Can Acupuncture Help To Treat Seasonal Affect Disorder?
Do you struggle with concentration, lethargy or depression each year as winter approaches? If you experience these 3 symptoms each year as winter is approaching then you might suffer from SAD.
Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) is a form of depression that occurs at the same time every year in response to changes in the day/night cycle. SAD typically peaks in the winter months and affects over 10 million people in the US. (Psychology Today)
While SAD is not fully understood, many believe that the problem is related to melatonin, a naturally occurring hormone produced in the pineal gland. As the days grow shorter, we produce more melatonin. Melatonin production helps to regulate our sleep. Ideally, we produce more melatonin at night when it’s time to sleep. For those with SAD, melatonin levels are too high during the day.
How do our melatonin levels get out of wack?
The industrial revolution has messed with our body clock. Not long ago, we slept when it was dark out and awakened when the sun rose. Now, with electric lighting we stay awake late, often to catch our favorite TV show. In the morning we are awakened (after too little sleep) by an alarm clock. Than, we spend our days working indoors and get very little natural light. We are no longer in sink with the sun.
Melatonin levels are also affected by age, stress and menstruation.
Acupuncture and The Summer Time Blues
In 1958 rockabilly artist Eddie Cochran recorded a smash hit called “Summertime Blues.” So, what are exactly are the summertime blues? Is there a cure for them?
Many of you are familiar with SAD (seasonal affective disorder) where sufferers experience a lack of energy and depression in response to winter’s cold weather and absence of light. To accommodate to longer nights, the body produces higher levels of melatonin over an extended period of time. Melatonin is a hormone that promotes sleep. If you are producing too much melatonin, you may have trouble waking up. Additionally, winter’s darkness reduces serotonin, a neurotransmitter produced in the pineal gland that is associated with feelings of wellbeing.
Summertime depression or Summertime Season Affective Disorder is a different matter. If the onset of summer marks the beginning of insomnia, sleep deprivation, loss of appetite and interest in food, weight loss and an uptick in feelings of anxiety, agitation and inappropriate anger, you could be suffering from summertime depression or summertime SAD. A hallmark of this disorder is the return of symptoms every year in the late spring or early summer. Read More
By David Frome • Acupuncture, Air Cleaners • • Tags: Seasonal Affect Disorder, Seasonal Affective Disorder, Summer Time Blues