and ON, and not run up my power bill. Buy those that are advertised "natural light" and use those for the spaces you occupy the most. My house is lit up from the time I get up until I go to bed, every room that I might possibly occupy during the day.

3) At least 10-15 minutes of outside time everyday the sun shines no matter how cold it is. On days when it is overcast I pick the brightest time possible. The fresh air helps even if I don't get the light.

4) Lots of fruits and veggies high in vit C and plenty of vitamin D fortified milk (or milk products). I personally can't take vitamin C as a tablet (too much supresses my immune system strangely enough) and am not a pill taker anyhow, so I make sure I'm getting enough nutrient in my food. Lots of salads, lots of fruits.

5) when all else fails, I medicate. I haven't had to do that for several years, but I know myself well, and its much better to catch the depression before it can take root, than to let it get ahold of me and then try to treat it.

 

My wife has dealt with SAD (Seasonal Affective Disorder) for years. We used to call it "cabin fever" as it is a typical up-north issue, where daily exposure to sunlight is very limited both due to the length of time that one sees the sun and the additional issues surrounding being inside because of the cold temps.

The (almost instant) cure is to get out in the sun. A secondary cure is to use sun lamps. We've found that tanning lamps do not work.

After dealing with this issue for some time, I'm also of a mind that it is vitamin D related. D is the only vitamin produced within the body (actually in the skin) and it stems from sunlight against skin. Vitamin D supplements are not all that beneficial because they are difficult for the body to process. The best cure is to get some skin exposed to sunlight.

The main benefit of D is to aid the body in processing potassium and calcium. The lack of both of these minerals in usable form within the body lead to all sort of issues, from osteoporosis, to nerve issues, to depression, to breast cancer.

The single best cure, for both D and SAD is to go outside with as much bare skin as one can stand (due to weather) and absorb some rays. It will make a huge difference.

At times, I have to almost carry my wife outside for a day. She almost always struggles against my efforts, because during the winter months she almost shuts down (almost on the edge of hibernation) but a day out in the sun is almost like a miracle cure. She perks right back up.

 

I probably get tastes of it more now than I ever have.

Help?

In my bedroom I keep the shades up (No one can really see in....) and I have sheer curtains hanging, so the sun comes in to wake me up. This is anti depressive.

When down, I try to get around other people so they can bring me up.

 

Short days here in Prague. Sun rise this morning was 7:55 and sunset is 4:00. But we have not seen the sun for over two weeks ... a bit of snow everyday during that time until last night ... snow all night and all day today. The temp is supposed to hover between 5 and 10 at night the next few days and no temperature above freezing. So, each day is just another beautiful day in Prague. LOL

People with SAD should definitely avoid any place this far north.

 

I've rid myself of the winter blues by taking vitamin D3. I keep my testing levels above 50ng/ml, and that seems to do the trick. As a bonus, I rarely develop the flu anymore. I love it!

The article written by a cardiologist where I learned how to take D3 correctly and test.

http://heartscanblog.blogspot.com/2010/01/getting-vitamin-d-right.html