Archive for the ‘S.A.D’ Category

I love sunny weather instead of darn and dreary depressing weather!

Monday, January 5th, 2009

I’m in Florida

What a wonderful place with wonderful weather. I am certainly having a good time. My mood is stable and I look forward to each day. This has to do with the friends I’m visiting and … the weather. I leave next week and I’m literally dreading going back to dreary Portland, Oregon. It’s really a problem.

It’s not only seasonal affective disorder, it’s the gloom of it getting dark at three when I have to work on my own. Does this make sense? I will not leave Portland as its charms far outweigh my dislike of the weather, but I have to follow my own ideas and get ready for the inevitable. I just put a SAD article on the blog- you can read it a few entries below. I will follow what it says!

I’m actually teaching a class on how to prevent and manage SAD when I get back to Portland. So that will help.

Julie

Seasonal Affective Disorder Article

Tuesday, December 30th, 2008

 Hi, I’m currently in Texas where it is sunny. I wrote the blog below before I left.  Oh! It can be so hard to live in the Pacific Northwest where it often gets dark at 4PM!

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 Hello! Here is a link to a PDF file of my article on managing seasonal affective disorder.  As I write this- it’s 4PM here in Portland, Oregon and it’s basically getting dark outside. I miss the sun! Feel free to share this file with anyone you feel would be interested.  And let’s have a depression free winter!  Here is the link- you can click on it and save the article to your computer.

http://bipolarhappens.com/bhblog/blogpics/sad_article.pdf

Julie

Seasonal Affective Disorder and Bipolar Disorder

Monday, October 20th, 2008

oh yes, the dark weather has started here in Portland, Oregon. I am getting ready for the winter depression way ahead of time. I have found that preparation for symptoms is the best way to prevent symptoms!  Here are some tips:

What is your worst time of the day when the weather is dark? It’s around 4-7 for me. So… here is what I do:

Make sure I work in the morning when it’s light so that I have something fun scheduled at that time. I can have coffee with a friend (decaf of course!) or I can go see a movie. Yes, the theather is dark, but seeing a comedy is often a great antedote to the outside gloom.

- Exercise during your worst hours. This is often right after work for many people. Gyms have very bright lights and that helps. This is also a great time to schedule a walk with a friend.  You can get into the habit now.

I will do tips throughout the year. I have about five months of this to look forward to!

Julie