Seasonal Depression

[c10edges 0]

Being in the middle of New Hampshire in boarding school is really starting to just wear me down. I was probably the happiest person ever here in the fall term, but winter is really really really becoming tough on me. I do not do any snowboarding/outdoor activity and I am really a outdoor person, but I hate the cold. I can not snowboard or do anything of that such for various reasons. Does anyone have any no bull-shit answers to help me out... anything at this point would help. O... by the way, Its Saturday night and I am stuck in my dorm.

[jtval 0]

Yea. dress in layers and go find something to do.

The other choice you have is to stay inside.
If you dress appropriately the cold isnt too bad.
(not my favorite either, though)

My photos

My Videos

[Amazon 7]

Snowshoes..... and warm clothing.. and get the hell outside.. even if it is cold.

[jimmytavino 16]

does this school offer any sort of activities, lectures? films or movies? sporting events?

if so find out about them, and PLAN to attend a few...

try to maintain good nutrition, AND you need to get some active excersize, every day...
Seasonal Affective Disorder can get the best of any 'happy and fulfilled" person. the long nights, lack of daily sunshine, and cold temps will conspire to rob of us enthusiasm and even energy.

You're not alone... but recognizing the situation, is a good first step towards limiting it's impact on you...
Is this your FIRST winter at this school??? are you FROM New hamp. or from another state with less harsh winters??...
if all else fails, plan your spring break for ANY place that has sunshine and big airplanes...
IMHO

jimmy in rochester NY ( where the temp is currently 4 degrees AND the wind is blowing....)

good luck.

[Teigen 0]

GET NAKED!!


No seriously, there must be something to do! Im in Norway and we get pretty white winters up here. Jump season ends in october and starts back up in late April.. Its my first year in the sport and i am knocking my head against the wall, sifting through youtube/facebook and skydivingmovies for my daily fix.

Im a freelancer so i have a lot of days where i just sit inside and do nothing.. And i could do just about anything for some better weather.

But yea, as Jimmy said try to find some sort of activity, whatever it is, it will help!!

[LuckyMcSwervy 0]

This is going to sound totally wacky but it really helped me....

When I was married, the house I lived in had this big floor to ceiling windows across the front of the house. The sun would shine in and warm up the carpet in those places like a MFer.

I noticed my kitties would lay there in the sun all afternoon. And they would turn over on their backs, show their bellies and purrrrrrrrrr. So, I think, "Why can't I do that??".

I put a blanket on the ground, grabbed a pillow and spread out on the floor in front of the windows in the glorious sunshine! I would lay there and nap or read for a couple of hours whenever I could. And the kitties would cuddle up with me. It was bliss.
Feeling the sunshine on my face and the heat of the sun all over my body was absolutely magical and therapeutic. I swear that's what kicked the winter blues for me.

My xH thought I was nuts. I told him I was pretending I was laying on a deserted beach and sunbathing nude. That statement got me our first trip to Jamaica that very winter.

Anyway, find a way to get some sunshine on your face. And SMILE when it hits you. And think good thoughts! Works wonders!!

Oh yeah, I was thinking about looking into one of those "natural light " lamps for my desk at work. I work in a gray cube farm. Ugh.

Always be kinder than you feel.

[prodiver913 0]

i am not into this shit, but I grew up in Hawaii and Florida and was ALWAYS in a good mood. Now that I am in PA, I have the seasonal depression too. You know what helps? Go to a tanning salon and lay in there for like 8 minutes. UV rays are a natural mood enhancer. I know the bed isn't natural, but it will definitely improve your mood and help with your depression. You can also try yoga and meditation. That works too. P.S: Now that I realized i hate the cold too, I am moving to FL this summer!!

I'm completely in favor of the separation of Church and State. My idea is that these two institutions screw us up enough on their own, so both of them together is certain death.

[Andy9o8 0]

I was in college in Upstate New York during the Blizzard of '77, which shut everything down for almost a week. When snow shuts things down in Upstate New York (where snow never shuts anything down), you know it's bad.
Back in the '70, we had sex and drugs to get us by, and we were always happy. And now we're running the world. You rotten kids just don't know how to live.

[gonzalesna 0]

Quote

I was in college in Upstate New York during the Blizzard of '77, which shut everything down for almost a week. When snow shuts things down in Upstate New York (where snow never shuts anything down), you know it's bad.
Back in the '70, we had sex and drugs to get us by, and we were always happy. And now we're running the world. You rotten kids just don't know how to live.

I don't know what you're talking about... I've gotten laid every day since I was in high school...

Some people refrain from beating a dead horse. Personally, I find a myriad of entertainment value when beating it until it becomes a horse-smoothie.

[c10edges 0]

Is this your FIRST winter at this school??? are you FROM New hamp. or from another state with less harsh winters??...
if all else fails, plan your spring break for ANY place that has sunshine and big airplanes...
IMHO

Quote

Yes, this is my first winter ever. I am from Houston and planing to go back for spring break.

GET NAKED!!

Quote

This made me laugh so hard because I got to go to my girlfriends house for 3 hours last night and The entire week i told her that i felt like getting naked and she kept telling me YOU ARE NOT GETTING NAKED IN MY HOT TUB. sure enough, when the door opened. Shorts dropped and made the coldest 20 yard run ever. :) That did make me smile. Good advice there.

I put a blanket on the ground, grabbed a pillow and spread out on the floor in front of the windows in the glorious sunshine! I would lay there and nap or read for a couple of hours whenever I could.***

I will give it a try if I can find a spot. THat sounds so good. Thanks!!

[airtwardo 6]

Anyway, find a way to get some sunshine on your face.

BINGO!
I grew up In Illinois, some winters you could go weeks without seeing the sun...moved to Sandyeggo, Ca and all the winter grumpies went away!

~ If you choke a Smurf, what color does it turn? ~

[rdesilets 0]

I see your profile says you are from Houston so I am assuming that is where you are from and just going to school in New England. Ironically I moved to Austin (specifically to get away from the cold and the dark) 12 years ago and it was one of the best things I have ever done in my life... I was a new person (atleast in the winter months).. The first thing I noticed about down here was the difference in weather systems.. Not only (obviously) that it was warmer, but cloudy days down here (when we have them) last for about 1 day whereas up in New England they can persist for 6 days.. When we do get a few cloudy days in a row the first thing it does is remind me about New England ..


Coming from someone who lived up there (Massachusetts) for 23 years (until I moved away when I was 23) I feel your pain and know exactly what you are going through.

I had those same feelings from Nov -> March each year I lived up there.

In my experience, to go outside and find something outside to do as that did not really help at all. The fact is that its dark, cold, and most of the time cloudy to boot.

The only thing you can do, honestly, is just deal with it or move away and go to school someplace south. It will get better as the days get longer .. but the fact is that it will be well into April up there until you start to get temperatures that feel "Warm" to you if you are from Texas.

On another more happy note, there is nothing like July 4th weekend up there when the sun is shining at 5am and you are getting ready to head to the DZ for first load...

[jimp 1]

Yeah, I know.

Pick up one of these: http://www.day-lights.com

It's just the cat's.

Looking back on many winters in the arctic never seeing daylight for months on end, I wish I'd had something like this then.

Happy days!

[pinkfairy 0]

Hi!

I was also quite badly affected with Winter depression, but not this winter, here is what helped me:

1. I got a pair of training shoes and started running twice a week, it was a real pain at first, but it helped me feel a lot better. Got my appetite back and slept better. It's really easy to start doing, and doesn't require a lot of time and money. And it also gets you out of the house.

2. Vitamin D supplement, I'm not really sure if it helped or if it was just placebo, but can't hurt to try.

3. Try to entertain yourself and have something to look forward to. See your friends and family (or keep contact via IM or similar) and make plans for fun stuff to do in the future.

I'm just a skydiver and a non-pro, you know what to do if it is really bad.


The days are already longer, and I heard some green finches sing outside today. And I'm gonna go jumping as soon as the clouds clear up on a weekend here
Good luck, and I hope you are happier soon
Edited to add:
Oh, and I live in Norway. We don't get alot of daylight in december.

Relax, you can die if you mess up, but it will probably not be by bullet.

I'm a BIG, TOUGH BIGWAY FORMATION SKYDIVER! What are you?

[anthonyfellows 0]

Quote

This is going to sound totally wacky but it really helped me....

When I was married, the house I lived in had this big floor to ceiling windows across the front of the house. The sun would shine in and warm up the carpet in those places like a MFer.

I noticed my kitties would lay there in the sun all afternoon. And they would turn over on their backs, show their bellies and purrrrrrrrrr. So, I think, "Why can't I do that??".

I put a blanket on the ground, grabbed a pillow and spread out on the floor in front of the windows in the glorious sunshine! I would lay there and nap or read for a couple of hours whenever I could. And the kitties would cuddle up with me. It was bliss.
Feeling the sunshine on my face and the heat of the sun all over my body was absolutely magical and therapeutic. I swear that's what kicked the winter blues for me.

My xH thought I was nuts. I told him I was pretending I was laying on a deserted beach and sunbathing nude. That statement got me our first trip to Jamaica that very winter.

Anyway, find a way to get some sunshine on your face. And SMILE when it hits you. And think good thoughts! Works wonders!!

Oh yeah, I was thinking about looking into one of those "natural light " lamps for my desk at work. I work in a gray cube farm. Ugh.

That's all good and nice Lucky, but how about this one ... Have a lot of sex! :) If it works for me, it must work for everyone else :P

Serious relationships turn into work after a few weeks and I already got a fucking job :)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
H.A.F. = Hard As Fuck ... Goddamn Amateurs

[Bolas 5]

Outdoor hot tubs in snow and cold rock!!!

Sure it's a cold trip running to the tub, but it feels so good once you're in.

After your body is so warm, you can practically stroll back inside.

Stupidity if left untreated is self-correcting
If ya can't be good, look good, if that fails, make 'em laugh.

[Bum 0]

As someone who's been there, done that, if things are bad my advice is to pony up for a light box. I use mine 30 minutes each morning while I web-surf and I'm good for the rest of the day. The key is regularity - your brain needs to get back to it's normal (summertime) daily rhythm of releasing the sleep/wake endorphins at the right time of day. It's amazing how much that makes or breaks your mood. I like the Sunlight Jr. and have had good experiences with the company Light Therapy Products over the years.

Light boxes work for most but not all people. If it's working you'll know it right away; within 3 days your mood and energy levels will be unquestionably improved. If not, return it because you need a different solution.

As previous posts mentioned, other things that help include: any form of daily exercise, being in whatever sun you can find, 8-10 minutes in a tanning bed for some reason (use the eye protectors, this is not a light box and will fry your retinas), excercise, and excerise. Endorphins are your friends.

Watch out for drugs and booze, they intuitively seem like they might help but really just make things worse for your non-synaptic brain. Save 'em for the spring boogies.

---
Doug the DZ Bum