seasonal affective disorder (sad): why women are more at risk and how to cope
6 minute read
women in particular are more at risk for sad, with 2 to 3 per cent of canadians experiencing clinical levels, of whom about 75 per cent are women. lucy gallson (right) lives with sad with the support of her husband dave.
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what does it take to get out of bed in the morning when you’re feeling low? for some of us, coffee will do it, or the dog needs to go outside.
but for others, the short, dark days of winter drain us of motivation and joy. when this is a continuing pattern of more than a few weeks, you could be experiencing seasonal affective disorder (sad). the disorder is a type of depression that happens at the same time each year, most commonly in late fall and winter.
seasonal affective disorder can be treated
lucy gallson, a belleville, ontario woman in her 70s, started to feel the “dark tunnel” of sad in her late 30s at a time when demands on her time were high. she was caring for her family and home while working as a fitness instructor. she says she didn’t have time for the uncharacteristic feelings of low mood and energy, so she tried to just keep on going. meanwhile, she lost weight and couldn’t sleep. sometimes she’d get up at 2 a.m. to go for a run to make herself feel better.
“it was a real endorphin kick. and for that period of time, i could zone out. but it can get addictive in certain ways where you’re afraid to sit still and really take time to recognize what’s going on,” says lucy. now she wears bright colours in winter, including red gloves for her outdoor walks, all to help boost mood and enjoyment.
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by her 40s, she knew that she needed help and couldn’t ignore her symptoms that took the colour out of her life so that everything looked black and white. she went for counselling, which was a huge help. one thing her therapist told her was that while running is good for people physically and mentally, she was using it as an escape. she would need an evidence-backed wellness plan to manage her sad.
“they told me, ‘if you’re really wanting to get better, you need to address why you have this need to run,’ and next i tried journaling, and then they gave me a whole toolbox on how to cope.”
hormone changes make women more at risk for sad
women in particular are more at risk for sad, with two to three per cent of canadians experiencing clinical levels, of whom about 75 per cent are women, says angie agrawal holstein, founder and clinical director at shanti psychotherapy. she points out that research is based on people who seek help, so numbers may be much higher. additionally, men reach out for help less often than women do.
agrawal holstein is a social worker and trauma therapist in toronto who understands how difficult conditions like sad can be to recognize. “as a culture, we’re super growth mindset, which means that we tend to be invalidating and perfectionistic. we want to go, ‘it’s not that bad. it’s the winter blues. i’m just feeling like this because of the snow.’”
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she says that people are not taught to go inward, to look at what’s happening in their family or other experiences at a personal level. instead, we try to will ourselves out of sad by deciding, for example, to go to the gym, which might last for a few sessions until we see that we’re still not feeling well.
“we have to remember that the word ‘disorder’ (in sad) means that something neurobiologically is happening in the brain,” she explains of chemicals in the brain that regulate mood, emotions and behaviour. “these chemicals suppress aspects like motivation, so if we look at symptoms, primary symptoms are sleep disturbance and mood. what is mood? well, it’s motivation. it’s spark. it’s joy. it’s having a variance in your mood,” instead of the constant dull ache of low mood and disengagement.
look for subtle symptoms of disengagement
while being aware of primary symptoms of sleep disruption and mood problems is important, breaking the signs down further to more subtle changes can help identify sad, like procrastination, low motivation, canceling plans, poor hygiene, and “the overwhelm that happens around getting out for a walk, lots and lots of overthinking about things that you do regularly that are really hard to do during this time period when the disorder is triggered in the brain.”
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why are women more likely to experience sad? their biology is different from that of men. agrawal holstein explains that hormones, which fluctuate during perimenopause and menopause, make women more susceptible to reduced daylight.
“women actually experience lower levels of serotonin,” she says of the chemical that impacts mood, digestion and sleep, and adds that women in their 40s and older are particularly vulnerable to sad.
“while it may not have been a condition that they experienced in their early years, it could be now.”
changes in hormones also affect the sleep hormone, melatonin, in the brain. “hormones plus darkness means that your melatonin release is reduced, so you’re going to have more sleep disruptions.”
yes, get outside in winter
the good news is that sad is very treatable with interventions like light therapy, where you have a special lamp to sit by, as well as getting outside in the daylight. while it might be challenging to embrace the cold, she recommends getting snowpants to keep warm and also doing things to warm you up in the cold season, like having a sauna a couple times a week, taking a hot water bottle to bed and enjoying movement in drop-in classes at a community centre. practicing good sleep hygiene is also important, with a calming bedtime routine, herbal tea and less screen time. and there are medications that can help as well.
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“i think self-awareness needs to come in,” she recommends, noting that prevention for sad, like getting outside and participating in activity, is something that everyone can follow.
“can you get curious about all these different systems inside of you and around you that could be impacting your mood or contributing to a condition like seasonal affective disorder?”
start by talking to a healthcare provider, as treatment is available.
that’s also lucy’s advice for adopting habits to reduce symptoms and help you feel more like yourself.
“getting out into the fresh air, engaging your senses that way, being able to be aware of your surroundings. when i was struggling, it was recommended that i use music. so again, engaging that sense of sound to lift the mood. music has been known to help mood and even animals respond to it,” she says.
‘dark days don’t last forever’
“definitely the days you don’t feel like going out or doing. those are the days you need it most, which is why i was out at 7:30 shovelling snow this morning. those are the days to make the effort.”
the diagnosis validated her experience and moved her from the misconception of feeling broken to understanding that sad is a medical condition that you can manage.
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“you know, it’s work. you don’t think about having to schedule brushing your teeth in the morning; it becomes automatic. but you have to make a conscious effort to schedule some self-care time to go out.”
the support of her husband and friends has been equally important. when lucy was going through a challenging time, her friend gave her a card with beautiful birds on it that said, “dark days don’t last forever. birds know this, and this is why they sing.”
lucy put a bird feeder out by her window where all the birds like to congregate.
“i had to go outside again this morning to clean off the snow and put out the seeds. and all of a sudden, the little finches were coming, and the chickadees were singing. and again, it brings me joy. and my cat loves it too, because it drives her crazy.”
for more information and help with sad, visit mood disorders society of canada.
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