I suffer from mild to moderate Seasonal Affective Disorder. What that basically means is that when it's cold, rainy, snowy, otherwise shitty and looks like it does in the picture outside, I feel like crap both emotionally and physically. I feel like I'm trapped in a box, can't move, and like the cold will never cease. Fortunately I take anti-depressants so life is ok.National Mental Health Association, 2001
- Young people and women are at the highest risk for the disorder, but it can affect anyone.
- An estimated 25 percent of the population suffers from mild winter SAD, and about 5 percent suffer from a more severe form of the disorder.
- Three out of four SAD sufferers are women.
- The main age of onset of SAD is between 18 and 30 years of age.
- Seasonal affective disorder is estimated to affect 10 million Americans.
I've been dealing with SAD for a while now, and for the past couple of years, at the end of summer I start taking Effexor (a mild anti-depressant). It definitely helps, and there haven't been any noticeable side effects. In the past, every Fall I'd wake up after sleeping only one or two hours and stay up the rest of the night. This, coupled with the emotional roller coaster SAD creates, made me the crankiest bastard on the planet at work and home.
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