Are you SAD?

Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), also known as winter depression or winter blues, is a mood disorder in which people who have normal mental health throughout most of the year experience depressive symptoms in the winter.

Since we have turned the clocks back I have not enjoyed traveling home in the dark. I find that it becomes harder and harder to exercise when it is dark out. I feel drained of energy and I just want to sleep. You just want to sit on the couch and eat comfort food while watching t.v. It sucks and although I don't get depressed I do kind of hibernate. Which is what this blog is all about fighting right? This is where routine and some sneaky tricks come into play.

First dedicate 3 nights a week to doing something fitness related. Be it walking, weight lifting or some wintry activity. This way you add energy into your week, you cannot make excuses to get out of these nights and eventually these nights will feel like just part of your routine.

Vitamins are important to include into your daily routine. Try to make sure that you are getting enough C and D. It will also help to make sure that you will get less colds this season.

Go out and buy yourself some bright fragrant flowers. Roses, tulips, lily's or carnations. Anything to liven up the place and fill the room with a nice scent.

My friend Kylie has a timer on a lamp in her bedroom that will turn on when her alarm goes off. It will trick your body into thinking that the light is sunlight. I've even heard of alarm clocks which to help wake you up are on wheels that once it goes off, it rolls off your night stand and you have to chase it to turn it off. LOL

It might also help if you try to go to bed earlier like farmers. They set their lives by the sun. when it gets dark they go to bed. It might not be as practical for us, however any extra bit of sleep we can get will help.

Any ideas on ways that you could do to help fight the winter blues?