Anyone else with Summertime SAD? (or just other depression issues)

[xypathos]

This isn't a "I think I'm depressed, let me turn to a forum with a bunch of anonymous people for help" situation. I've seen psychologists and they're all pretty certain, I'm part of the 1% of the population that gets Summertime SAD as opposed to the far more well known winter variety.

I was with some fellow graduate students at a bar licking wounds over finals and sharing summer plans. Most are headed off to do research, vacations, etc - my department isn't big enough for summer courses even for us to TA for UGs so I'll be adjuncting at the local CC. I'm fine with that, in fact I'm super excited about it since its been my experience that summer students generally want to be there beyond needing to fulfill a requirement and with CC students they're all walks of life often taking the course for personal enjoyment.

Anyway, my group of graduate friends are all super stoked about summer as most people are. Me on the other hand ... summer is incredibly hard for me, mentally that is. I generally drop 40 pounds or so, up til 2-3Am because of insomnia, and largely just keep checking to calendar to see if it's fall yet.

To be honest, I've never run across someone else with Summertime SAD though have been told that while rare (1% as I was told), these individuals on anecdotal evidence seem to more often work in higher education, or so I've been told. Is there anyone else out there and what are constructive means you take to help? My fall back is to go on exceptionally long walks with my dog - 10+ hours in the mountains kind of walks.

Anyway, just checking in to see and hope everyone is well.

[rageofanath]

I mostly get bouts of 'regular' clinical depression, but the seasons affect me a lot. I read about the summer SAD symptoms last fall and they fit. I'm going to keep a close watch this summer now that I know what to look for, but last year I was trying some more general self-care and found a few useful things.

Symptom: appetite loss
I really don't eat a lot during the summer, especially as it gets hot and humid. That's a real problem for depression since less food = more depression symptoms guaranteed. Last summer I tried to find "light" foods that I could eat and get my nutrients without getting nausea, or that wouldn't be too hard to force myself to eat -- but also things that are easy to prepare so that I wouldn't fall into the "cooking is too hard because hard / eat something junk / don't get good nutrition / depression / cooking is too hard because depression" cycle So I ate a lot of salads, fish, fruit, and eggs. Poaching a fish is really simple, I just put salt and lemon on something super mild like haddock or cod (real cheap where I live) then put it on top of a salad. The other thing I ate a lot of was chicken salad, I got a good waldorf chicken salad recipe so its mostly apples + chicken with cranberries. I could prepare a huge bowl and it would last the week basically. The other thing I found that works is liquid calories. I can always drink, but I can't always eat, so loading up what I drink with fruit, protein, milk, etc, helps counteract the fact that a normal breakfast (... lunch... and dinner) is completely repulsive in the summer.

Symptom: weight loss
I'm underweight, so this is a big problem (can't afford to lose more than ~1-2 lb) and it compounds with appetite loss. Last summer I tried to work out more, I went to the gym to lift weights, then drank a full glass of lactose free chocolate milk right after. That stimulated my appetite enough that I didn't lose a lot, mostly compensated for by increased muscle mass. I had a bad winter and didn't work out (too lethargic + hibernation/sad mode + gre prep) so I'm going to start that up again now that finals are over.

Symptom: sleep problems
UGH still working on this one. I'm just getting into that stage now. I can feel my 'natural' sleep cycle creeping later as it stays light longer. I haven't found a solution to this one except to just wait it out or try to make those hours productive by reading or artmaking. I've also gotten good at figuring out which energy drinks don't make me sick. Anyone who has insight on this...

Symptom: regular depression symptoms + anxiety
Getting into nature as much as possible helps. I also tend to throw myself into work to fight the symptoms so I usually make a few good art pieces / writings and teach adjunct summer classes. Adjuncting in the summer is GREAT. The kids are always good and I get inspired to go home and work, which staves off the crushing hopelessness and anxiety and replaces it with good nice things. I hope this helps you in the summer, too. The biggest problem I have is commuting into the summer classes since tired driving is pretty dangerous, hopefully I can get afternoon classes set up this year.

So yeah, that's based on last years' "I want to feel better in the summer" experiments, this year I'll be targeting it even more towards SAD symptoms.

Edited May 19, 2016 by rageofanath

[sjoh197]

10 hours ago, xypathos said:

This isn't a "I think I'm depressed, let me turn to a forum with a bunch of anonymous people for help" situation. I've seen psychologists and they're all pretty certain, I'm part of the 1% of the population that gets Summertime SAD as opposed to the far more well known winter variety.

I was with some fellow graduate students at a bar licking wounds over finals and sharing summer plans. Most are headed off to do research, vacations, etc - my department isn't big enough for summer courses even for us to TA for UGs so I'll be adjuncting at the local CC. I'm fine with that, in fact I'm super excited about it since its been my experience that summer students generally want to be there beyond needing to fulfill a requirement and with CC students they're all walks of life often taking the course for personal enjoyment.

Anyway, my group of graduate friends are all super stoked about summer as most people are. Me on the other hand ... summer is incredibly hard for me, mentally that is. I generally drop 40 pounds or so, up til 2-3Am because of insomnia, and largely just keep checking to calendar to see if it's fall yet.

To be honest, I've never run across someone else with Summertime SAD though have been told that while rare (1% as I was told), these individuals on anecdotal evidence seem to more often work in higher education, or so I've been told. Is there anyone else out there and what are constructive means you take to help? My fall back is to go on exceptionally long walks with my dog - 10+ hours in the mountains kind of walks.

Anyway, just checking in to see and hope everyone is well.

Hey... I finally found another person that's kinda like me. I don't get summertime SAD, per se. Instead... I get "breaktime" SAD. Summer, Winter break, Fall break, Spring break. My brain is always on the go during the semesters, that when the time comes to shut down for a while, my brain becomes confused and depressed.

 

I find that keeping my brain active is the best defense. I have developed multiple hobbies. Painting, crafts, gardening, building stuff, etc. I also have a tendency to try to learn something. Like Spanish... or Matlab, or something that isn't related to your coursework... just something you think is interesting. Also, getting outside and taking walks is really great. But its better if you have a purpose. Are there any challenging hikes that you want to accomplish. Perhaps some kind of birdwatching where you go out with the intent to see specific animals. 

If you are near a decent sized city... there are often groups on "meetup" for all kinds of outdoor hobbies and activities. 

[gellert]

I don't have SAD, but I have medication-resistant depression, so I feel ya.  I've been in remission for a while, but lately I've just been so stressed and anxious that I'm worried it's resurfacing.  In some ways it's nice it's summer because at least I don't have to worry about as many rigidly-scheduled responsibilities, but on the other hand, it's miserable seeing how relaxed and happy everyone else is while I'm still toiling away under this dark cloud.

[Cheshire_Cat]

 

43 minutes ago, sjoh197 said:

Hey... I finally found another person that's kinda like me. I don't get summertime SAD, per se. Instead... I get "breaktime" SAD. Summer, Winter break, Fall break, Spring break. My brain is always on the go during the semesters, that when the time comes to shut down for a while, my brain becomes confused and depressed.

 

I find that keeping my brain active is the best defense. I have developed multiple hobbies. Painting, crafts, gardening, building stuff, etc. I also have a tendency to try to learn something. Like Spanish... or Matlab, or something that isn't related to your coursework... just something you think is interesting. Also, getting outside and taking walks is really great. But its better if you have a purpose. Are there any challenging hikes that you want to accomplish. Perhaps some kind of birdwatching where you go out with the intent to see specific animals. 

If you are near a decent sized city... there are often groups on "meetup" for all kinds of outdoor hobbies and activities. 

This is me. And I am really restless so that even when I had a 9-5 job, if I didn't have something to accomplish after work (such as passing my CPA or GMAT), I would get sad.  My dad is the same way.  He gets grumpy during breaks, and being grumpy is very unusual for him.  The best thing for me is to set goals and always have something going on. That doesn't mean I don't take a break and binge on Netflix sometimes, just that I always have something in the back of my mind and that I need to be doing. It sounds stressful, but for me it is actually comforting.  And the nice thing about Academia is that there is always another paper to publish.