by Jeff Parsons

Created on: December 18, 2010   Last Updated: December 30, 2010

Seasonal Affective Disorder affects everyone in varying degrees.  

It typically happens around that time of the year when the days get shorter and the dark nights longer, also coinciding with many of the major holidays. The winter blues…

Per the Mayo Clinic, our biological clock may get disturbed by the change in sunlight levels. As a result, our body’s vital melatonin and serotonin chemical levels also drop, thereby affecting our sleep, mood and outlook on life.

When many people visualize a place relaxation and happiness, they think of Hawaii or Tahiti or someplace where the sun sparkles in the endless blue sky. That’s not just good marketing. There’s something about us that craves the nicer weather (usually).

And, many holidays occur in the middle of this time. Thanksgiving, Hanukkah, Christmas, Kwanzaa, New Years... we have a lifetime of holiday memories.

Often, we have memories of the past that are soft, warm and heart-felt. But, memories like that are often unrealistic – we tend to put a rosy glow on past events, so, how could our current lives even begin to compete with that?

Worse yet, we can also remember some of the less pleasant memories centered around the holidays. This happens all too easily, if we let them intrude into our lives. And there’s plenty of sadness to choose from, times from when we’ve been alone, or, surrounded by the chaos of family. We’ve all experienced these extremes: a) I’m all alone, no one likes me, what’s wrong with me?, or b) I don’t have a moment of free time to myself, I’m so sick of other people, why can’t I just be allowed to do what I want? 

Memories, good and bad, that reach out from the past and grab hold of us. And we may not be aware of them, for we often don’t live in the present.

We are so insanely busy – it’s that time of the year. And other people are busy, too. No time for being polite, considerate and friendly, despite many of the well-wishings that may be exchanged.

We are expected to be perfect, and yet, we’re still broken, fragile human beings. The perfect decorations, perfect host, perfect meal, perfect gifts…

And we’re told that we should be happy, merry and thankful. But, eventually, reality sets in. We have finances, shopping, social functions and family issues. We feel overwhelmed, anxious and depressed.

Because of those feelings, we often tend to escape the pain and begin to

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