How to Beat Back the Winter Blues

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Registered: 08-07-2007
How to Beat Back the Winter Blues
Wed, 01-27-2010 - 4:00pm

At northern latitudes, many people experience a lower mood, irritability, decreased energy, and changes in appetite, starting around now and lasting until spring. About 10 percent of people in northern states experience full-blown Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), with depressed mood, anxiety, irritability, fatigue, carbohydrate-craving, and weight gain or loss. Another 30 percent experience sub-syndromal SAD, a low-grade version of seasonal depression.


I have recommended light therapy for many of my clients to help boost mood in the fall and winter, with good results. However, I find it works best when combined with other approaches.


The details
Some recent research supports a combination approach to managing seasonal depression. A study published last month in the journal Behavior Therapy by University of Vermont psychologist Kelly Rohan, PhD, found that combining light therapy with cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT, which focuses on observing and changing your own thought patterns) worked better than using either therapy alone. She found an 80 percent remission rate for patients treated with combination therapy, compared with 50 percent when a single therapy was used. (Only 20 percent of patients who weren't treated at all saw their symptoms abate.)


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