Elizabeth Vassilenko

Ms. Caruso
UWRT- 1102- 001
June 28, 2016
Do Different Seasons affect Every Individual Differently?
Every year when wintertime rolls around, I feel that I become a different person.
Lazy, unmotivated, unproductive, and gluttonous are some of the words I would use to
describe myself during that particular season. Growing up in Massachusetts, snowfall
was common, as well as brutal, and most times it would come in the late fall, before
anyone could even consider it winter season.
I then became interested to see if other people felt the same way as I do, leading
me to spend some time researching. I asked myself if different seasons affect every
individual differently? Since I am happy in the summer, my energy and productivity is
also higher; do other people feel the same way? Or are there people that feel the same
way about summer as I feel about winter? When researching, I came across several
articles that discussed something called Seasonal Affective Disorder, which they
shortened to S.A.D.
Doctor Norman Rosenthal defines it as a type of depression that occurs regularly,
every autumn and winter, when the days get short and dark, though it may occur at other
times as well (NormanRosenthal.com). His definition made me better understand the
condition, however, I was misunderstanding exactly when this occurs, as he stated that it
could occur at other times as well.
The Mayo Clinic Staff online went a little further than Doctor Rosenthal, as they
stated that S.A.D. begins and ends at about the same times every year. They continued

to explain, If youre like most people with S.A.D., your symptoms start in the fall and
continue into the winter months [] Less often, S.A.D. causes depression in the spring or
early summer (mayoclinic.com). Reading this source confused me even more because
both sources were leaving out important information, such as what percentage of people
feel more depressed in the spring/summer if most people with the disorder feel symptoms
in fall/winter?
New York Times looked into the issue and found that about 5 percent of adult
Americans are thought to have winter seasonal affective disorder (nytimes.com). This
condition is the exact opposite of S.A.D., as it is called reverse seasonal affective
disorder. Only 1 out of 10 people experience the symptoms of S.A.D. over the summer,
as the 9 out of 10 feel depressed, unproductive, and lack energy in the colder seasons.
Attempting to understand both S.A.D., reverse S.A.D., and their causes, I was striving to
understand what exactly causes such conditions to form and if anything could be done to
fix these feelings of depression.
Doctor Rosenthal discovered that those with S.A.D. lack environmental light,
have too much stress, and also are biologically predisposed to have the condition,
meanwhile the Mayo Clinic suggested that it could be the individuals biological clock
(circadian rhythm), a drop in serotonin levels (a brain chemical that affects mood), and
melatonin levels (plays a role in sleep patterns and mood). Both Doctor Rosenthal and the
Mayo Clinic recommended light therapy as a way to treat an individual effectively.
Doctor Rosenthal suggested that those with S.A.D. should spend more time outdoors
obtaining natural sunlight, using regular lamps on a cloudy or dark day, and treating
oneself with artificial light therapy by means of special light fixtures, also known as

light boxes (NormanRosenthal.com). The Mayo Clinic expanded more on light therapy,
also called phototherapy, where an individual sits a few feet away from a special light
therapy box, exposing them to a very bright light. Light therapy mimics natural outdoor
light and appears to cause a change in brain chemicals linked to mood
(mayoclinic.com). They continued to say that it is one of the first line treatments for fallonset SAD. It generally starts working in a few days to two weeks and causes few side
effects. Research on light therapy is limited, but it appears to be effective for most people
in relieving SAD symptoms. The Mayo Clinic also suggested medications such as antidepressant treatment.
Since I am an individual who is more inclined to take the holistic route instead of
the traditional route, I would prefer more natural ways of helping someone through either
S.A.D. or reverse S.A.D. such as going outside and enjoying the natural sunlight,
ensuring that your bedroom/environment has plenty of windows and takes in plenty of
sunlight, and lifting your mood by exercising regularly.
Since I was interested in finding more holistic ways of going about helping
someone with a seasonal affective condition, I decided to obtain more sources and do
more research on the topic. I accidentally came across an article from the Scientific
American magazine, titled Study Finds Seasonal Affective Disorder Doesnt Exist. In
the article, they discussed how the Centers of Disease Control (CDC) conducted a large
cross-sectional study of the U.S. population, aiming to determine the actual extent to
which depression changes with the seasons (scientificamerican.com). Researchers
thought if light is responsible for S.A.D., then looking at hours of sunlight should be a
sensitive way to detect people with S.A.D. among the general population. When

examining their survey results, they did not find any evidence for Seasonal Affective
Disorder. It is possible that it might have been just the survey itself, or that S.A.D. purely
stems from expectations. Someone hearing the words winter blues will already have
that negative association with winter implanted into their minds, causing them to act
more depressed during that season. Our preconceptions are always hard at work, so
survey data collected without any mention of seasonal mood disorders is a safer bet for
avoiding biases. A person experiencing major depression episodes in the winter might
need therapy for S.A.D. or they might need therapy to cope with holiday-time stresses
(scientificamerican.com).
From reflecting on myself as someone who dreads the up-coming winter season,
to gathering information on conditions such as S.A.D. and reverse S.A.D., to discovering
that there might not even be such conditions and could all be product of bias and
expectations, I have learned that it is solely based on the individual and their own specific
needs. Based on research and my own thoughts on the subject, Ive realized that many
factors could come into play such as genetics, personal preference with temperature and
climate, not obtaining enough sunlight versus receiving too much sunlight, and many
others that could change someones comfort level based on a particular season. Lastly, I
stopped at a quote that I had found while researching that made me think differently on
everything I was curious about. Dr. Thomas Wehr, a research psychiatrist at the National
Institute of Mental Health realized Weve kind of de-seasonalized ourselves as much as
possible. You know, we turn the lights on after dark, we turn the heat on in the winter, we
turn the air-conditioning on in the summer, and you could almost not notice. We tend to
think more in a linear way rather than in a cyclic way (nytimes.com).

It made me question if I am one of those individuals that has had a linear way of
thinking. It also made me question if S.A.D. and reverse S.A.D. are even legitimate
conditions; it made me more inclined to believe that they could simply be the causes of
bias and expectations brought upon all of us.

Works Cited
Rosenthal, Norman E., M.D. Seasonal Affective Disorder. Norman Rosenthal
MD. N.p..2013. Web. 28 June 2016.
Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD). Mayo Clinic. Mayo Clinic Staff, 12 Sept.
2014. Web. 28 June 2016.
Turner, Victoria Sayo. Study Finds Seasonal Affective Disorder Doesnt
Exist. Scientific American. N.p., 15 Mar. 2016. Web. 28 June 2016.
Ivry, Sara. "Seasonal Depression Can Accompany Summer Sun." The New York Times.
The New York Times, 13 Aug. 2002. Web. 28 June 2016.