Here come the summertime blues

summerdepression@yahoogroups.com
De: "John R Bolam" <Data: Tue, 02 May 2006 10:25:06 -0000
Assunto: [summerdepression] Here Come The Smmertime Blues

I found this bit of imformation on the website:

http://www.britain.tv/health_here_come_the_summerblues.shtml

I enclose the full text here, as we all know webpages do not stay
online for ever.

HERE COME THE SUMMERTIME BLUES

For many people, the arrival of sunny days and blue skies is a cause
of deep gloom

While there are many of us that welcome summer, and it is not far
away, there are others that hate the first glimpses of sunshine and
blue skies. It has been discovered by the psychologists that it is
not only the dark winter months that you can give rise to seasonal
affective disorder (SAD), with its symptoms of depression and
fatigue. On the other hand for the people that have summer (or
reverse) SAD, the sun coming out is not a cause to be happy.

By experts at America 's National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH)
there are looking into what actually starts the summertime blues. It
is less common than the winter form of SAD, but there are up to one
in three of the population that are said to have this, the summer
form is none the less affects roughly 600,000 people in the UK and
is no less incapacitating. There are some sufferers that go to great
measures to stay out of the sun's rays and warm weather.

Due to the low profile of this condition could mean that they be
unaware of the reason for their dips in mood when the clocks go
forward.

"We have had calls from quite a few people who have symptoms of
summer SAD but have never heard of it," says Amelia Mustapha, a
spokeswoman for the Depression Alliance. "It is an area that is
currently being looked at more closely, but because so little is
known about it, people are often misdiagnosed or not taken seriously
by their doctors when they complain of summer depression."

The researchers do know that when the weather is better, the worse
summer SAD is. This could be a reason why they say, why the
Australian Gold Coast and California , both of which have a
desirable amount of sunshine, and it is the home to some of the most
depressed people in the world.

WHAT CAUSES SUMMER SAD?

Professor Norman Rosenthal, a psychiatrist and SAD expert at
Georgetown University says, that nobody knows what causes it. "It
could be the increased light or the rising temperatures," he says.
There are other researchers that think that there could be a genetic
connection to SAD, as there are more than two thirds of patients
that were studied have a relative with a form of mental illness.

Some more of them think that the solution could be in the brain's
hypothalamus, the control centre for hormones. However, it's linked
to temperature sensors, and certain mental coping mechanisms could
be affected when the temperatures increase.

It has been shown by Professor Wehr in trials that people with the
condition are more likely to experience a considerable rise in body
temperature at night in contrast to non-sufferers. "When depressed
patients were wrapped in cooling blankets at night, their
temperatures dropped and their symptoms disappeared," Prof Wehr
says. "As soon as they went outside into the summer heat, their
depression returned."

HOW DO YOU KNOW IF YOU ARE SUFFERING?

It is believed that Winter SAD is linked o the lack of sunlight that
increases the production of the sleep-related hormone melatonin,
which has the results in overpowering feelings of tiredness and
depression. Frequently they are accompanied with a desire for
carbohydrate foods and weight gain.

For summer SAD the symptoms are different. They tend to begin in
early spring and carry on until the clocks are put back. The
sufferers tend to complain of feeling nervous and restless along
with having insomnia. They often feel uncomfortably warm at night.

In the severe case of both forms, the sufferers can get clinically
depressed. Double as many women suffer both forms of SAD and it
happens mostly during the reproductive years.

WHAT CAN YOU DO ABOUT IT?

There are simple measures that you can take, to tackle summer
depression according to Professor Rosenthal these include using
blackout curtains or blinds and to open windows at night when the
weather is warmer.

It could even help you to avoid the bright light by wearing
sunglasses. Also if you take cooling blankets or frozen hot water
bottles to bed and regular cool showers.

Prof Rosenthal also advises getting a thyroid check, as "there is
some evidence that people with summer SAD have low thyroid
function".

Amelia Mustapha says that exercise and a healthy diet are important
mood boosters. "If symptoms persist, it is important to see your GP
about your summer depression so that medication -usually anti-
depressants - can be prescribed."