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Seasonal Affective Disorder |
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Seasonal affective disorder is a form of depression that affects patients each year during the same season of weather. The most common type of seasonal affective disorder is known as winter-onset depression. The symptoms of winter-onset depression usually set in around late fall or early winter and can last until the summertime. The least common type of seasonal affective disorder is known as summer-onset depression. The symptoms last from late spring or early summer and typically goes away by the winter time. Seasonal affective disorder could be related to the changes in daylight from season to season.
Winter-onset depression has roughly half a million sufferers across the United States. A mild form of seasonal affective disorder is suffered by 10 to 20 percent of people. Seasonal affective disorder is more common in women than in men. It is possible for some children and teenagers to develop seasonal affective disorder but typically not before the age of 20 years old. The risk of developing seasonal affective disorder decreases for adults as they gain in age. In northern areas of the country, where the winter season drags on, it is more common for people to suffer from symptoms of seasonal affective disorder.
Not every patient who has seasonal affective disorder suffers from the same symptoms as other patients with the disease. The most common symptoms of winter-onset depression include the following:
- A change in appetite, especially a craving for sweet or starchy foods
- Weight gain
- A drop in energy level
- Fatigue
- A tendency to oversleep
- Difficulty concentrating
- Irritability and anxiety
- Increased sensitivity to social rejection
- Avoidance of social situations and a loss of interest in the activities you used to enjoy
The most common symptoms of summer-onset depression include the following:
- A loss of appetite
- Weight loss
- Insomnia
- Irritability and anxiety
- Agitation
- Increased sex drive
Other symptoms of seasonal affective disorder can include headaches, other physical problems, ongoing feelings of hopelessness and feelings of guilt. The symptoms of seasonal affective disorder continue to return each year at the same time of the year. The symptoms also tend to come and go at the same time each year. Patients suffering from any type of seasonal affective disorder can obtain treatment to help them handle the depression that they are dealing with.
Patients suffering from symptoms of winter-onset depression typically have this form of depression because of the lack of light during the wintertime. One of the most common treatments of winter-onset depression is to obtain light therapy treatment because increased light can improve the symptoms that the patient is suffering from. Tanning beds should not be used to treat winter-onset depression because it is not natural light. Other forms of treatment available for seasonal affective disorder are prescribed medications and behavioral therapy. A doctor might want to use light therapy, medication, and behavioral therapy together to help treat seasonal affective disorder if one of the treatments does not work by itself.
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