Seasonal depression support thread

[A Cat in a Minefield]

For people feeling somewhat down during this time of year, what are your remedies to combat seasonal depression, an emotional slump or something similar?

Personally I try to force myself to interact with people at work and go do sports although I usually want to be left alone and do nothing. It fucking sucks but I still do it, because I know it's good for me. Especially doing sports can do wonders to elevate mood and emotional state and I usually never regret going.

Talking with family and friends also always helps of course and weirdly enough, cleaning and organizing stuff also helps me.

I have a tendency to just listen to audiobooks, slip into its world and forget the one around me. I used to do this a lot during this period of the year, but it only worsens the problem, so I don't do it anymore, even though it is an easy way out.

 

[Simp Biscuit]

Especially doing sports can do wonders to elevate mood and emotional state and I usually never regret going.

Roller-Fucking does wonders for the winter-sads.

 

[Gas Station Boner Pills]

If you're not being exposed to enough natural sun light because of gloomy winter weather, then supplementing with vitamin D can help.

 

[ロボ﹏§¤r﹏h¶rœ]

If you're not being exposed to enough natural sun light because of gloomy winter weather, then supplementing with vitamin D can help.

Bull-shit. Try feeding a depressed person vitamin D and see how they don't improve. It's the sunlight that affects mood, not the vitamin produced by exposure to sunlight - garbage scientists don't get that correlation =/= causation.

 

[WTBOnlineFather]

The dark and the gloom is one thing but I mainly just hate cold weather. It kills me from the inside. No clothes are warm enough but they weigh you down bad. Then having to remove several layers every time you go indoors is just really annoying. It all makes me want to stay home all day and not go anywhere which is what feels depressing.

Also daylight saving time is a fucking psyop and I'll die on this hill. It should be abolished and the summer time should become the default. Anyone who tries to convince you it's perfectly fine that for several months every year it's totally dark like midnight by the time you leave work at 4-5pm and you shouldn't be bothered about it is a government agent.

 

[Gas Station Boner Pills]

Bull-shit. Try feeding a depressed person vitamin D and see how they don't improve. It's the sunlight that affects mood, not the vitamin produced by exposure to sunlight - garbage scientists don't get that correlation =/= causation.

I'll rewrite my original post to soothe your raging autism.

If you live in a place that doesn't get much natural sun light in the winter (which can contribute to developing a vitamin D deficiency), and you find yourself feeling depressed (which can be a symptom of vitamin D deficiency), maybe consider looking into the possibility that you have a vitamin D deficiency. Some people can see improvement with supplementation if that's the case, but there is often not a one size fits all solution to depression.

 

[keytar]

I will make myself go outside even in bad weather, staying cooped up inside makes me feel down. Doing stuff with your hands is good too - cooking, crafting, playing music etc. Basically just keeping busy instead of moping.

 

[Dr. Henry Armitage]

The dark and the gloom is one thing but I mainly just hate cold weather. It kills me from the inside. No clothes are warm enough but they weigh you down bad. Then having to remove several layers every time you go indoors is just really annoying. It all makes me want to stay home all day and not go anywhere which is what feels depressing.

Also daylight saving time is a fucking psyop and I'll die on this hill. It should be abolished and the summer time should become the default. Anyone who tries to convince you it's perfectly fine that for several months every year it's totally dark like midnight by the time you leave work at 4-5pm and you shouldn't be bothered about it is a government agent.

This is just me but I find the dark and cold super comfy. Get under a blanket crack a window and play some vidya have a hot drink before going to bed and drifting off into a great sleep, kino. I'm with you on daylight savings time fuck that.
I do tend to get more depressed in the fall and winter. So I just end up sleeping a lot. Can't feel depressed when you're unconscious. I also take vitamin D it seems to help me.

 

[Tsukasa Kadoya]

My dad bought an old sunlamp for his hydroponic garden he tried to grow from a few years ago. It failed but the lamp does wonders for making me feel more energetic and happy.

 

[WTBOnlineFather]

Get under a blanket crack a window and play some vidya have a hot drink before going to bed and drifting off into a great sleep, kino.

I'm pretty sick of doing this exact thing which is why it doesn't work for me anymore, but I used to enjoy it just like you do especially in my early college days in the dorm. These days I still spend a fair bit of time watching stuff, occasionally playing some vidya, but I tend to feel I'd rather be doing anything else.

 

[anliteralidiot]

I got a light from Amazon for it. I can't tell if it's a placebo effect, or actually helping, but I do feel better.

 

[Dr. Henry Armitage]

I'm pretty sick of doing this exact thing which is why it doesn't work for me anymore, but I used to enjoy it just like you do especially in my early college days in the dorm. These days I still spend a fair bit of time watching stuff, occasionally playing some vidya, but I tend to feel I'd rather be doing anything else.

I think it still works for me because I spend all day working. I live in the sticks so I've always got something to do. Usually in the fall and winter I cut wood when I'm not at work. so when I can wrap up and play vidya I feel like I've earned it. I think as some one else said staying busy helps a lot.

 

[ATI Escapee]

The dark and the gloom is one thing but I mainly just hate cold weather. It kills me from the inside. No clothes are warm enough but they weigh you down bad. Then having to remove several layers every time you go indoors is just really annoying. It all makes me want to stay home all day and not go anywhere which is what feels depressing.

Absolutely. This year, I am trying something different. Letting my house get pretty cold, so the transition from indoors to outdoors isnt as shocking. Granted I live where winters are milder, so leaving the heat off isnt going to burst pipes or anything yet. And I have no kids and no real reason why I cant do what I want at home. So far its actually helped a lot and walking outside when its 40 now feels like walking outside when its 55, not as bad. And I dont have to peel layers off continuously, I just keep my hoodies and thick socks on indoors. I wfh too so dont have to bother as much going in and out of a climate controlled office/building/etc daily. The temperature consistency has genuinely helped a lot. As far as the darkness goes, I still havent figured out how to stop pacing around in a mild panic around 5:30pm when it's dark outside and my body is telling me its time to sleep but I have 5 hours in the day left... its brutal

 

[OrionBalls]

I'll be going to the Y to swim. A reason to leave the house is always important to have, and harder to maintain once the new year comes and there's less community commitments to fill. Plus, exercise and a hot tub. Seriously, exercise really helps, even light exercise like swimming. And having a reason to go out (Y membership isn't cheap) adds to the incentive.

 

[A Cat in a Minefield]

My dad bought an old sunlamp for his hydroponic garden he tried to grow from a few years ago. It failed but the lamp does wonders for making me feel more energetic and happy.

I got a light from Amazon for it. I can't tell if it's a placebo effect, or actually helping, but I do feel better.

I have used those lights during collage and they worked pretty well. I moved and I just stopped using them because I didn’t know where to put them. I’ll try to find a way to implement them back into my morning routine. It is quite violent having a strong lamp shine into your face when you wake up, but it definitely speeds up the process of waking up. I even had a timed connector that would power on the lamp on my nightstand at the same time my alarm would go off.

 

[Scolopendra Dramatica]

This thread is a God send. Thank you OP. I've been quietly slipping into one... or at least I think so, sometimes it's hard to tell whether I'm falling into a low or whether it's just living in fucking England.

On a serious note I find forcing myself to do housework usually helps. It keeps you busy and moving, even if you aren't happy about it you're staving off doomspirals and giving your body a little gentle exercise whilst stopping your surroundings from deteriorating. Nothing like a messy house to make you feel like everything's shit and you're losing control.

The hardest part is finding the motivation to get the ball rolling, I usually tell myself I'll do one thing then once I'm up I can start doing other bits whilst I'm there. Doesn't matter if you don't get it all sorted, just work in dribs and drabs. Slow and steady is much better than not at all.

At least until society finally figures out that we're meant to go into hibernation after all...

 

[A Cat in a Minefield]

I would 100% agree with you that the hardest part is to motivate yourself, to start something, anything. I have a fixed schedule when it comes to exercising and I tell myself there is nothing I can do about it, and I must simply go. And once I’m there it’s smooth sailing when I can ignore my feelings and concentrate on the exercise and the pain. This usually lifts my spirits and I manage to feel good during the rest of the evening.

The hardest part is finding the motivation to get the ball rolling, I usually tell myself I'll do one thing then once I'm up I can start doing other bits whilst I'm there.

I will try your method of starting small and snowballing it to bigger tasks. This might really help.

 

[Sergeant Major Buzzkill]

I'll be going to the Y to swim. A reason to leave the house is always important to have, and harder to maintain once the new year comes and there's less community commitments to fill. Plus, exercise and a hot tub. Seriously, exercise really helps, even light exercise like swimming. And having a reason to go out (Y membership isn't cheap) adds to the incentive.

You know, you got me wanting to swim now. Hope it's not to late to learn where I'm at...

 

[NoReturn]

You know, you got me wanting to swim now. Hope it's not to late to learn where I'm at...

Never too late to learn to swim. It's your birthright as a human and I used to know a couple old biddies that didn't learn until they were in their 60s but they loved it.

 

[MrTroll]

Stop complaining and just move to the southern hemisphere until winter is over, like a normal person. smh at sunlamps and audiobooks.