“Seasonal depression” is a phrase uttered through chattering teeth as the mercury drops every year.
But as the term becomes a popular description of wintertime sadness, serious misconceptions are also being spread about the mental impact of winter, according to an expert.
WATCH THE VIDEO ABOVE: What actually causes seasonal depression?
Know the news with the 7NEWS app: Download today Arrow
The clinical term for seasonal depression is seasonal affective disorder (SAD) and it impacts anywhere between 0.3 per cent and 5 per cent of Australians.
SAD symptoms are very similar to typical forms of depression but differ in that they only present at a certain time of year — generally in autumn and winter, Strategic Psychology managing director Nesh Nikolic told 7NEWS.com.au.
“It’s basically a persistent low mood or a loss of interest in activities, fatigue, low energy, potentially oversleeping, difficulty concentrating, obviously low mood, hopelessness, worthlessness,” he said.
“All those common attributes that we would see with a depression.”
While hard to point to a direct cause, less time spent in direct sunlight is believed to be a major factor.
“It disrupts the circadian rhythm and we tend to spend a lot more hours in the dark during our personal time while the daylight hours would be at work,” Nikolic said.
“That in of itself could be a little bit depressing. Not everyone’s affected equally but it could act as a little bit of a trigger.”
While seasonal depression is a phrase thrown around as the mercury drops, not many people know about the clinical diagnosis of seasonal affective disorder. Credit: Steve Markham/AAP
Fewer opportunities to socialise and less exercise could also play a role, Nikolic added.
“All of those combined factors just mean that there might be a little bit of a prevalence to feeling flatter during those cooler months,” he said.
Seasonal depression misconceptions
While it’s a good thing the general term of seasonal depression is being spoken about, mostly online, Nikolic says it’s meant some misconceptions have also been spread.
He said the main issue was people not understanding the difference between SAD and simply feeling flat during the colder months.
“I certainly feel these effects but we all don’t meet the criteria of SAD,” Nikolic said.
“We all tend to feel flatter and the like, but whether it meets that (SAD) criteria it is a very different space and that’s a fairly important consideration.”
The main difference between the two is whether or not it has a significant impact, or “impairment”, on someone’s life.
“Impairment usually means that it is considerably affecting work, social or educational activities,” Nikolic said.
He added psychologists will specifically look to see if those impacts are only felt during a seasonal change, a point where “most people” usually fail to meet the criteria for SAD.
The misconception has also led to a number of people falsely claiming they have the clinical diagnosis in research efforts.
This means estimations as to how many people are affected range wildly between 80,000 and 1.3 million Australians.
People diagnosed with SAD are severely impacted by the onset of colder months. Credit: Getty
How to avoid seasonal depression
The general advice from Nikolic for those feeling more flat during the colder months to do “the opposite of what that season does”.
“So we’re wanting to increase our natural light exposure and stay active, whether that’s regular exercise, taking a walk, or yoga, just physical movement,” he said.
“(Continue) healthy routines rather than changing them in a different season … social connection, I think is also quite huge.
“That’s probably some of the holy grail in psychology across the board, being connected and bonded with others.”
For more serious cases, Nikolic said there are treatments available such as light therapy but urged people to see a psychologist if they’re struggling.
How a young man escaped the manosphere and is now helping teens
4 min read
Aussie mum turns ‘heartbreak’ into lifeline for estranged parents
4 min read
