COVER STORY
SHINING A LIGHT ON SEASONAL AFFECTIVE DISORDER BY CADEN MCDERMOTT ith the winter months finally arriving, the temperature starts to drop, the snow begins sticking to the ground and a holiday spirit still permeates our quaint downtown. However, for some students it is not a winter wonderland; instead they anticipate shorter days, less sunlight and seasonal depression Seasonal Affective Disorder, commonly referred to as SAD or seasonal depression, is a mood disorder characterized by depression that occurs at the same time every year, most commonly during the winter months. In the past, SAD was commonly referred to as the winter blues; it is important not to confuse the dip in mood that winter blues describes with the depressive levels of difficulty that occur with seasonal affective disorder. According to the Cleveland Clinic and SAMHSA, symptoms of SAD include anxiety, social isolation, and loss of motivation and interest in hobbies. For people who experience SAD in the winter, common symptoms are also excess sleepiness and overeating. “It’s hard to discern where seasonal affective disorder begins and where depression ends because the symptoms are so similar,'' school counselor Cody Masters said. “There is a spectrum, for sure; some people just get a little bit of the winter blues, while others feel it heavily.” What differentiates SAD from depression and the “winter blues” is it occurs around seasonal change and is not just isolated to the winter months. The effects and criteria of SAD is similar to depression, however, SAD repeats on a seasonal pat-
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8 blueprints WINTER 2021
Artwork by Sophia Crestale
tern. “We know every year around this time, there will be an uptick in students coming in for depression or anxiety, normally dealing with grades or exams,” Masters said. “There is a clear dip in grades right around the end of the second semester.” The drop in grades around the seasonal change can be attributed to
a loss of motivation from SAD. Many members of the high school struggle with motivation during winter mornings because of the darkness. Along with the grades, there is an evident drop in emotional state in students and staff. “I noticed in the winters that I would tend to have a dip in my mood,” science teacher Diane Mc-
